Did you know Abraham Lincoln was the first president in U.S. history to pardon a turkey? The first instance of a president pardoning a turkey dates back to the Civil War.

As the story goes, Lincoln’s son, Tad, had become fond of a turkey named Jack. When presented with Jack for the family feast on Christmas, Tad adopted the bird as a pet. He exclaimed that he could not bear to see the animal killed – so President Lincoln submitted to his son’s request, created a reprieve for the turkey in writing, and gave it to Tad.

Thanksgiving itself was created by Abraham Lincoln in a proclamation following the Battle of Gettysburg. Lincoln’s message of observance of Thanksgiving was to both north and south, commending, “-all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged-“.

The first documented photo-op with the turkey happened in 1947 during the Truman administration, though there is no documented evidence of Truman pardoning a turkey. President John F. Kennedy informally pardoned a turkey in the Rose Garden in 1963. Ronald Reagan was the first president to use term pardon when sparing the turkey, meant as a joke. The modern turkey pardon as an annual tradition began in 1989 when George H.W. Bush pardoned a turkey and sent him to a children’s farm.

Thanksgiving is a time when Illinois families get together to give thanks and share a meal after a long year of hard work. Happy Thanksgiving!