This week Americans will give thanks and gratitude as they gather together to celebrate the Thanksgiving Day holiday with family and friends.
Some people will sleep in, others will get up early in the morning for an annual Turkey Trot run or to watch a Thanksgiving Day parade.
Me? I plan to be in midtown Detroit in the morning to watch America’s Thanksgiving Day parade in person.
I know many friends are heading to Ford Field in Detroit to see the Detroit Lions (hopefully!) win their third football game in a row.
After the run, parade, or football game, people will sit down to enjoy a traditional dinner with roast turkey, mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie, and all the trimmings.
Afterwards, they’ll share stories, catch up on family news, or maybe gather together and watch Miracle on 34th Street or A Christmas Story.
And the day will be over. On Friday, it’s back to work or off to shopping.
But did you know the first Thanksgiving in 1621 was celebrated over three days? Or that over 100 people, including 53 colonists and 93 Wampanoag, attended the feast?
Learn more about the history of the holiday and our modern Thanksgiving traditions in this infographic from Column 5 and the History Channel.
Or if you prefer, check out the text version of the infographic.
How We Celebrate Thanksgiving, By the Numbers
Then
- The first Thanksgiving was a three-day harvest feast held by the founders of the Plymouth colony in 1621
- Governor William Bradford sent four men to hunt birds for the feast, and the Wampanoag contributed five deer
- Over 100 people attended the celebration, including 53 Colonists and 90 Wampanoag
- Food for the feast: swan, goose, duck, shellfish, venison, lobster, pumpkin (not pie), turkey, stuffing, and corn
Now
- Food for the feast: turkey, stuffing, corn, yams/sweet potatoes, pie, ham, cranberry sauce, potatoes
- Americans eat an average of 13.3 pounds of turkey per year
- Close to 46 million turkeys are eaten at Thanksgiving, compared to 22 million at Christmas and 13 million at Easter
- Nearly 88 percent of Americans eat turkey at Thanksgiving
Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade
- Started in 1924 by Macy’s employees, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade once featured live animals such as camels, goats, donkeys, lions, elephants, bears, and tigers. Giant helium balloons replaced this menagerie in 1927.
- More than 3.5 million spectators watch the parade in person, and over 50 million viewers watch on television
- Blowing up the parade’s 15 large balloons takes nearly 300,00 cubic feet of helium. That’s the volume of 3.4 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
Black Friday
- In 2011, some 226 million people went shopping on Black Friday weekend, spending $52 billion. The average shopper spent nearly $400.
- Nearly 25 percent of Black Friday shoppers hit the stores by midnight
- Over 120 million Americans now shop online on Cyber Monday
For those who celebrate, I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day!
