- The iconic balloons of the Macy’s Day parade require some real engineering to succeed. The average balloon takes 12,000 cubic feet of helium and requires 90 handlers just to keep it on the ground.
- Turkey is a pretty big deal. More than 248 million turkeys were raised in 2014. The combined weight would exceed 7 billion pounds, which is the weight of nearly 10 Empire State Buildings.
- There are actually three towns in the U.S. named Turkey. They are Turkey, TX, Turkey Creek, LA and Turkey, NC. Each town has fewer than 500 residents.
- Engineering the ideal Thanksgiving meal takes more than you think. Creating the optimal plate requires proper analysis and a well executed strategy. Check out Dan Pashman’s article on how to engineer the ideal Thanksgiving plate.
- Jingle Bells, composed by James Pierpont in 1857, was actually written for a Thanksgiving children’s performance. The song was so well received that it was performed again at Christmas and has been associated with that Holiday ever since.
- George Washington was the first to create a National Day of Thanksgiving, but it did not have a set date - each state scheduled its own Thanksgiving at different times. Seventy-four years later, Abraham Lincoln made it a National Holiday, to be recognized on the last Thursday of November.
- Long before the times of pilgrims, native Hawaiians celebrated Thanksgiving with a festival that lasted four months. Makahiki would take place from November through February and both war and work were forbidden.
- Which of the three common utensils (spoon, knife, fork) was not present at the first Thanksgiving? The fork. While the pilgrims likely had spoons and knives, the fork was introduce years later by Governor Winthrop of Massachusetts and really didn’t catch on until later in the 18th century.
- In 1934, Detroit Lions owner G.A.Richards scheduled a Thanksgiving Day football game against the Chicago Bears, who at the time were World Champions. This publicity stunt - aimed at growing the fan base - was the start of a new tradition. The Lions have played on Thanksgiving Day ever since.
Despite the crazy history of Thanksgiving traditions, one thing has always remained the same - it is a time for all to come together, to recognize and be thankful for all that we have.
From all of us at Superior Engineering - Happy Thanksgiving!