This family letter from the Civil War provides a glimpse into what the holiday was like for Union soldiers Nanci Edwards Vidal Thom was my great-great uncle. On Christmas Day, 1861, the 19-year ...

When President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed the National Thanksgiving Day holiday in 1863, he had peace on his mind. The United States was in the midst of The Civil War.

When Abraham Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863, he was thinking about the Civil War. And so was the woman who had lobbied for Thanksgiving for years.

Thanksgiving Was Born From America’s Struggles The history of the Pilgrims, the early Republic and the Civil War shaped a holiday that calls for gratitude in the face of challenges. By ...

Lincoln obliged and a few weeks later, on Oct. 3, 1863 — during the height of the Civil War — he issued the Thanksgiving Proclamation. Ever since, the country has celebrated Thanksgiving Day.

The Thanksgiving story most of us hear is about friendship and unity. And that's what Sarah Josepha Hale had on her mind when she sat down to write a letter to President Lincoln in 1863, deep into ...

Lincoln’s Thanksgiving proclamation of October 1863 during the Civil War sought to unite the country and build peace. The writer Sarah Josepha Hale had written Lincoln encouraging him to make ...

Thanksgiving in Alabama: 'Yankee' holiday didn't catch on until after Civil War After the war, Alabama had Thanksgiving on Dec. 7, 1865, and Nov. 29, 1866; Previously the South thought of it as a ...

Lincoln's idea of Thanksgiving for Charity and Peace is something we should always make a part of the holiday. Skip to content. All Sections. Subscribe Now. 39°F. Sunday, February 23rd 2025 ...