Thanksgiving in White House style: A brief history of turkey pardon tradition in US

On Monday, US President Joe Biden reprieved two turkeys, thus formally opening the holiday season. The pardon ceremony, which was held on the South Lawn of the White House, carried forward an age-old tradition that has roots in the late 1800s. While most Americans celebrate Thanksgiving by devouring turkeys with their loved ones, the White House does it differently.

Every year, the POTUS pardons a lucky turkey ahead of Thanksgiving. Although it is difficult to pinpoint when the tradition exactly began, the White House Historical Association states that the earliest record comes in an 1865 dispatch by Noah Brooks, a White House reporter who stated that former president Abraham Lincoln granted clemency to a turkey in 1863.

Turkeys have often served as ideal gifts to presidents in the history of America, especially after a poultry dealer named Horace Vose started delivering healthy turkeys to the White House in the 1870s. Years later, the common public caught up to the tradition, and started gifting poultry to presidents as an act of adoration and nationalism.

The age-old ties between turkeys and American presidents

Many experts believe that the turkey pardon tradition began during the tenure of Harry S. Truman, the 33rd President of the United States. This is because he was the first American president to get a turkey from the Poultry and Egg National Board and the National Turkey Federation.  

Fast forward to 1963, a Washington Post article used the terms "pardon" and "reprieve" while describing what John F. Kennedy said about a turkey. "Let's keep him going,” the 35th US president said. However, during Ronald Reagan's tenure, sending the turkey back to a farm became a common practice, specifically after 1981.

In 1989, President George H. W. Bush said of a turkey, "But let me assure you, and this fine tom turkey, that he will not end up on anyone's dinner table, not this guy -- he's granted a Presidential pardon as of right now -- and allow him to live out his days on a children's farm not far from here.” Since then, America has continued to celebrate Thanksgiving through presidential pardon ceremonies, a large feast with families, and eagerly awaiting the next big holiday, Christmas.