(NEXSTAR) — Halloween has come and gone, the trees have nearly dropped all of their leaves and there’s a certain chill in the air, which means Thanksgiving must be drawing near.
But a quick look at the calendar shows Turkey Day really isn’t that close at all — we still have two weeks before we can carve the bird and stuff ourselves with mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie.
Landing on November 28, Thanksgiving is only barely happening in November this year. It’s much later than last year’s November 23, 2022’s November 24 and slightly later than 2025’s November 27.
Why is Thanksgiving so late this year? Blame the calendar — or, if you prefer, Congress.
When did the U.S. start observing Thanksgiving?
The U.S. has recognized Thanksgiving since 1789, when President George Washington issued the first proclamation designating the first national day of Thanksgiving. It fell on Thursday, November 26, that year and was technically known as a “Day of Publick Thanksgivin,” according to The Center for Legislative Archives.
For the next seven decades, the president would issue Thanksgiving Proclamations, though the dates would vary, so much so that there were times when it didn’t happen in November. The Library of Congress reports President James Madison proclaimed Thanksgiving on two different dates — September 9 in 1813 and March 16 in 1815.
In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln put the proverbial foot down and proclaimed Thanksgiving would be held on the last Thursday of November. There was an exception: President Andrew Johnson is rumored to have forgotten to issue a Thanksgiving Proclamation in 1865 and had to quickly put it on the first Thursday of December that year.
Why Thanksgiving is no longer on the last Thursday of November
For another roughly seven decades, Thanksgiving was celebrated on November’s final Thursday.
But then in 1939, Thanksgiving was set to be held on Thursday, November 30, the last day of the month. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, concerned the late date might shorten the Christmas shopping season — and the nation’s economic recovery, issued a proclamation to move Thanksgiving to November’s second to last Thursday.
The move was not exactly well-received, according to the Archives.
Presidents partaking in Thanksgiving traditions
President Joe Biden holds the microphone to Chocolate, the national Thanksgiving turkey, during a pardoning ceremony at the White House in Washington, Monday, Nov. 21, 2022. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) President Donald Trump pardons Corn, the national Thanksgiving turkey, in the Rose Garden of the White House, Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2020, in Washington, as first lady Melania Trump and National Turkey Federation Chairman Ron Kardel of Walcott, Iowa, look on. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) President George Bush and Shannon Duffy, 8, of Fairfax, Va., look over a Thanksgiving turkey presented to the president at the White House in Washington by the National Turkey Foundation, Nov. 18, 1989. The 50 pound bird is 28-weeks, three-days old and comes from Detroit Lakes, Michigan. The president and Mrs. Bush donated the turkey to Frying Pan Park, a petting farm in Virginia. Others are unidentified. (AP Photo/Marcy Nighswander) President-elect Bill Clinton slices the Thanksgiving Day turkey at Dorcas House, a shelter for battered and abused women and their children in Little Rock on Nov. 26, 1992. (AP Photo/Scott Applewhite) President Bush looks up at members of the press after “Liberty” the turkey jumped as Bush was petting him during the annual pardoning of the Thanksgiving turkey in the Rose Garden of the White House Monday Nov. 19, 2001. At left is Stuart Proctor, president of National Turkey Federation. Liberty will spend the rest of its life at a petting farm in Herndon, Va. (AP Photo/Doug Mills) President Barack Obama, with his nephews Aaron Robinson and Austin Robinson, and National Turkey Federation Chairman John Reicks, pardons the National Thanksgiving Turkey, Tot, Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2016, during a ceremony in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington. This is the 69th anniversary of the National Thanksgiving Turkey presentation. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) President Harry S. Truman squints as he fingers the wattle of a 35-pound Tom Turkey from Oregon as it is presented to him, in the White House Rose Garden on Nov. 18, 1952. The turkey, intended for the presidents last Thanksgiving in the White House, was made by representatives of the Poultry and Egg National Board and the National Turkey Federation. At right is Loren Johnson, of Corvallis, Ore., one of the group making the presentation. (AP Photo/Henry Griffin) President Lyndon Johnson is seated at head of table, as family and friends gather for Thanksgiving Day dinner at the LBJ Ranch in Stonewall, Texas, Nov. 25, 1965. Clockwise from the president are: Amelia Taylor, wife of T.J. Taylor III, the first lady’s nephew; J.C. Kellam; Lela Martin, cousin of the president; Pat Nugent, Luci’s boyfriend; Luci Baines, and Lady Bird Johnson. Lynda Bird is seated to the president’s right and Press Secretary Bill Moyers. Man with glasses is Earl Deathe. (AP Photo/Charles Tasnadi) President Ronald Reagan seems started as John Hendrick, President of the National Turkey Federation, presents him with the annual live ?Thanksgiving Turkey? Friday, Nov. 16, 1984 in Washington at the White House. The live bird was not in the mood to stand still for the photographers who were present for the event. (AP Photo/Scott Stewart)
While 32 states agreed and rescheduled the holiday in their state, 16 others refused and left Thanksgiving on the last Thursday of November. It remained that way until 1941, when Congress finally agreed to put Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November.
How late can Thanksgiving be?
We’re experiencing the latest possible date for Thanksgiving, November 28, this year.
The earliest it can be is November 22, which we won’t see until 2029. A November 28 Thanksgiving won’t happen again until 2030.
Next year, Thanksgiving will fall on November 27.
