The history of Thanksgiving traditions at the White House can be traced back more than 160 years to President Abraham Lincoln, who played a pivotal role in establishing the national holiday. It was during Lincoln’s time in office that he issued a proclamation calling for the celebration of Thanksgiving, overcoming the efforts of previous presidents who had also attempted to establish the holiday.
According to the National Park Service, the official designation of Thanksgiving as an annual national holiday can be attributed, in part, to writer Sarah Josepha Hale. In 1827, as the editor of “Boston’s Ladies Magazine,” Hale began writing essays advocating for the establishment of a national holiday. Finally, on September 18, 1863, she wrote a letter to President Lincoln urging him to use his presidential powers to create Thanksgiving Day.
Lincoln heeded her call and a few weeks later, on October 3, 1863, amidst the Civil War, he issued the Thanksgiving Proclamation. Since then, the country has celebrated Thanksgiving Day. However, it wasn’t until a bill passed by Congress on December 26, 1941, that the holiday was officially set to fall annually on the fourth Thursday in November.
Thanksgiving at the White House has traditionally been a relatively quiet affair, marked by the tradition of pardoning lucky turkeys from their fate of ending up on the dinner table. The first recorded instance of a turkey pardon was believed to have been carried out by President Lincoln himself, as documented by White House reporter Noah Brooks in an 1865 dispatch. Lincoln had granted clemency to a turkey named Jack, belonging to his son Tad Lincoln, which had been destined for the family’s Christmas dinner in 1863.
However, the practice of sending pardoned presentation turkeys to a farm to live out their days did not become a regular occurrence until Ronald Reagan’s presidency in the 1980s. Prior to that, presidents would occasionally receive turkeys from the poultry industry and decide not to eat them without an official pardon.
The White House Historical Association notes that the tradition of sending presentation turkeys to the president became standardized in 1981, and the pardoning ceremonies quickly became a national sensation. By 1989, the annual tradition was firmly established, with President George H.W. Bush delivering the now-famous line to the pardoned turkey, “He’s granted a presidential pardon as of right now.”
Most recently, President Biden issued the final two turkey pardons of his term, bestowing them upon Peach and Blossom, who were then sent to live out the rest of their lives at Minnesota’s Farmamerica as poultry ambassadors for agricultural students.
Apart from the turkey pardoning spectacle, presidents typically spend Thanksgiving in a manner similar to households across the country. The tradition of holding Thanksgiving gatherings at the White House dates back to 1878 when President Rutherford B. Hayes hosted a large dinner with his family and private secretaries, followed by hymn singing in the Red Room and an invitation for African-American staff to enjoy their own Thanksgiving meal in the State Dining Room.
Through economic hardships and times of war, presidents have always made time for family during Thanksgiving. President Woodrow Wilson’s first Thanksgiving meal during World War I was a modest one without cranberries, reflecting the austere times. In recent decades, presidents have adopted the practice of celebrating the holiday at their preferred vacation spots outside the White House.
For instance, President Ronald Reagan visited his family ranch in Santa Barbara, California in 1985, and President-elect Donald Trump spent most of his first term Thanksgivings at his Mar-a-Lago estate in West Palm Beach, Florida. President Biden has continued the tradition of spending Thanksgiving with his family in Nantucket, Massachusetts, a tradition that the Biden family has upheld for over 40 years.
In conclusion, the Thanksgiving traditions at the White House have evolved over the years, but the core values of family, gratitude, and reflection remain constant. From President Lincoln’s establishment of the national holiday to the modern-day turkey pardoning ceremonies, Thanksgiving at the White House continues to be a time-honored tradition that reflects the spirit of unity and thankfulness.
