Thursday Trivia Challenge: Thanksgiving Edition

Do you think you know all about Thanksgiving? Here is a short set of trivia questions to test your knowledge.

Questions
1. True or False? Abraham Lincoln was the first president to suggest the idea of Thanksgiving and then he created the national holiday.
2. True or False? Thanksgiving is held on the last Thursday in November.
3. This year a rare occurance happens when Thanksgiving and Hannukah are held at the same time. How long would you have to wait for that to happen again?
4. Speaking of big numbers, How many feathers does a typical turkey have?
5. Speaking of turkeys, a founding father thought turkeys would make a better national bird that the Bald Eagle. Who thought that?
6. Who started the tradition of making a wish on the wishbone?
7. The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is a great annual tradition. What year was the first one held?
8. Another great Thanksgiving tradition is football. What year was the first college Thanksgiving football game held? NFL?
Bonus Question
How did Black Friday get it's name?

Answers
1. False-Abraham Lincoln did make Thanksgiving into a national holiday, however Thanksgiving has been celebrated going back to pilgrim times (of course).  George Washington, John Adams and James Madison all issued proclamations urging Americans to observe days of Thanksgiving.

2. False-It's true that frequently Thanksgiving is held on the last Thursday in Novemeber. When Abraham Lincoln signed the holiday into law it was to be held on the last Thursday of November. In 1939, the National Retail Dry Goods requested that President Roosevelt move the holiday to the 4th Thursday of November to extend the Holiday shopping season. He did and we have celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November ever since.

3. 79,043 years

4. Approximately 3000 feathers

5. Benjamin Franklin endorsed the turkey over the bald eagle as our national bird. He argued that the turkey was “a much more respectable Bird,” “a true original Native of America,” and “though a little vain and silly, a Bird of Courage.”

6. The wishbone is a very old tradition going back to the ancient Etruscan people who lived in Rome before the Romans. They believed chickens could grant wishes. Touching a wishbone would make the wish come true. When the Romans moved in they added a little violence to the ritual. Instead of touching the wishbone tow people would try to pull it apart, breaking the bones. Whoever got the joint that was whose wish would come true. The Romans took the practice with them to Roman England and it carried on through the ages, being adopted by the English colonists in their early Thanksgiving feasts.

7. 1924

8. On Thanksgiving Day in 1876 the newly formed American Intercollegiate Football Association held its first championship game. In 1934 The NFL began hosting games as well with a battle between the Detroit Lions and the Chicago Bears. Since then, the Lions have played every Thanksgiving except those during World War II.
Bonus Answer
Black Friday got its name by being the date, traditionally when retail merchants start seeing a profit for their years work. In other words, black ink instead of red. Although with all of the chaos of shopping on that day we can understand why you might have thought the day was named for doom and gloom.

Scoring
O-2 correct: You know a bit, but still have a lot to learn.
2-4 correct: You know a fair amount about Thanksgiving.
4-6 correct: You know a lot about Thanksgiving. Pass some of that knowledge on to someone.
6-8 correct You are an Thanksgiving star! Great job!

Sources: http://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/thanksgiving-quiz
http://www.chicagonow.com/tween-us/2013/11/11-thanksgiving-trivia-tidbits-for-fun-at-your-family-feast

This is a monthly feature. To submit your appliance trivia questions (and answers) email: rob.m@wlmay.com with the subject line "trivia".

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