The 13 American colonies celebrated Thanksgiving in 1777, in part to observe their victory over the British at Saratoga.
President George Washington proclaimed a National Day of Thanksgiving in 1789. President Thomas Jefferson declined to do the same when he was president.
Thanksgiving did become a national holiday, however, in 1863 when President Abraham Lincoln designated the last Thursday in November as a day of thanks.
The painting at left by Seth W. Steward (1844-1924), a native of Monson, entitled "Home for Thanksgiving," depicts what quickly became a tradition around the holiday: returning home for a family celebration.
