November 22 , 2017

Things You May Not Know About Thanksgiving

Families across America gather to munch on turkey and all the trimmings, watch football and gear up for Christmas. 

We've put together some interesting facts about Thanksgiving so you and your can have something different to talk about around the table besides politics, religion, and grumpy uncle Max.

Thanksgiving Day facts:

• Benjamin Franklin wanted the turkey to be the national bird, not the eagle.
• Americans eat 46 million turkeys each Thanksgiving.

• Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin's first meal in space after walking on the moon was foil packets with roasted turkey.
• The heaviest turkey on record, according to the Guinness Book of Records, weighs 86 pounds.
• Californians consume the most turkey in the U.S. on Thanksgiving Day!
• Female turkeys (called hens) do not gobble. Only male turkeys gobble.
• The average turkey for Thanksgiving weighs 15 pounds.
• Campbell's soup created green bean casserole for an annual cookbook 50 years ago. It now sells $20 million worth of cream of mushroom soup.
• The first TV dinner was was introduced at Thanksgiving in 1953. It was sliced turkey and all the trimmings of course.
• There are four places in the United States named Turkey. Turkey Creek, LA; Turkey, TX; Turkey, NC; and Turkey Creek, AZ.
• Wisconsin, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington are the top cranberry growing states.
• Illinois, California, Pennsylvania and New York are the major pumpkin growing states. Production was over 1.5 billion pounds.
• North Carolina, California and Mississippi produce the most sweet potatoes. Over 2.4 billion pounds.
• Largest pumpkin pie ever baked weighed 2,020 according to the Guinness Book of Records.
• The first national Thanksgiving football was played in 1934 between the Chicago Bears and the Detroit Lions.
• The first Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade took place in New York City in 1924.

Have a Safe and Happy Holiday!

Sources: Smithsonian Magazine, CNN, History.com, allparenting.com