What do you get when you put together ornate cornucopias, well-dressed family photos and jello everything?
It’s the Fabulous Fifties!
The 1950’s were revolutionary. Millions of families flocked to the suburbs and were gushing over their new home appliances, like the pop-up toaster, the non-stick pan, and colorful kitchen aid products. Little Johnnie and Susie were playing with the brand new Mr. Potato Head, and before the decade would end the Barbie doll would make its debut on the market.
The United States was changing significantly - World War II was over and many American families were reaping the benefits of the postwar economy. The Civil Rights movement was materializing, beginning with the landmark Brown v. Board of Education case, desegregating public schools in 1954. The Korean war was just beginning, and President Eisenhower was taking office.
Naturally, due to all the momentous things happening, the holiday season in the 50’s was filled with celebration and anticipation of the marvelous things the decade would bring. This background information can help us wrap our heads around some of the quirky, exciting, and downright bizarre Thanksgiving traditions that were popular in the 1950’s.
Dress to Impress
At a 1950’s Thanksgiving feast, you’d better wear your Sunday best! Many families dressed to the nines for the big day, including those who were designated to the “kiddie table.”
Reliving the Past
During the month of November, it was common for schools and student organizations to present reenactments of the first Thanksgiving to audiences of doting parents and proud teachers. The students would dress up as pilgrims and Native Americans, acting out important events in the Thanksgiving story. Many schools today are still putting on these Thanksgiving programs around this time of year!
Jello Everything?
The 1950’s were a time of change and progress - however, I don’t think that gives people a pass to do something as strange and flat out heinous as making a “shrimp aspic mold” for Thanksgiving supper. Yes, the people of the 1950’s were nuts about jello. Jello was not new by any means. The first powdered gelatin was patented in 1845, more than 100 years before this fabulous decade. Yet, something in the air around Thanksgiving time in the 50’s compelled enough people to make interesting jello concoctions in numbers. Chicken mousse, cranberry souffle salad, and anyone? No thanks, I’ll pass.
Mind Your Manners
Kids at the Thanksgiving table during the 1950’s were expected to be on their best behavior. No elbows on the table, no smacking your teeth, and absolutely no back talk. Watch this video from the era that instructs children on proper behavior at the dinner table.
The Big Parade
The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has been a family favorite to watch since its inception in 1924. The parade was first broadcast via radio, before the television was ushered into every American family home. In the 50’s, families would sit around their televisions and watch the famous parade on the morning of Thanksgiving before all the cooking and preparing began. In the 50’s, the parade included some floats and balloons that were a spectacle of the times.
Cool Birds
The 1950’s introduced the frozen, already prepared turkey to American grocery store freezers. Before the mass production of these frigid birds, customers would have to go to their local butcher and select a turkey for purchase. The process of selecting the perfect bird, and ensuring that you got your turkey before the butcher sold out, made Thanksgiving a harrowing process for many. With frozen turkeys, this problems was solved, and turkey day became expressly easier. Here is a video from the 50’s that instructs homemakers how to handle and cook the newest craze:
Something’s Fishy
A proper 1950’s kitchen isn’t complete without some experimentation. Thanksgiving back then wasn’t just for turkey - many families incorporated seafood into their feasts. Shrimp co*cktail loaf and clam dip were typical dishes of the decade.
Cornucopias Galore
Today it’s easy to find a cornucopia near Thanksgiving at your local craft store. In the 1950’s, it was even easier. In fact, you could catch a cornucopia on a table or maybe even a skirt around the holidays. Ceramic cornucopias to hang on your wall were also popular during the decade.
The 1950’s were fabulous and innovative. It was a time of change and convenience, which is reflected in the unique Thanksgiving traditions of the time. While we’re all glad that some things were lost in time (shrimp jello, anyone?), some 50’s traditions are good enough to keep alive today. Will you be participating in any of these traditions this holiday season?
FAQs
A traditional 1950s Thanksgiving would have included a turkey fresh from the oven, but leftovers would have looked nothing like the sandwiches we enjoy today. Instead, leftover turkey was likely to be tossed into a gelatin mold and served cold for dinner in the upcoming weeks.
What was the Thanksgiving meal in the 1950s? ›
Thanksgiving back then wasn't just for turkey - many families incorporated seafood into their feasts. Shrimp co*cktail loaf and clam dip were typical dishes of the decade.
What food was missing from the first Thanksgiving? ›
It is also worth noting what was not present at the first Thanksgiving feast. There were no cloudlike heaps of mashed potatoes, since white potatoes had not yet crossed over from South America. There was no gravy either, since the colonists didn't yet have mills to produce flour.
What was on the menu at the first Thanksgiving answer key? ›
Although turkeys were indigenous, there's no record of a big, roasted bird at the feast. The Wampanoag brought deer and there would have been lots of local seafood (mussels, lobster, bass) plus the fruits of the first pilgrim harvest, including pumpkin. No mashed potatoes, though.
How much did Thanksgiving cost in 1950? ›
Here's what a Thanksgiving meal cost the year you were born
| Year | Total meal cost: | Inflation adjusted cost: |
|---|
| 1949 | $5.62 | $45.43 |
| 1950 | $5.91 | $47.25 |
| 1951 | $6.48 | $48.49 |
| 1952 | $6.52 | $47.82 |
68 more rowsNov 21, 2018
New England and Virginia colonists originally celebrated days of fasting, as well as days of thanksgiving, thanking God for blessings such as harvests, ship landings, military victories, or the end of a drought. These were observed through church services, accompanied with feasts and other communal gatherings.
What President refused to declare Thanksgiving a holiday? ›
Thomas Jefferson was famously the only Founding Father and early president who refused to declare days of thanksgiving and fasting in the United States.
What was actually eaten at the first Thanksgiving? ›
So, to the question “What did the Pilgrims eat for Thanksgiving,” the answer is both surprising and expected. Turkey (probably), venison, seafood, and all of the vegetables that they had planted and harvested that year—onions, carrots, beans, spinach, lettuce, and other greens.
What was dinner in the 50s? ›
1950s Dinners
There was no such thing as the keto diet in the 1950s—meat and potatoes reigned supreme. You'd find hearty main dishes like Salisbury steak, beef stroganoff and meat loaf on a '50s dinner menu, plus scrumptious sides. Casseroles were also popular, particularly those featuring seafood or ham.
What did they eat on the Mayflower? ›
During the Mayflower's voyage, the Pilgrims' main diet would have consisted primarily of a cracker-like biscuit ("hard tack"), salt pork, dried meats including cow tongue, various pickled foods, oatmeal and other cereal grains, and fish. The primary beverage for everyone, including children, was beer.
President Abraham Lincoln had declared Thanksgiving a national holiday on the last Thursday in November in 1863 and tradition dictated that it be celebrated on the last Thursday of that month.
What three unlikely foods were probably eaten at the first Thanksgiving? ›
But history shows none of these food items (well, maybe the turkey) were actually present at the first Thanksgiving in 1621. So what was actually served at the first Thanksgiving, you ask? Try duck, goose, lobster, eel, and many more items found nowhere near the average Thanksgiving dinner table today.
What did pilgrims drink? ›
Suggesting that the Pilgrims might have had a tipple at their first Thanksgiving, Mancall says that the Pilgrims came from more urban places in England, where beer or cider was always preferred over water because it was more sanitary.
What did the Pilgrims eat for dessert? ›
According to some accounts, early English settlers in North America improvised by hollowing out pumpkins (which were plentiful), filling the shells with goat's milk, honey, and spices to make a custard, then they roasted the filled pumpkins whole in hot ash from the fire.
Did the Pilgrims have sugar? ›
Vinegar pickles and sugar were also occasionally used to preserve foods. As the years passed, the Pilgrims began to grow more food than they needed to eat.
What happened on the original Thanksgiving? ›
A Harvest Celebration
During the autumn of 1621, at least 90 Wampanoag joined 52 English people at what is now Plymouth, Massachusetts, to mark a successful harvest. It is remembered today as the “First Thanksgiving,” although no one back then used that term.
What is the old tradition Thanksgiving? ›
People used to pull apart the wishbone of the turkey on Thanksgiving day. In many households in the 20th century, the breaking of the wishbone was a hallowed tradition. It also promoted patience and being together with family longer because only a dry wishbone would break!
How did they celebrate the real Thanksgiving? ›
The group likely played marksmanship games and ran footraces in between dining on venison, geese, turkey and other fowl. The festivities lasted three days, since it took the Wampanoag a solid two to walk there. So yes, overnight holiday guests are deeply rooted in Thanksgiving tradition.
What was in a typical Thanksgiving menu in the 1960s? ›
Today I will be sharing the main course which had the following items on the menu: roast turkey, cornbread stuffing, mashed potatoes, green beans almond, classic Waldorf salad, cranberry sauce, and rolls.
