🦃 Thanksgiving Day Countdown
When is Thanksgiving Day?
Thanksgiving Day always falls on the fourth Thursday in November. The countdown above always points to the next occurrence and rolls over automatically once it has passed.
The history of Thanksgiving Day
Thanksgiving traces back to a harvest festival shared by Plymouth colonists and the Wampanoag people in 1621. President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed it an annual national holiday in 1863 during the Civil War, and in 1941 Congress permanently fixed the date to the fourth Thursday in November.
It's traditionally celebrated with a large family meal centered on turkey, along with parades (most famously Macy's in New York City) and American football, and it kicks off the winter holiday shopping season.
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Frequently asked questions
Thanksgiving Day always falls on the fourth Thursday in November.
Yes — it's an official U.S. federal holiday, so banks, schools, post offices and most government offices are closed.
It traces back to a 1621 harvest feast shared by Plymouth colonists and the Wampanoag people, though it wasn't an annual national holiday until Lincoln's 1863 proclamation.
Congress fixed it to the fourth Thursday in November in 1941, standardizing a date that had varied by presidential proclamation for decades.