Many Have the Day Off
Most government offices, businesses, schools, universities, colleges, and other organizations are closed on Thanksgiving Day. Many offices and businesses allow staff to have a long four-day weekend for Thanksgiving, so these offices and businesses are also closed on the Day after Thanksgiving Day. Public transit systems usually do not operate on their regular timetables.
Thanksgiving Day is one of the busiest periods for travel in the USA. This can cause congestion and overcrowding. Seasonal parades and busy football games can also cause disruption to local traffic.
US Holiday Since 1863
Thanksgiving Day has been an annual holiday in the United States since 1863. However, not everyone sees Thanksgiving Day as a cause for celebration.
Beginning in 1970, a group of Native Americans and their supporters have staged an annual protest for a National Day of Mourning at Plymouth Rock in Plymouth, Massachusetts on Thanksgiving Day. American Indian Heritage Day is also observed at this time of the year.
There are claims that the first Thanksgiving Day was held in the city of El Paso, Texas, in 1598. Another early event was held in 1619 in the Virginia Colony. Many people trace the origins of the modern Thanksgiving Day to the harvest celebration the Pilgrims held in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621. However, their first true thanksgiving was in 1623, when they gave thanks for rain that ended a drought. These early thanksgivings took the form of a special church service, rather than a feast.
In the second half of the 1600s, thanksgivings after the harvest became more common and started to become annual events. However, they were celebrated on different days in different communities and in some places there were more than one thanksgiving each year. George Washington, the first president of the United States, proclaimed the first national Thanksgiving Day in 1789.
History for November 30 - On-This-Day.com. 1700 - 8,000 Swedish troops under King Charles XII defeated an army of at least 50,000 Russians at the Battle of Narva. King Charles XII died on this day. 1782 - The United States and Britain signed preliminary peace articles in Paris, ending the Revolutionary War.
History for November 30 - On-This-Day.com
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-VR