Thanksgiving Turkey 3

THE TURKEY IN AMERICA :
A National Symbol

English settlers brought their taste for the holiday turkey with them to the New World. Turkey soon became associated with Thanksgiving, the only significant holiday celebrated in New England.

As New Englanders moved west and south with the expansion of America, Thanksgiving became a national holiday. Thanksgiving joined the two previously- established annual national holidays, George Washington’s Birthday and the Fourth of July, to form a trio of holidays dedicated to celebrating American history and the American experience.

As one of the preeminent symbols of Thanksgiving, the turkey quickly became entwined with Uncle Sam, patriotism, and America.

The Eagle, proud bird! May he soar round and round
As he mounts up still higher and higher!
While the turkey, we trust, will still roost near the ground
Within reach when occasions require.
For we're sure there is none who will care to deny,
In the name of good cheer and good living,
That the eagle's all right for the Fourth of July,
But the turkey's the bird for Thanksgiving.

From : Our National Bird by Nixon Waterman, 1905.