Sarah Hale – Thanksgiving Day

New England Travels Blog [1]

Sarah Josepha Buell Hale (October 24, 1788 – April 30, 1879) campaigned for a national day of gratitude and family celebration, which was first proposed by President George Washington in 1789.

Sarah Hale portrait in “Godey’s Lady’s Book” [2]

Sarah was a writer and also the ‘editress’ of the popular woman’s magazine, “Godey’s Lady’s Book”. In her editorials she campaigned repeatedly for the national holiday gathering popular support.

“We are most happy to agree with the large majority of the governors of the different States–as shown in their unanimity of action for several past years, and which, we hope, will this year be adopted by all–that the LAST THURSDAY IN NOVEMBER shall be the DAY OF NATIONAL THANKSGIVING for the American people.”[3]

She petitioned six different US Presidents for the national holiday. Finally Abraham Lincoln in 1863 after receiving a letter from Sarah issued a “Proclamation of a National Day of Thanksgiving”. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed into law in 1941 that the fourth Thursday in November would be officially “Thanksgiving Day”.

Jean Leon Gerome Ferris: The First Thanksgiving [4]

On Thanksgiving Day we should thank “Tisquantum” of the Patuxet tribe, aka “Squanto”, for aiding the Pilgrims of Plymouth, Massachusetts in November 1620.

References:

[1] Historical marker for Sarah Hale

[2] Portrait of Sarah Hale (public domain)

[3] Excerpt from November 1858 Godey’s Lady’s Book

[4]The First Thanksgiving painting (public domain)

National Woman’s History Museum – Thanksgiving Holiday: One Woman’s Crusade

Godey’s Lady’s Book (text) provided by The University of Vermont

Wikipedia on Sarah Josepha Hale

Biography of Sarah Hale

Article about Godey’s Lady’s Book

History of Massachusetts: The First Thanksgiving:

History of Massachusetts: About Pilgrim William Bradford’s journal