Thanksgiving Day in Canada has been a holiday on the second Monday of October since 1957. It is a chance for people to give thanks for a good harvest and other fortunes in the past year.
Background Information
The native peoples of the Americas held ceremonies and festivals to celebrate the completion and bounty of the harvest long before European explorers and settlers arrived in what is now Canada. Early European thanksgivings were held to give thanks for some special fortune. An early example is the ceremony the explorer Martin Frobisher held in 1578 after he had survived the long journey in his quest to find a northern passage from Europe to Asia.
Many Thanksgivings were held following noteworthy events during the 18th century. Refugees fleeing the civil war in the United States brought the custom of an annual Thanksgiving festival to Canada. From 1879, Thanksgiving Day was held every year but the date varied and there was a special theme each year. The theme was the "Blessings of an abundant harvest" for many years. However, Queen Victoria's golden and diamond jubilees and King Edward VII's coronation formed the theme in later years.
From the end of the First World War until 1930, both Armistice Day and Thanksgiving Day were celebrated on the Monday closest to November 11, the anniversary of the official end of hostilities in World War I. In 1931, Armistice Day was renamed Remembrance Day and Thanksgiving Day was moved to a Monday in October. Since 1957, Thanksgiving Day has always been held on the second Monday in October.
Thanksgiving is an optional holiday Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia. French-speaking Quebeckers also consider Thanksgiving an unimportant holiday, or simply a day off.
While the actual Thanksgiving holiday is on a Monday, families get together on any day during the long weekend; take a weekend getaway; or enjoy the cottage one last time before closing it up for the winter.
Take the Quiz below to find the Coordinates for the Final
Cache can be found at: N 43 2A.BCD W 079 4E.FGH
Canadian Thanksgiving is celebrated…
the first Monday in October. A = 9
the second Monday in October A = 8
same day as American Thanksgiving, the fourth Thursday of November. A = 7
The purpose of this holiday is to celebrate…
the arrival of the Pilgrims in the New World. B = 7
the start of the turkey hunt. B = 8
a successful harvest. B = 9
Before their arrival in Canada, European farmers celebrated the harvest by filling what with fruit and grain?
A wicker basket C = 2
A trunk C = 0
A goat's horn C = 1
The first Thanksgiving ceremony was held in Canada by which European explorer?
Martin Frobisher D = 3
John Cabot D = 4
Henry Hudson D = 5
Thanksgiving was first declared a national holiday in Canada in what year?
1957 E = 5
1879 E = 6
1867 E = 7
Which group of Americans arrived in Canada, introducing "pumpkin pie" to the Canadian ceremony?
Draft-dodgers in the 1960s F = 4
Slaves during the American Civil War F = 5
Americans loyal to England during the American Revolution F = 6
What is the French name for Thanksgiving?
“L’action de grace” G = 2
“Le jour de grace” G = 3
“Le jour de la gratitude” G = 4
Which French explorer introduced Thanksgiving to New France?
Jacques Cartier H =6
Samuel de Champlain H = 7
Paul Chomedy de Maisonneuve H = 8
Good Luck and Happy Caching!
