Did you know that the woman who wrote the poem beloved by children, “Mary Had a Little Lamb”, played a prominent role in the establishment of Thanksgiving Day as a national holiday? Sarah Josepha Hale, a prominent writer and magazine editor in her day, had been lobbying to establish a national thanksgiving holiday for many years prior to the Civil War. She believed that creating a fixed, national Day of Thanksgiving would be a unifying measure that would help to ease the tensions escalating between the North and the South. She wrote many editorials on the subject, urging Americans to “put aside sectional feelings and local incidents” and rally around the unifying cause of Thanksgiving. On October 3, 1863, about a week after receiving a letter from Sarah urging him to declare a national holiday, President Lincoln issued the proclamation that he hoped would “help heal the wounds of the nation.” He declared Thanksgiving Day a national holiday celebrated every year on the fourth Thursday in November. Even if we cannot share our traditional holiday together with family and friends in 2020, let’s share a spirit of gratitude and unity this Thanksgiving Day. From all of us at Alta Pro, we are thankful for your support. Happy Thanksgiving!
P.S. Our office will close at 3PM Wednesday, November 25th in honor of the Thanksgiving Holiday.
