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10 Things You Might Not Know About Thanksgiving

By Alaina Nutile on Thu, Nov 27, 2014 at 8:00 am

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Sure, we all know that Thanksgiving- the blessed holiday we're celebrating today - is an annual excuse to eat ourselves into oblivion, watch football, argue with the fam, and drink a boatload of beer.

But there are also a handful of things you might not know about Thanksgiving, like that groups of Native Americans actually celebrate Un-Thanksgiving Day each year at Alcatraz.

Here are a few lesser-known facts we've compiled to help keep the day in perspective.

Enjoy, and pass the Christmas Ale.

Slideshow

10 Things You Might Not Know About Thanksgiving

1. At the first “Thanksgiving” back in 1621, the pilgrims of Plymouth and the native Wampanoag ate a whole heckuvalot of clams and lobster. Seafood was in enormous supply in that area back then.

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2. You can visit Plymouth Rock, but it’s depressing. Or a perfect analogy, depending on your level of cynicism. The rock is basically in jail, behind bars. It was put there to keep tourists like you from soiling it with dirty hands, or walking away with a piece of it stuck to sticky American fingers.

3. The night before the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade in New York, the Upper West side of Manhattan is like one big family-friendly street party — all to celebrate the blowing up of those giant balloons. People from all over come out to watch, drink cider and hot cocoa, and even eat NYC’s favorite street foods: roasted nuts, hot dogs, and shawarma.

4. The first NFL game on Thanksgiving took place in 1934, when the Detroit Lions played the Chicago Bears.

5. Thanksgiving wasn’t an official holiday until Abraham Lincoln made it so in 1863, in the midst of the Civil War.

6. Minnesota is the leading turkey-producing state in the nation. In 2012, the state contributed over 44 million birds to the nation's supply.

7. The world's largest pumpkin pie was made two months before Thanksgiving in 2010 in New Bremen, Ohio. It weighed 3,699 pounds and had a 20-foot diameter.

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About The Author

Alaina Nutile

Alaina Nutile is the Web Editor who oversees all digital content and social media initiatives for Cleveland Scene Magazine and Detroit Metro Times. Before joining the staff in June 2013, she interned at Business Insider in New York City, and at La Hora in Quito, Ecuador. Alaina is a graduate of Kalamazoo College...