The First Thanksgiving Under The Current Law (1942)

Thanksgiving Day Proclamation - The President

Hymn, Onward Christian Soldiers

Psalm 103

Hymn, Faith Of Our Fathers

The First Lesson, Deuteronomy VIII

Hymn, Come, Ye Thankful People, Come

The Second Lesson, Matthew VI:25-end

Hymn, Eternal Father, Strong To Save

The Lord's Prayer

The Collect for Thanksgiving Day

Prayer for The President

Prayer for the Nation

Prayer for All In the Service of Our Country and Our Allies

Prayer for Peace

Prayer for Those Who Mourn

The General Thanksgiving

A Special Thanksgiving

The Grace

Hymn, Battle Hymn of the Republic

The Benediction

This service was conducted in the East Room of the White House on 26 November 1942 at 11 AM Eastern and broadcast nationally. The President's Proclamation called the attention of the nation to the joint resolution of Congress of 26 December 1941 designating the fourth Thursday in November each year as Thanksgiving Day.

Previously, all presidents since Lincoln had year by year designated the last Thursday in November as Thanksgiving Day. In 1939 the last Thursday in November would be the 30th, and President Roosevelt was persuaded by business leaders that a longer Christmas shopping season -- once upon a time it was considered inappropriate to start the Christmas season before Thanksgiving -- would help the economy out of the Depression with more sales and declared Thanksgiving the next to last Thursday in November that year. The new Thanksgiving was widely derided as "Franksgiving" -- Roosevelt's first name being Franklin -- and had no force of law, some states observing the new "Democrat" Thanksgiving and some the old "Republican" Thanksgiving. A Commerce Department report in 1941 found no significant difference in sales from the change, and Congress passed a law designating the fourth Thursday in November, which some years is the last and some the next to last Thursday, as Thanksgiving Day every year, so 1942 was the first Thanksgiving under the current law -- by which time a new world war had maybe redirected things away from retail sales to graver matters.

Funny, Washington didn't have a thing to say about sales, Christmas, or Christmas sales regarding Thanksgiving when "Washington" referred to a man and not a city. Neither did President Lincoln, whose example had been followed since.