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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. |
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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.
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From : Our National Bird by Nixon Waterman, 1905.
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