As much as possible, I try to learn something new about US history.   It's a combination of natural interest and the reality that I wasn't born here.   In other words, there are a lot of stories that I didn't hear about when I was a kid.   For example, I did not heart the one about Washington's cherry tree!

A few weeks ago, I learned about Sarah Josepha Hale, the lady who wrote to President Lincoln to make our current Thanksgiving Day a reality.   Let's  recall the story:

The outbreak of war in April 1861 did little to stop Sarah Josepha Hale’s efforts to create such a holiday, however. She continued to write editorials on the subject, urging Americans to “put aside sectional feelings and local incidents” and rally around the unifying cause of Thanksgiving. And the holiday had continued, despite hostilities, in both the Union and the Confederacy.

In 1861 and 1862, Confederate President Jefferson Davis had issued Thanksgiving Day proclamations following Southern victories.

Abraham Lincoln himself called for a day of thanks in April 1862, following Union victories at Fort Donelson, Fort Henry and at Shiloh, and again in the summer of 1863 after the Battle of Gettysburg.

Shortly after Lincoln’s summer proclamation, Hale wrote to both the president and Secretary of State William Seward, once again urging them to declare a national Thanksgiving, stating that only the chief executive had the power to make the holiday, “permanently, an American custom and institution.”

Whether Lincoln was already predisposed to issue such a proclamation before receiving Hale’s letter of September 28 remains unclear. What is certain is that within a week, Seward had drafted Lincoln’s official proclamation fixing the national observation of Thanksgiving on the final Thursday in November, a move the two men hoped would help “heal the wounds of the nation.”

Maybe Thanksgiving would have happened without Sarah Josepha Hale's editorials and letters.   It appears that President Lincoln had such a day in mind to heal the nation.  

Nevertheless, it took a little push from this amazing lady to move the issue on the president's agenda.  It confirms that one person can make a difference, especially if your heart is in the right place.

So I'm thankful this year that I learned a new story about the US.    Wonder what I will learn about next?    It's an amazing country and people.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of the AT family!   I'm grateful to be a part of it!

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