The 1730 Thanksgiving Day Proclamation was issued at the beginning of Jonathan Belcher's governorship of the colonies of Massachusetts and New Hampshire, which lasted from 1730 to 1741. As previously mentioned, Governor Belcher issued at least another Thanksgiving Day Proclamation in 1749, when he was governor of the colony of New Jersey. (Though he was officially chosen to be governor of New Jersey in 1746, he was on a trip to England at the time, and he didn't get to land on American shores again until 1747--hence the confusion that sometimes occurs about the beginning date of his New Jersey governorship. Since he was actually commissioned in 1746, however, the proper official beginning date for his New Jersey governorship is 1746. He died Governor of New Jersey in 1757.)

President Washington heeded Congress's request and on Wednesday, 14 October 1789 the Massachusetts Sentinel published Washington's General Thanksgiving Proclamation. "While there were Thanksgiving observances in America both before and after Washington's Proclamation, this represents the first to be so designated by the new national government."

Whatever tends to strengthen the ties of kindred and friendship, or to promote offices of kindness and charity, claims the attention and favor of all good citizens; and among the very few usages which deserve the title of National Customs, our Thanksgiving festival may in this sense be ranked as first./ As such, its origin and history are worthy of inquiry, and as an act of Civil Authority, the Proclamation for its observance may be deemed entitled to a more permanent form of record than the casual chances of the periodical press.

The in-gathering of the fruits of the earth, has from time immemorial, and among all nations, been a season of gladness; and with such as possessed definite views of their obligations to the Unseen Providence that governs the Universe, has been accompanied by such forms of devotion as were deemed most appropriate to express their gratitude for this bounty, and their dependence for its continuance. In like manner, special instances of national success, of preservation from impending calamities, or of relief from grievous afflictions, have been made the subjects of such form of Thanksgiving as the occasion might suggest, and calamities have been sought to be averted or removed by Public Fasting and Prayer. Among most civilized countries these occasions have been marked by public ordinances directing the time and manner of observance.

We find at an early period of New England history, that special occasions of prosperity or calamity, were continually ascribed to the smiles or frowns of Providence, and often made the occasion of Public Thanksgiving or Fast; and the tone of religious sentiment which prevailed among the early Colonists, led in the infancy of their settlement, to the annual observance of each. The former was usually in autumn, and the latter in spring.

... At an early period in the Revolution, the Continental Congress adopted the custom of invoking the Divine Favor by Public Fasting, Humiliation and Prayer, and the days thus appointed were generally in the spring months. It always suspended its own sessions upon the days thus set apart, when the public exigencies would allow.

... The Journals of the Continental Congress contain eight several appointments of Thanksgiving days, and the resolutions expressing the wishes of Congress upon this subject, were in the form of recommendations to the Executive heads of the State governments, reciting in appropriate terms, the occasion which prompted the observance, and the favors which a Benign Providence had conferred upon them as a people. With one exception, Congress suspended business upon the days it had appointed for Thanksgiving.

... The official announcement of peace between the United States and Great Britain, was regarded by Congress and our State Legislature as an event demanding a public expression of gratitude to the Supreme Ruler of the Universe, and at the joint suggestion of the Executive and Legislative authorities, it was unanimously decided to celebrate the happy event by a Solemn Thanksgiving.

... This custom is now observed in nearly every State and organized Territory in the Union.

• Hough, Franklin Benjamin, 1822-1885. In press and will be published early in November, the Thanksgiving Proclamations of the revolutionary period, of Washington's administration, and of the national and New York state governments at the close of the last war with Great Britain; together with Those of the Governors of New York, from 1795 to 1858, and of the Governors of the several States for 1858, with an Historical Introduction and Notes.. Albany, 1857. The edition will be limited to 200 copies.

I ... do hereby appoint Thursday the fifth day of December next, to be observed as a day of Publick Thanksgiving throughout this State; directing and exhoring all Denominations and Orders of People, to present their Thank-Offering unto the Fountain of all our Mercies, and pay their Vows unto the ost High, who giveth Songs inthe Night of their Affliction: -- To bless and praise His Name for all the Bounties of His Providence, and the far richer Blessings of His Grace, in which we share. --In an especial Manner to ascribe Blassing and Praise, Honour and Thanksgiving unto our GOD, for the Enjoyment of the Mans of Grace, Sabbath and Sanctuary Advantages: --For that Harmony and Staability which subsists inthe public Councils of the United States: --For the Courage, Resolution, and Readiness of the People to stand forth in the Defence of their Rights, Liberties, and Privileges: --For every Instance of Protection and Success in their military Operations against their powerful Enemies: --For that Measure of Health enjoyed in the Country and Army: --And for every Expression of his loving Kindness, and tender Mercy: --And at the same Time, to implore GOD's gracious Presence with the General Congreess of the United States of America: --That he would give them Wisdom, Ability and Fidelity equal to the trust reposed in them, and the Weight of public Business laid upon them: --That all our Assemblies, Conventions, and Councils may be directed, owned and blessed: --That HE would form our Generals, Officers, and Soliery for their Department, and honor them as the Instruments of our Deliverance: --That HE would pour out HIS SPIRIT in plentiful Effusions upon His Churches and Ministers in this and all the States, and that the whole Land may be a Temple in which GOD is served and glorified: --That Seminaries of Learning, and other inferior Schools of Instruciton may be every where amongst us, succeeded: -- That the People of this State in particular, may be blessed in all their temporal and spiritual Concerns: --That GOD would make us glad according to the Days wherein we have been afflicted, and the Time wherein we have seen Evil: --This his Work may appear unto his Servants, and his Glory unto Childrens Children: --that the Beauty of the Lord our GOD may be upon us, and that HE would establish the Work of our Hands: --That HE would bring the Heathen into CHRIST's Sheep-fold: --And fill the Universe with the Display of His glorious Perfections, in and through JESUS CHRIST our Lord and Saviour. All servile Labour is forbidded on said Day."

• Samuel Huntington - 10/03/1788 Proclamation - Thanksgiving Day - 1788, Connecticut. This is the text of the October 13, 1788 Samuel Huntington Day of Thanksgiving Proclamation, as he served as Governor of Connecticut; as printed in The New-Haven Gazette, and the Connecticut Magazine on October 23, 1788.

• Jonathan Trumbull - 02/20/1807 Proclamation - Fasting, Humiliation and Prayer - 1807, Connecticut .

"Whereas it hath pleased our gracious God, contrary to the many evill-deservings of an unworthy and sinfull People such as we are, so far to espouse the interest of his poor people, as to plead their Cause with the Heathen in this Wilderness, that have risen up against us, and broken in upon many of our Towns and places as a flood, seeking the utter extirpation and ruine of the interest of our Lord Jesus, in this Wilderness, and that with so considerable a progress, and such strange success, as ought not soon to be forgotten by us: in this day of our calamity, God hath made bare his own Arm for our Deliverance, by taking away courage and Counsel from our enemyes, and giving strange advantages and great success to our selves and Confederates against them, that of those several Tribes and Partyes that have risen up against us, which were not a few, there now scarce remains a Name or Family of them in their former habitations; but are either slain, captivated or fled into remote parts of this wilderness, or lye hid despairing of thir first intentions against us, at least in these parts; unto which mercy, God hath added an abatement of those Epidemical Sicknesses that have attended us most part of this Summer, and vouchsafed us a liberal portion of the fruits of the earth, for our comfortable sustentation [?] and Relief: The joynt consideration of these things ministers great cause, and the same God that is Author of them, can give us hearts to offer our Praise that thereby we may glorifie him. Which that we may obtain,

"This Court doth appoint and set apart the ninth day of November next to be a Day of solemn Thanksgiving and Praise to God for such his singular and Fatherly Mercyes bestowed on us: and doe commend the same to the respective Elders, Ministers and People of this Jurisdiction, solemnly and seriously to keep the same."

• Massachusetts. Governor (1730-1741: Belcher). Governor Jonathan Belcher's Proclamation for Day of Thanksgiving (1730).

• Massachusetts. Governor (1730-1741: Belcher). Governor Jonathan Belcher's Proclamation for Day of Prayer (1731).

It being the Duty of a People who believe in the universal Providence of GOD, to express their grateful Sense of the divine Goodness, not only by private, but public Acts of Devotion and Praise: And as the beneficent Parent of the Universe hath, in the course of the current Year, been pleased to bestow upon this People many great and manifold Blessings which demand their thankful Acknowledgements:
We have therefore thought fit, with the Advice of the Council, and at the Desire of the House of Representatives, to appoint, and do hereby appoint THURSDAY the 26th Day of November next, to be observed throughout this State as a Day of Public THANKSGIVING, PRAYER and PRAISE. Hereby calling upon Ministers and People of every Denomination then to convene, and with sincere Devotion offer Praise to the all Gracious Author of every Good, for the various Benefits conferred upon this State in particular, and the United States in general; that He hath supported the Inhabitants thereof, under the Distresses of the present cruel War; that He hath raised us up benevolent and powerful Assistance in the Times of our Distress, and hath disposed his Most Christian Majesty the King of France to enter into the most open and generous Alliance with the United States of America; that there hath been so great a Measure of Health enjoyed through the Land; that He hath caused the Earth to yield her Increase so plentifully; that we are supplied with the Necessities and Comforts of Life; and that not only our Civil but Religious Liberties are yet continued unto us; And that together with their cordial Acknowledgements they may join the penitent Confession of their Sins, and implore the Continuance of the Divine Protection over, and the Blessing of Heaven upon this People; especially that it would please Him graciously to afford his Blessing upon the Government of this State, and succeed the Public Council of the Continent; that He would inspire our Commanders, and those of our Allies, both by Sea and Land, and all under their Commend with Wisdom, Firmness and victorious Intrepidity; that our Enemies may be defeated in all their hostile Designs, and driven from our Land; that the Blessings of Peace may soon succeed the Horrors of War; that it may please Him to protect the Trade and Manufactures of the People, and the Labour of the Husbandman; that He would smile upon our Schools and Seminaries of Education; and especially that He would protect and promote the Protestant Religion in the World, pour out His Spirit upon the Churches of our Divine Redeemer, and spread His Glorious Kingdom through the Earth.
And all Servile Labour is hereby forbidden on the said Day.
Given at the Council-Chamber in Boston, this Twenty Seventh Day of October, in the Year of our Lord, One Thousand Seven Hundred and Seventy-Eight.
GOD Save the UNITED STATES of AMERICA!

"In circumstances as dark as these, it becomes us, as Men and Christians, to reflect that whilst every prudent measure should be taken to ward off the impending judgments, --at the same time all confidence must be withheld from the means we use; and reposed only on that God rules in the armies of Heaven, and without His whole blessing, the best human counsels are but foolishness? Resolved; --Thursday the 11th of May--to humble themselves before God under the heavy judgments felt and feared, to confess the sins that have deserved them, to implore the Forgiveness of all our transgressions, and a spirit of repentance and reformation --and a Blessing on the Union of the American Colonies in Defense of their Rights [for which hitherto we desire to thank Almighty God]--That the people of Great Britain and their rulers may have their eyes opened to discern the things that shall make for the peace of the nation--for the redress of America's many grievances, the restoration of all her invaded liberties, and their security to the latest generations."

• Massachusetts. Governor (1787-1793: Hancock). A Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Proclamation for a Day of Public Thanksgiving, November 27, 1788. Proclamation dated October 29, 1788.

• Massachusetts. Governor (1787-1793: Hancock). Commonwealth of Massachusetts. A Proclamation for a Day of Public Thanksgiving, November 26, 1789. Proclamation dated October 14, 1789.

• Commonwealth of Massachusetts. A Proclamation for a Day of Public Thanksgiving, November 17, 1791. Proclamation dated October 5, 1791. Printed at Boston: By Thomas Adams, printer to the honorable General Court of the commonwealth of Massachusetts., 1791. 1 sheet, 1 sheet: ill. (relief cut); 51 x 40 cm.

• John Hancock - 10/05/1791 Proclamation- Thanksgiving Day- 1791, Massachusetts. The following is the text of a Proclamation for a Day of Thanksgiving and Praise, issued by John Hancock (Signer of the Declaration of Independence), while he was serving as governor of Massachusetts. The proclamation was issued October 5, 1791 and was declaring November 17, 1791 the day of Thanksgiving.

• Samuel Adams - 10/14/1795 Proclamation- Thanksgiving Day- 1795, Massachusetts . This is the text of a Proclamation for a Day of Thanksgiving and Praise issued by Samuel Adams (Signer of the Declaration of Independence), while he was serving as governor of Massachusetts. The proclamation was issued on October 14, 1795 declaring November 19, 1795 the day of Thanksgiving.

• Elbridge Gerry - 10/22/1811 Proclamation- Thanksgiving Day- 1811, Massachusetts. This is the text of a proclamation for a Day of Thanksgiving, Praise and Prayer, issued by Elbridge Gerry (Signer of the Declaration of Independence; Framer of the Bill of Rights), while he was serving as governor of Massachusetts. The proclamation was issued on October 22, 1811 and was declaring November 21, 1811 to be the day of Thanksgiving.

• Caleb Strong - 10/08/1813 Proclamation - Thanksgiving Day - 1813, Massachusetts. This is the written text of a proclamation for a day of public thanksgiving and prayer given by Caleb Strong (Delegate to the Constitutional Convention), Governor of Massachusetts. The proclamation was issued on October 8, 1813 and was declaring November 25, 1813 a Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer.

• n.g. "Thanksgiving." Daily Cleveland Herald, October 12, 1819. Second column. Thanksgiving days are appointed by Gov. Everett of Massachusetts and Gov. Ellsworth of Connecticut. "This time-honored New England custom of setting apart a day of general thanksgiving after the in-gathering of the harvest, is worthy of imitation throughout the land." Also, detail on the circumstances of composing "The Star Spangled Banner," column 3.

It being the united voice of reason and revelation that men should praise the Lord for his goodness and his wonderful works to the children of men, and the year now drawing to a close being distinguished by many great and signal favors of Divine Providence conferred on this and the other United States of America, amidst our deep distress; now, in order that our Great and Bountiful Benefactor may have the praise and glpry due for his mercies in the most conspicuous and solemn manner ascribed to Him,
The COUNCIL and representatives of this state, in general court assembled, have appointed the 4th day of December next to be a day of public thanksgiving throughout this state; and we hereby solemnly exhort and require both ministers and people of every profession religiously to devote the said day to the purpose aforesaid, and with unfeigned gratitude to address the allgracious Jehovah with their united ascriptions of praise for his great goodness, and for his rich mercy he hath intermixed with his judgments, particularly that He hath so far supported the great American cause, and defeated the merciless counsels and efforts of our cruel oppressors; that He hath smiled on our deliberations and arms, and crowned them with signal success, especially in the Northern Department, in turning the advantages the enemy seemed to have acquired against us, by possessing themselves of the fortress of Ticonderoga, to their own confusion, and giving one of the principal armies of Britain wholly into our hands with so little bloodshed, in which great event, so interesting to the important cause depending, the arm of the Lord of Hosts, the God of the Armies of Israel was conspicuously manifest, demanding the power, the glory, and victory to be ascribed to Him; and inviting our further hope and confidence in this mercy, that He hath preserved our sea-coast in safety, preserved the inestimable precious life of our worthy general and commander-in-chief, and so many of our officers and soldiers; and that the present campaign, prosecuted by our enemies with such direful breathings of cruelty and slaughter, and such strenuous exertions on one side and another hath not become more bloody; that He is mercifully continuing the several American states firmly united in the common cause, and giving us such a promising, animating prospect of being able, by his further help, finally to support our liberty and independence against all the power and policy of Britain to subject and enslave us; that He hath blessed us with so much health in our camps, and in our habitations, whereby we have been able to carry on the necessary labors of the field, while so many were called off to arms; that He hath blessed us with a very fruitful season, and given us in great plenty the precious productions of the earth for food and clothing, peculiarly precious at a time when our imports from abroad are chiefly cut off, and, therefore, binding the duty of gratitude and praise upon us with increased obligation: and above all, that, in the greatness of his forbearance and long-suffering, He is yet continuing to us, though an unthankful and unfruitful people, the blessed Gospel of Jesus Christ, and our religious liberty and privileges, by which we enjoy the happiest advantages for glorifying our Creator and Redeemer, and securing our eternal well being.
All servile LABOUR is forbidden on said day.
In the house of representatives, November 19, 1777. The aforesaid form of proclamation for a general thanksgiving being read, voted that the same be transcribed, printed, and dispersed throughout the state.
JOHN LANGDON, Speaker.
Sent up for concurrence.
In council the same day read and concurred.
E. THOMPSON, Secretary.

• John Langdon - 10/10/1805 Proclamation - Thanksgiving Day - 1805, New Hampshire .This is the text of a Proclamation for a Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer issued by John Langdon, a signer of the United States Constitution, while he was serving as governor of New Hampshire. This proclamation was issued on October 10, 1805 and the day of Thanksgiving was to be November 28, 1805.

Given under my hand and the Privy Seal of the State at the Capitol, in the City of Albany, this tenth day of November, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and three. .. Albany, 1903. 1 sheet; 30 x 23 cm. Published in New York Times, November 11, 1903.

• A Proclamation. Philadelphia Gazette, August 13, 1763, p. 1.
  The Burdens and Calamities of a cruel and expensive War, having been happily terminated by a just and glorious Peace, the King hath judge it proper, that a PUBLIC THANKSGIVING to Almighty GOD, should be observed throughout all His Colonies in America; and hath accordingly signified His Royal Will and Pleasure.
  THEREFORE, in Obedience to the King's Command, and the Order of the General Assembly, made conformable thereto, I DO hereby order, that Thursday the Twenty-fifth Day of the present Month, be observed and kept as a Day of PUBLIC THANKSGIVING, in and throughout this Colony: Calling upon and requiring all Christians, of every Donomination, to assemble themselves together, on said Day, at the usual Places of their meeting for public Worship; and with Hearts willed with Gratitude, and Consciences void of Offence, to render sincere Thanks, and public Praises to Almighty GOD, for granting us all the Blessings of a safe and honorable Peace: And for the other innumerable Instances of His Goodness towards us. And I DO also hereby structly forbid and prohibit all servile Labor, and all Sports and Pastimes to be used or practissed on said Day, as all who offend herein, shall answer their Contempt at their Peril."

WHEREAS the Honourable the General Congress, impressed with a grateful sense of the goodness of Almighty God, in blessing the greater part of this extensive continent with plentiful harvests, crowning our arms with repeated successes, conducting us hitherto safely through the perils with which we have been encompassed and manifesting in multiplied instances his divine care of these infant states, hath thought proper by their act of the 20th day of October last, to recommend to the several states that Thursday the 9th of December next be appointed a day of publick and solemn thanksgiving and prayer, which act is in these words, to wit.

"Whereas it becomes us humbly to approach the throne of Almighty God, with gratitude and praise, for the wonders which his goodness has wrought in conducting our forefathers to this western world; for his protection to them and to their posterity, amidst difficulties and dangers; for raising us their children from deep distress, to be numbered among the nations of the earth; and for arming the hands of just and mighty Princes in our deliverance; and especially for that he hath been pleased to grant us the enjoyment of health and so to order the revolving seasons, that the earth hath produced her increase in abundance, blessing the labours of the husbandman, and spreading plenty through the land; that he hath prospered our arms and those of our ally, been a shield to our troops in the hour of danger, pointed their swords to victory, and led them in triumph over the bulwarks of the foe; that he hath gone with those who went out into the wilderness against the savage tribes; that he hath stayed the hand of the spoiler, and turned back his meditated destruction; that he hath prospered our commerce, and given success to those who sought the enemy on the face of the deep; and above all, that he hath diffused the glorious light of the gospel, whereby, through the merits of our gracious Redeemer, we may become the heirs of his eternal glory. Therefore,

Resolved, that it be recommended to the several states to appoint THURSDAY the 9th of December next, to be a day of publick and solemn THANKSGIVING to Almighty God, for his mercies, and of PRAYER, for the continuance of his favour and protection to these United States; to beseech him that he would be graciously pleased to influence our publick Councils, and bless them with wisdom from on high, with unanimity, firmness and success; that he would go forth with our hosts and crown our arms with victory; that he would grant to his church, the plentiful effusions of divine grace, and pour out his holy spirit on all Ministers of the gospel; that he would bless and prosper the means of education, and spread the light of christian knowledge through the remotest corners of the earth; that he would smile upon the labours of his people, and cause the earth to bring forth her fruits in abundance, that we may with gratitude and gladness enjoy them; that he would take into his holy protection, our illustrious ally, give him victory over his enemies, and render him finally great, as the father of his people, and the protector of the rights of mankind; that he would graciously be pleased to turn the hearts of our enemies, and to dispence the blessings of peace to contending nations.

That he would in mercy look down upon us, pardon all our sins, and receive us into his favour; and finally, that he would establish the independance of these United States upon the basis of religion and virtue, and support and protect them in the enjoyment of peace, liberty and safety."

I do therefore by authority from the General Assembly issue this my proclamation, hereby appointing Thursday the 9th day of December next, a day of publick and solemn thanksgiving and prayer to Almighty God, earnestly recommending to all the good people of this commonwealth, to set apart the said day for those purposes, and to the several Ministers of religion to meet their respective societies thereon, to assist them in their prayers, edify them with their discourses, and generally to perform the sacred duties of their function, proper for the occasion. Given under my hand and the seal of the commonwealth, at Williamsburg, this 11th day of November, in the year of our Lord, 1779, and in the fourth of the commonwealth.

THOMAS JEFFERSON

Forasmuch as it is the indispensable duty of all men to adore the superintending providence of Almighty God; to acknowledge with gratitude their obligation to him for benefits received, and to implore such farther blessings as they stand in need of; and it having pleased him in his abundant mercy not only to continue to us the innumerable bounties of his common providence, but also to smile upon us in the prosecution of a just and necessary war, for the defence and establishment of our unalienable rights and liberties; particularly in that he hath been pleased in so great a measure to prosper the means used for the support of our troops and to crown our arms with most signal success: It is therefore recommended to the legislative or executive powers of these United States, to set apart Thursday, the eighteenth day of December next, for solemn thanksgiving and praise; that with one heart1 and one voice the good people may express the grateful feelings of their hearts, and consecrate themselves to the service of their divine benefactor; and that together with their sincere acknowledgments and offerings, they may join the penitent confession of their manifold sins, whereby they had forfeited every favour, and their humble and earnest supplication that it may please God, through the merits of Jesus Christ, mercifully to forgive and blot them out of remembrance; that it may please him graciously to afford his blessing on the governments of these states respectively, and prosper the public council of the whole; to inspire our commanders both by land and sea, and all under them, with that wisdom and fortitude which may render them fit instruments, under the providence of Almighty God, to secure for these United States the greatest of all human blessings, independence and peace; that it may please him to prosper the trade and manufactures of the people and the labour of the husbandman, that our land may yet yield its increase; to take schools and seminaries of education, so necessary for cultivating the principles of true liberty, virtue and piety, under his nurturing hand, and to prosper the means of religion for the promotion and enlargement of that kingdom which consisteth "in righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost."

[Note 1: 1 The original read: "That at one time and with one voice."]

And it is further recommended, that servile labour, and such recreation as, though at other times innocent, may be unbecoming the purpose of this appointment, be omitted on so solemn an occasion.²

[Note 2: 2 This report, in the writing of Samuel Adams, is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 24, folio 431.]

• United States. Continental Congress. Congressional Thanksgiving Day Proclamation. November 1, 1777. Text here. Congress set December 18, 1777, as a day of thanksgiving on which the American people "may express the grateful feelings of their hearts and consecrate themselves to the service of their divine benefactor" and on which they might "join the penitent confession of their manifold sins ... that it may please God, through the merits of Jesus Christ, mercifully to forgive and blot them out of remembrance." Congress also recommends that Americans petition God "to prosper the means of religion for the promotion and enlargement of that kingdom which consisteth in righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost."

• United States. Continental Congress. A Proclamation. It having pleased Almighty God through the course of the present year, to bestow great and manifold mercies on the people of these United States ... Resolved, that it be, and hereby is recommended to the legislative or executive authority of each of the said states, to appoint Wednesday the 30th day of December next, to be observed as a day of Publick Thanksgiving and praise. ... Done in Congress the 17th day of November 1778 Exeter, New-Hampshire: Printed by Zechariah Fowle, 1778. 1 sheet; 42 x 34 cm.

• United States. Continental Congress. A Proclamation. It having pleased Almighty God ... to bestow great and manifold mercies ... Resolved, that it be, and hereby is recommended to ... the said states, to appoint Wednesday the 30th day of December next ... as a day of Publick Thanksgiving ... Done in Congress this 17th day of November 1778 Exeter; New-Hampshire: Printed by Zechariah Fowle, 1778. 1 sheet.

• United States. Continental Congress. A Proclamation. It having pleased Almighty God ... to bestow great and manifold mercies ... Resolved, that it be and hereby is recommended to ... the said states, to appoint Wednesday the thirtieth day of December next ... as a day of Publick Thanksgiving ... Done in Congress, this 17th day of November, 1778 New-London [Conn.]: Printed by T. Green, printer to the governor and company of the state of Connecticut, [1778]. 1 sheet.

• United States. Continental Congress. A Proclamation. It having pleased Almighty God ... to bestow great and manifold mercies ... Resolved, that it be and hereby is recommended to ... the said states, to appoint Wednesday the thirtieth day of December next ... as a day of Publick Thanksgiving ... Done in Congress this seventeenth day of November, 1778 [Boston: Printed by Benjamin Edes, 1778]. 1 sheet; 43 x 34 cm.

• United States. Continental Congress. Proclamation. [Boston: Printed by Benjamin Edes and Sons, 1779] 1 sheet; 43 x 26 cm.

  Whereas it becomes us humbly to approach the throne of Almighty God, with gratitude and praise for the wonders which his goodness has wrought in conducting our forefathers to this western world; for his protection to them and to their posterity amidst difficulties and dangers; for raising us, their children, from deep distress to be numbered among the nations of the earth; and for arming the hands of just and mighty princes in our deliverance ; and especially for that he hath been pleased to grant us the enjoyment of health, and so to order the revolving seasons, that the earth hath produced her increase in abundance, blessing the labours of the husbandman, and spreading plenty through the land; that he hath prospered our arms and those of our ally; been a shield to our troops in the hour of danger, pointed their swords to victory, and led them in triumph over the bulwarks of the foe; that he hath gone with those who went out into the wilderness against the savage tribes; that he hath stayed the hand of the spoiler, and turned back his meditated destruction; that he hath prospered our commerce, and given success to those who fought the enemy on the face of the deep; and above all, that he hath diffused the glorious light of the gospel, whereby, through the merits of our gracious Redeemer, we may become the heirs of his eternal glory: therefore,

  Resolved, That it be recommended to the several States to appoint Thursday, the 9th of December next, to be a day of Public and Solemn Thanksgiving to Almighty God for his mercies, and of prayer for the continuance of his favour and protection to these United States; to beseech him that he would be graciously pleased to influence our public councils, and bless them with wisdom from on high, with unanimity, firmness and success; that he would go forth with our hosts and crown our armies with victory; that he would grant to his church the plentiful effusions of divine grace, and pour out his holy spirit on all ministers of the gospel; that he would bless and prosper the means of education, and spread the light of Christian knowledge through the remotest corners of the earth : that he would smile upon the labours of his people, and cause the earth to bring forth her fruits in abundance; that we may with gratitude and gladness enjoy them ; that he would take into his holy protection our illustrious ally, give him victory over his enemies, and render him signally great, as the father of his people and the protector of the rights of mankind; that he would graciously be pleased to turn the hearts of our enemies, and to dispense the blessings of peace to contending nations; that he would in mercy look down upon us, pardon our sins and receive us into his favour, and finally, that he would establish the independence of these United States upon the basis of religion and virtue, and support and protect them in the enjoyment of peace, liberty and safety.

  Done in Congress, the twentieth day of October, one thousand seven hundred and seventy-nine, and in the fourth year of the Independence of the United States of America.

• United States. Continental Congress. Proclamation. Whereas it becomes us humbly to approach the throne of Almighty God ... Resolved, that it be recommended to the several states, to appoint Thursday, the ninth of December next, to be a day of Publick and solemn Thanksgiving ... Done in Congress, the twentieth day of October ... one thousand seven hundred and seventy-nine. Hartford: Printed by Hudson and Goodwin, [1779]. 1 sheet.

• United States. Continental Congress. Proclamation. Whereas it hath pleased Almighty God ... It is therefore recommended to the several states to set apart Thursday the seventh day of December next, to be observed as a day of Publick Thanksgiving ... Done in Congress, this eighteenth day of October 1780 ...Samuel Huntington, President. [Exeter, N.H: Printed by Zechariah Fowle, 1780] 1 sheet; 39 x 30 cm.

• United States. Continental Congress. Proclamation. Whereas it hath pleased Almighty God the Father of all mercies ... It is recommended to the several states to set apart Thursday the seventh day of December next to be observed as a day of Publick Thanksgiving and prayer ... Done in Congress, this eighteenth day of October, 1780 [Connecticut: s.n., 1780]. 1 sheet.

Whereas, it hath pleased Almighty God, the supreme Disposer of all Events father of mercies, remarkably to assist and support the United States of America in their important struggle for liberty,against the long continued efforts of a powerful nation: it is the duty of all ranks to observe and thankfully acknowledge the interpositions of his Providence in their behalf. Through the whole of the contest, from its first rise to this time, the influence of divine Providence may be clearly perceived in many signal instances, of which we mention but a few.

In revealing the councils of our enemies, when the discoveries were seasonable and important, and the means seemingly inadequate or fortuitous; in preserving and even improving the union of the several states, on the breach of which our enemies placed their greatest dependence; in increasing the number, and adding to the zeal and attachment of the friends of Liberty; in granting remarkable deliverances, and blessing us with the most signal success, when affairs seemed to have the most discouraging appearance; in raising up for us a powerful and generous ally, in one of the first of the European powers; in confounding the councils of our enemies, and suffering them to pursue such measures as have most directly contributed to frustrate their own desires and expectations; above all, in making their extreme cruelty of their officers and soldiers to the inhabitants of these states, when in their power, and their savage devastation of property, the very means of cementing our union, and adding vigor to every effort in opposition to them.

And as we cannot help leading the good people of these states to a retrospect on the events which have taken place since the beginning of the war, so we beg recommend in a particular manner that they may observe and acknowledge to their observation, the goodness of God in the year now drawing to a conclusion: in which a mutiny in the American Army was not only happily appeased but became in its issue a pleasing and undeniable proof of the unalterable attachment of the people in general to the cause of liberty since great and real grievances only made them tumultuously seek redress while the abhorred the thoughts of going over to the enemy, in which the Confederation of the United States has been completed by the accession of all without exception in which there have been so many instances of prowess and success in our armies; particularly in the southern states, where, notwithstanding the difficulties with which they had to struggle, they have recovered the whole country which the enemy had overrun, leaving them only a post or two upon on or near the sea: in which we have been so powerfully and effectually assisted by our allies, while in all the conjunct operations the most perfect union and harmony has subsisted in the allied army: in which there has been so plentiful a harvest, and so great abundance of the fruits of the earth of every kind, as not only enables us easily to supply the wants of the army, but gives comfort and happiness to the whole people: and in which, after the success of our allies by sea, a General of the first Rank, with his whole army, has been captured by the allied forces under the direction of our illustrious Commander in Chief.

It is therefore recommended to the several states to set apart the 13th day of December next, to be religiously observed as a Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer; that all the people may assemble on that day, with grateful hearts, to celebrate the praises of our gracious Benefactor; to confess our manifold sins; to offer up our most fervent supplications to the God of all grace, that it may please Him to pardon our offences, and incline our hearts for the future to keep all his laws; to comfort and relieve all our brethren who are in distress or captivity; to prosper our husbandmen, and give success to all engaged in lawful commerce; to impart wisdom and integrity to our counsellors, judgment and fortitude to our officers and soldiers; to protect and prosper our illustrious ally, and favor our united exertions for the speedy establishment of a safe, honorable and lasting peace; to bless all seminaries of learning; and cause the knowledge of God to cover the earth, as the waters cover the seas.¹

[Note 1: 1 This report, in the writing of John Witherspoon, is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 24, folio 463.]

• United States. Continental Congress. A Proclamation. ... It is therefore recommended to the several states to set apart the thirteenth day of December next, to be religiously observed as a day of Thanksgiving and prayer ... Done in Congress this twenty-sixth day of October in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-one [Exeter, N.H: Printed by Zechariah Fowle, 1781]. 1 sheet.

• United States. Continental Congress. Proclamation. Whereas it hath pleased Almighty God ... to assist and support the United States of America in their important struggle for liberty ... It is therefore recommended ... to set apart the thirteenth day of December next ... as a day of Thanksgiving and prayer ... Done in Congress this twenty-sixth day of October ... one thousand seven hundred and eighty one New-London [Conn.]: Printed by Timothy Green, printer to the governor and company, [1781] 1 sheet; 43 x 34 cm.

• United States. Continental Congress. Journals of Congress, and of the United States in Congress assembled. For the year 1781. Published by order of Congress. Volume VII. Volume 7. Philadelphia, M,DCC,LXXXI [i.e., 1782]. 610 pp. 7 vols.

• Thomas McKean - 10/26/1781 Proclamation - Thanksgiving Day - 1781 . The following is the text of a Proclamation for a Day of Thanksgiving and Prayer issued by Thomas McKean, a Signer of the Declaration of Independence, while he was serving as President of Congress. This proclamation was issued on October 26, 1781 and the Day of Thanksgiving was to be December 18, 1781. This proclamation was published in The Independent Ledger and the American Advertiser on November 19, 1781.

• United States. Continental Congress. By the United States in Congress assembled. Proclamation. It being the indispensible [sic] duty of all nations, not only to offer up their supplications to Almighty God ... but also ... to give Him praise ... Therefore the United States in Congress assembled ... do hereby recommend ... Thursday the twenty-eighth of November next, as a day of solemn Thanksgiving ... Done in Congress at Philadelphia, the eleventh day of October ... one thousand seven hundred and eighty two New-London [Conn.]: Printed by Timothy Green, printer to the governor and Company, [1782]. 1 sheet.

• John Hanson - 10/11/1782 Proclamation - Thanksgiving Day - 1782 . The text of a Proclamation for a Day of Thanksgiving issued by John Hanson, while serving as President of the Continental Congress, on October 11, 1782. The Day of Thanksgiving took place on November 28, 1782. This proclamation was published in The Independent Gazetteer; or, the Chronicle of Freedom on November 5, 1782.

• United States. Continental Congress. By the United States in Congress assembled: A Proclamation. New-London [Conn.]: Printed by Timothy Green, printer to the governor and company, [1783]. 1 sheet; 50 x 39 cm.
  Whereas it hath pleased the Supreme Ruler of all human events to dispose the hearts of the late belligerent powers to put a period to the effusion of human blood, by proclaiming a cessation of all hostilities by sea and land, and these United States are not only happily rescued from the dangers and calamities to which they have been so long exposed, but their freedom, sovereignty and independence ultimately acknowledged. And whereas, in the progress of a contest on which the most essential rights of human nature depended, the interposition of Divine Providence in our favour hath been most abundantly and most graciously manifested, and the citizens of these United States have every reason for praise and gratitude to the God of their salvation. Impressed, therefore, with an exalted sense of the blessings by which we are surrounded, and of our entire dependence on that Almighty Being from whose goodness and bounty they are derived, the United States in Congress assembled, do recommend it to the several States to set apart the second Thursday in December next, as a day of Public Thanksgiving, that all the people may then assemble to celebrate with grateful hearts and united voices the praises of their Supreme and Allbountiful Benefactor, for his numberless favors and mercies. That he hath been pleased to conduct us in safety through all the perils and vicissitudes of the war; that he hath given us unanimity and resolution to adhere to our just rights ; that he hath raised up a powerful ally to assist us in supporting them, and hath so far crowned our united efforts with success, that in the course of the present year hostilities have ceased, and we are left in the undisputed possession of our liberty and independence, and of the fruits of our land, and in the free participation of the treasures of the sea; that he hath prospered the labour of our husbandmen with plentiful harvests ; and above all, that he hath been pleased to continue to us the light of the blessed gospel, and secured to us in the fullest extent the rights of conscience in faith and worship.
  And while our hearts overflow with gratitude, and our lips set forth the praises of our great Creator, that we also offer up fervent supplications, that it may please him to pardon all our offences, to give wisdom and unanimity to our public councils, to cement all our citizens in the bonds of affection, and to inspire them with an earnest regard for the national honor and interest, to enable them to improve the days of prosperity by every good work, and to be lovers of peace and tranquility; that he may be pleased to bless us in our husbandry, our commerce and navigation; to smile upon our «eminaries and means of education, to cause pure religion and virtue to flourish, to give peace to all nations, and to fill the world with his glory.
  Done by the United States in Congress assembled. Witness His Excellency, Elias Boudinot, our President, this eighteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eightythree, and of the Sovereignty and Independence of the United States of America the eighth.

• Thacher, James, 1754-1844. A Military Journal during the American revolutionary war, from 1775 to 1783: describing interesting events and transactions of the period, with Numerous Historical Facts and Anecdotes, from the Original Manuscript. To which is Added an Appendix, Containing Biographical Sketches of Several General Officers. Boston, 1823. 601 pp. Second edition, revised and corrected here. Boston: Cottons & Barnard, 1827. 487 pages.

  April 23d, 1776. "I went to view the Old South Church, a spacious brick building near the centre of the town. It has been for more than a century consecrated to the service of religion, and many eminent divines have in its pulpit labored in teaching the ways of righteousness and truth. But during the late siege the inside of it was entirely destroyed by the British, and the sacred building occupied as a riding school for Burgoyne's regiment of dragoons. The pulpit and pews were removed, the floor covered with earth, and used for the purpose of training and exercising their horses. A beautiful pew, ornamented with carved work and silk furniture, was demolished; and by order of an officer, the carved work, it is said, was used as a fence for a hogsty. The North Church, a very valuable building, was entirely demolished and consumed for fuel. Thus are our houses, devoted to religious worship, profaned and destroyed by the subjects of his Royal Majesty. His Excellency the commander in chief has been received by the inhabitants with every mark of respect and gratitude; and a public dinner has been provided for him. He requested the Rev. Dr. Eliot, at the renewal of his customary Thursday Lecture, to preach a thanksgiving sermon, adapted to the joyful occasion. Accordingly on the 28th, this pious divine preached an appropriate discourse from Isaiah xxxiii. 20, in presence of his Excellency and a respectable audience.

• Thacher, James, 1754-1844. A Military Journal during the American revolutionary war, from 1775 to 1783: describing interesting events and transactions of the period, with Numerous Historical Facts and Anecdotes, from the Original Manuscript. To which is Added an Appendix, Containing Biographical Sketches of Several General Officers. Boston, 1823. 601 pp. Second edition, revised and corrected here. Boston: Cottons & Barnard, 1827. 487 pages.
  April, 1778, pp. 124-125. Listing and acknowledgement of Washington's General Orders.

Divine Service is to be performed tomorrow in the several Brigades or Divisions.
The Commander in Chief earnestly recommends that the troops not on duty should universally attend with that seriousness of Deportment and gratitude of Heart which the recognition of such reiterated and astonishing interpositions of Providence demand of us.

• Thacher, James, 1754-1844. A Military Journal during the American revolutionary war, from 1775 to 1783: describing interesting events and transactions of the period, with Numerous Historical Facts and Anecdotes, from the Original Manuscript. To which is Added an Appendix, Containing Biographical Sketches of Several General Officers. Boston, 1823. 601 pp. Second edition, revised and corrected here. Boston: Cottons & Barnard, 1827. 487 pages.

  December 30th, 1778. "Our officers have not permitted the Christmas days to pass unnoticed, not a day without receiving invitations to dine, nor a night without amusement and dancing. I dine today with General Muhlenburg. Our soldiers are constantly employed in cutting down trees and building log huts for our winter's accommodation, and we are obliged to live in our uncomfortable tents till they can be completed. This is appropriated as a day of Thanksgiving throughout the state. Our brigade was paraded in the field to attend divine service. Dr. Belmain, our chaplain, delivered a judicious sermon, well adapted to the occasion, adverting to the great cause in which we are engaged and enjoining a grateful reverence to the Almighty Ruler of the universe, and a faithful discharge of the duties incumbent on us in our several stations." -- pp. 154-155.

  November 2d, 1780. "This is a day of public Thanksgiving throughout the state of New York, on occasion of the discovery of Arnold's conspiracy."-- p. 231.
  October 20th, 1781. "In the general orders of this day our Commander in Chief expresses his entire approbation, and his warmest thanks to the French and American officers and soldiers of all descriptions, for the brave and honorable part which they have acted during the siege. He congratulates the combined army on the momentous event which closes the campaign, and which crowns their heads with unfading laurels, and entitles them to the applause and gratitude of their country. Among the general officers whom his Excellency particularly noticed, for the important services which they rendered during the siege, are Generals Lincoln, de la Fayette, Steuben, Knox, and Du Portail, his Excellency Count Rochambeau, and several other distinguished French officers. To Governor Nelson, of Virginia, he returned his grateful and sincere acknowledgments for the essential succors afforded by him and the militia under his command. The Commander in Chief, wishing that every heart should participate in the joy of this memorable day, ordered that all those who are under arrest or confinement should be immediately pardoned and set at liberty, a circumstance which I believe has never before occurred in our army. He closed by ordering that divine service shall be performed in the several brigades tomorrow, and recommends that the troops attend with a serious deportment, and with that sensibility of heart which the recollection of the surprizing and particular interposition of Providence in our favor claims.

  22d.'Yesterday, being Sunday, our brigade of infantry, and the York brigade were drawn up in the field to attend divine service performed by Mr. Evans. After offering to the Lord of Hosts, the God of battles, our grateful homage for the preservation of our lives through the dangers of the siege, and for the important event with which Divine Providence has seen fit to crown our efforts, he preached an excellent and appropriate sermon. Generals Lincoln and Clinton were present. In the design and execution of this successful expedition, our Commander in Chief fairly out gene- rakd Sir Henry Clinton, and the whole movement was marked by consummate military address, which reduced the royal general to a mortifying dilemma that no skill or enterprise' could retrieve. A siege of thirteen days, prosecuted with unexampled rapidity, has terminated in the capture of one of the greatest generals of which the English can boast, and a veteran and victorious army which has for several months past spread terror and desolation throughout the southern states. The joy on this momentous occasion is universally diffused, and the hope entertained that it will arrest the career of a cruel warfare, and advance the establishment of American Independence. --p. 281.

  When Congress received General Washington's letter, announcing the surrender of the British army, they resolved, that they would at two o'clock, go in procession to the Dutch Lutheran Church, and return thanks to Almighty God, for crowning the allied arms with success, by the surrender of the whole British army, under the command of Earl Cornwallis. They also issued A Proclamation for religiously observing throughout the United States the 13th of December, as a day of thanksgiving and prayer. They resolved that thanks should be given to General Washington, Count Rochambeau, Count de Grasse and the officers of the different corps, and the men under their command, for their services in the reduction of Lord Cornwallis. Also, resolved, to erect in Yorktown a marble column adorned with emblems of the alliance between the United States and his Most Christian Majesty, and inscribed with a succinct narrative of the surrender of the British army. Two stands of colors, taken from the royal troops under the capitulation, were presented to General Washington in the name of the United Stales in Congress assembled; and two pieces of Held ordnance so taken, were, by a resolve of Congress, to be presented by General Washington to Count Rochambeau, with a short memorandum engraved thereon, that "Congress were induced to present them from considerations of the illustrious part which he bore in effecting the surrender."

  The Congress of the United States, the assembly and council of the state of Pennsylvania, and a number of principal gentlemen of various orders, having been invited by the minister of France to be present at the praises offered to Heaven in the Catholic Church, on occasion of the late glorious success of the allied arms, the Abbe Bandole, Almoner to the Embassy of His Most Christian Majesty, ascended the pulpit, and addressed this august assembly in the following discourse; after which a Te Deum was sung.

  The occasion was in this hemisphere singular and affecting; and the discourse itself is so elegant and animated in the French, so warm with those sentiments of piety and gratitude to our Divine Benefactor, in which good men of all countries accord, and so evidently dictated by the spirit of that new friendship and alliance from which such important advantages have been derived to the rights of America, as must give pleasure to every serious and candid friend to our glorious cause.

  Gentlemen,'A numerous people assembled to render thanks to the Almighty for his mercies, is one of the most affectmg objects, and worthy the attention of the Supreme Being. While camps resound with triumphal acclamations, while nations rejoice in victory and glory, the most honorable office a minister of the altar can fill, is to be the organ by which public gratitude is conveyed to the Omnipotent." ... -- pp. 294-297.

• Introduction.
  
• Transcription. Also here.
  
• Original.

• Proclamation - Thanksgiving Day - 1789 . This is the text of George Washington's October 3, 1789 national Thanksgiving Proclamation; as printed in The Providence Gazette and Country Journal, on October 17, 1789.
• United States. President (1789-1797: Washington). Thanksgiving, October 3, 1789. The Writings of George Washington from the Original Manuscript Sources, 1745-1799. John C. Fitzpatrick, Editor.
  [Note 77: A copy of this Proclamation was sent to the executives of the States by the President in a brief form letter (October 3). This form is recorded in the "Letter Book" in the Washington Papers.]
  City of New York, October 3, 1789.
  Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor, and Whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee⁷⁸ requested me "to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanks-giving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness."
  [Note 78: The Senate concurred in the House resolve to this effect, September 26.]
  Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th. day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks, for his kind care and protection of the People of this country previous to their becoming a Nation, for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquillity, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.
  And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions, to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually, to render our national government a blessing to all the People, by constantly being a government of wise, just and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed, to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shown kindness unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord. To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease of science among them and Us, and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.⁷⁹
  [Note ⁷⁹: From the original in the writing of William Jackson. It was signed by Washington, who had written in the day "third" in the date.
  This was the first national Thanksgiving Day Proclamation under the Constitution.]

• United States. President (1789-1797: Washington). By the President of the United States of America. A Proclamation. Whereas it is the duty of nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God ... and whereas both houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me "to recommend to the people of the United States, a day of Publick Thanksgiving and prayer ... I do recommend and assign Thursday the twenty-sixth day of November next ... Given under my hand, at the city of New-York, the third day of October ... one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine. [New York: Printed by Childs & Swaine, 1789]. 1 sheet.

"The tribute of thanksgiving, which you offer to the gracious Father of Lights, for his inspiration of our publick councils with wisdom and firmness to complete the National Constitution, is worthy of men, who, devoted to the pious purposes of religion, desire their accomplishment by such means as advance the temporal happiness of their fellow men. And, here, I am persuaded, you will permit me to observe, that the path of true piety is so plain, as to require but little political direction.
"To this consideration we ought to ascribe the absence of any regulation respecting religion from the Magna Charta of our country, to the guidance of the Ministers of the Gospel, this important object is, perhaps, more properly committed. It will be your care to instruct the ignorant, and to reclaim the devious: And in the progress of morality and science, to which our Government will give every furtherance, we may confidently expect the advancement of true religion, and the completion of our happiness.
"I pray the munificent Rewarder of virtue, that your agency in this work, may receive its compensation here and hereafter."

When we review the calamities, which afflict so many other nations, the present condition of the United States affords much matter of consolation and satisfaction. Our exemption hitherto from foreign war -- an increasing prospect of the continuance of that exemption -- the great degree of internal tranquility we have enjoyed -- the recent confirmation of that tranquility by the suppression of an insurrection which so wantonly threatened it -- the happy course of public affairs in general -- the unexampled prosperity of all classes of our citizens; are circumstances which peculiarly mark our situation with indications of the Divine beneficence towards us. In such a state of things it is, in an especial manner, our duty as people, with devout reverence and affectionate gratitude, to acknowledge our many and great obligations to Almighty God and to implore Him to continue and confirm the blessings we experience.

Deeply penetrated with this sentiment, I, George Washington, President of the United States, do recommend to all religious societies and denominations, and to all persons whomsoever, within the United States, to set apart and observe Thursday, the nineteenth day of February next, as a day of public thanksgiving and prayer: and on that day to meet together and render their sincere and hearty thanks to the great Ruler of nations for the manifold and signal mercies which distinguish our lot as a nation. particularly for the possession of constitutions of government which unite and, by their union, establish liberty with order; for the preservation of peace, foreign and domestic; and for the seasonable control, which has been given to a spirit of disorder, in the suppression of the late insurrection; and generally for the prosperous course of our affairs, public and private; and, at the same time, humbly and fervently to beseech the kind Author of these blessings. graciously to prolong them to us -- to imprint on our hearts a deep and solemn sense of our obligations to Him for them -- to teach us rightly to estimate their immense value -- to preserve us from the arrogance of prosperity and from hazarding the advantages we enjoy by delusive pursuits -- to dispose us to merit the continuance of His favors by not abusing them, by our gratitude for them, and by a correspondent conduct as citizens and as men -- to render this country, more and more, a propitious asylum for the unfortunate of other countries -- to extend among us true and useful knowledge -- to diffuse and establish habits of sobriety, order, morality, and piety -- and, finally, to impart all blessings we possess or ask for ourselves, to the whole family of mankind." ...

• United States. President (1789-1797: Washington). By authority. By the President of the United States of America, a Proclamation to set apart and observe Thursday the nineteenth day of February next, as a day of Publick Thanksgiving ... Done at the city of Philadelphia, the first day of January, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-five [Boston: s.n., 1795]. 1 sheet. ill. (relief cut); 39 x 32 cm.

• United States. President (1789-1797: Washington). By authority. By the President of the United States of America. A Proclamation to set apart and observe Thursday the nineteenth day of February next, as a day of Publick Thanksgiving ... Done at the city of Philadelphia, the first day of January, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-five [Philadelphia: s.n., 1795]. 1 sheet.

• United States. President (1789-1797: Washington). By the President of the United States of America, a Proclamation to set apart and observe Thursday the nineteenth day of February next, as a day of Publick Thanksgiving ... Done at the city of Philadelphia, the first day of January, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-five Printed at Providence: by Carter and Wilkinson, [1795] 1 sheet; 30 x 21 cm.

• United States. President (1789-1797: Washington). By the President of the United States of America. A Proclamation. Columbian Centinel, vol. XXII, iss. 36, January 1, 1795, p. [1]. Boston, Massachusetts.

• United States. President (1789-1797: Washington). By the President of the United States of America. A Proclamation. Dunlap's American Daily Advertiser, iss. 4908. January 1, 1795, p. [1]. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

• United States. President (1789-1797: Washington). By the President of the United States of America. A Proclamation. Gazette of the United States, vol. VII, iss. 1, January 1, 1795, p. [3]. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

• United States. President (1789-1797: Washington). By the President of the United States of America. A Proclamation. Georgia Gazette, iss. 623, January 1, 1795, p. [1]. Savannah, Georgia.

• United States. President (1789-1797: Washington). By the President of the United States of America. A Proclamation. Philadelphia Gazette, vol. XII, iss. 1932, January 1, 1795, p. [3]. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

"Congress will appoint a Thanksgiving, and one Cause of it ought to be that the Glory of turning the Tide of Arms, is not immediately due to the Commander in Chief, nor to southern Troops. If it had been, Idolatry, and Adulation would have been unbounded, so excessive as to endanger our Liberties for what I know.

"Now We can allow a certain Citizen to be wise, virtuous, and good, without thinking him a Deity or a saviour."

For these reasons I have thought proper to recommend, and I do hereby recommend accordingly, that Thursday, the 25th day of April next, be observed throughout the United States of America as a day of solemn humiliation, fasting, and prayer; that the citizens on that day abstain as far as may be from their secular occupations, devote the time to the sacred duties of religion in public and in private; that they call to mind our numerous offenses against the Most High God, confess them before Him with the sincerest penitence, implore His pardoning mercy, through the Great Mediator and Redeemer, for our past transgressions, and that through the grace of His Holy Spirit we may be disposed and enabled to yield a more suitable obedience to His righteous requisitions in time to come; that He would interpose to arrest the progress of that impiety and licentiousness in principle and practice so offensive to Himself and so ruinous to mankind; that He would make us deeply sensible that "righteousness exalteth a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people;" that He would turn us from our transgressions and turn His displeasure from us; that He would withhold us from unreasonable discontent, from disunion, faction, sedition, and insurrection; that He would preserve our country from the desolating sword; that He would save our cities and towns from a repetition of those awful pestilential visitations under which they have lately suffered so severely, and that the health of our inhabitants generally may be precious in His sight; that He would favor us with fruitful seasons and so bless the labors of the husbandman as that there may be food in abundance for man and beast; that He would prosper our commerce, manufactures, and fisheries, and give success to the people in all their lawful industry and enterprise; that He would smile on our colleges, academies, schools, and seminaries of learning, and make them nurseries of sound science, morals, and religion; that He would bless all magistrates, from the highest to the lowest, give them the true spirit of their station, make them a terror to evil doers and a praise to them that do well; that He would preside over the councils of the nation at this critical period, enlighten them to a just discernment of the public interest, and save them from mistake, division, and discord; that He would make succeed our preparations for defense and bless our armaments by land and by sea; that He would put an end to the effusion of human blood and the accumulation of human misery among the contending nations of the earth by disposing them to justice, to equity, to benevolence, and to peace; and that he would extend the blessings of knowledge, of true liberty, and of pure and undefiled religion throughout the world.
And I do also recommend that with these acts of humiliation, penitence, and prayer fervent thanksgiving to the Author of All Good be united for the countless favors which He is still continuing to the people of the United States, and which render their condition as a nation eminently happy when compared with the lot of others.
Given etc.
JOHN ADAMS.

• James Madison - 07/09/1812 Proclamation - Humiliation and Prayer - 1812. This is the text of James Madison's August, 1812 Humiliation and Prayer Fast Proclamation; as printed in the Independent Chronicle on July 20, 1812.

• William Dubourg. An Address Delivered in the Commander in Chief of the 7th Military District, Major General Andrew Jackson, at the ceremony of solemn thanksgiving, after his brillaint defence of the city of New Orleans. By the Rev. wm. Bubourg, Administrator Apostolic of the Diocese of Louisiana. With answer from General Andrew Jackson. Providence Patriot and Columbian, March 18, 1815, p. 1. Address delivered in New-Orleans, Feb. 3.
  "General Jackson's Answer: Reverend Sir--I receive with gratitude and pleasure the symbolical crown which piety has prepared. I receive it in the name of the brave men who have so effectually seconded my exertions for the preservation of their country--they well deserve3 the laurels which their country will bestow.
  For myself, to have been instrumental in the deliverance of such a country, is the greatest blessing that Heaven couldcover. That it has been effected with so little loss--that so few tears should cloud the smiles of our triumph & not a cypress leaf be interwoven in the wreath which you present, is a source of the most exquisite enjoyment.
  I thank you, reverend sir, most sincerely, for the prayers which you offer up for my happiness. May those your patriotism dictates for our beloved country be first heard. And my mine for your individual prosperity, as well as that of the congregations committed to your care, be favorably received--the prosperity, the wealth, the happiness of this city will then be commensurate with the courage and other great qualities of hits inhabitants."

By the President of the United States of America.
A Proclamation.
It has pleased Almighty God to vouchsafe signal victories to the land and naval forces engaged in suppressing an internal rebellion, and at the same time to avert from our country the dangers of foreign intervention and invasion.
It is therefore recommended to the People of the United States that, at their next weekly assemblages in their accustomed places of public worship which shall occur after notice of this Proclamation shall have been received, they especially acknowledge and render thanks to our Heavenly Father for these inestimable blessings; that they then and there implore spiritual consolations in behalf of all who have been brought into affliction by the casualties and calamities of sedition and civil war, and that they reverently invoke the Divine Guidance for our national counsels, to the end that they may speedily result in the restoration of peace, harmony, and unity throughout our borders, and hasten the establishment of fraternal relations among all the countries of the earth.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the City of Washington, this tenth day of April, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, and of the Independence of the United States the eighty-sixth.

By the President of the United States of America.
A Proclamation.
It has pleased Almighty God to hearken to the supplications and prayers of an afflicted people, and to vouchsafe to the army and the navy of the United States victories on land and on the sea so signal and so effective as to furnish reasonable grounds for augmented confidence that the Union of these States will be maintained, their constitution preserved, and their peace and prosperity permanently restored. But these victories have been accorded not without sacrifices of life, limb, health and liberty incurred by brave, loyal and patriotic citizens. Domestic affliction in every part of the country follows in the train of these fearful bereavements. It is meet and right to recognize and confess the presence of the Almighty Father and the power of His Hand equally in these triumphs and in these sorrows:
Now, therefore, be it known that I do set apart Thursday the 6th. day of August next, to be observed as a day for National Thanksgiving, Praise and Prayer, and I invite the People of the United States to assemble on that occasion in their customary places of worship, and in the forms approved by their own consciences, render the homage due to the Divine Majesty, for the wonderful things he has done in the Nation's behalf, and invoke the influence of His Holy Spirit to subdue the anger, which has produced, and so long sustained a needless and cruel rebellion, to change the hearts of the insurgents, to guide the counsels of the Government with wisdom adequate to so great a national emergency, and to visit with tender care and consolation throughout the length and breadth of our land all those who, through the vicissitudes of marches, voyages, battles and sieges, have been brought to suffer in mind, body or estate, and finally to lead the whole nation, through the paths of repentance and submission to the Divine Will, back to the perfect enjoyment of Union and fraternal peace.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the city of Washington, this fifteenth day of July, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the eighty-eighth.

By the President of the United States of America.
A Proclamation.
The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequalled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle or the ship; the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom. No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who,while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union.
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the City of Washington, this Third day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the United States the Eighty-eighth. ABRAHAM LINCOLN

By the President of the United States of America:
A Proclamation.
It has pleased Almighty God to prolong our national life another year, defending us with his guardian care against unfriendly designs from abroad, and vouchsafing to us in His mercy many and signal victories over the enemy, who is of our own household. It has also pleased our Heavenly Father to favor as well our citizens in their homes as our soldiers in their camps and our sailors on the rivers and seas with unusual health. He has largely augmented our free population by emancipation and by immigration, while he has opened to us new sources of wealth, and has crowned the labor of our working men in every department of industry with abundant rewards. Moreover, He has been pleased to animate and inspire our minds and hearts with fortitude, courage and resolution sufficient for the great trial of civil war into which we have been brought by our adherence as a nation to the cause of Freedom and Humanity, and to afford to us reasonable hopes of an ultimate and happy deliverance from all our dangers and afflictions.
Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, do, hereby, appoint and set apart the last Thursday in November next as a day, which I desire to be observed by all my fellow-citizens wherever they may then be as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to Almighty God the beneficent Creator and Ruler of the Universe. And I do farther recommend to my fellow-citizens aforesaid that on that occasion they do reverently humble themselves in the dust and from thence offer up penitent and fervent prayers and supplications to the Great Disposer of events for a return of the inestimable blessings of Peace, Union and Harmony throughout the land, which it has pleased him to assign as a dwelling place for ourselves and for our posterity throughout all generations.
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
Done at the city of Washington this twentieth day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty four, and, of the Independence of the United States the eighty-ninth. ABRAHAM LINCOLN

We meet this evening, not in sorrow, but in gladness of heart. The evacuation of Petersburg and Richmond, and the surrender of the principal insurgent army, give hope of a righteous and speedy peace whose joyous expression can not be restrained. In the midst of this, however, He, from Whom all blessings flow, must not be forgotten. A call for a national thanksgiving is being prepared, and will be duly promulgated.

• Ulysses S. Grant - 10/28/1871 Proclamation - Thanksgiving Day - 1871 .This is the text of President Ulysses S. Grant October 23, 1871 National Thanksgiving Proclamation; as printed in the Painesville Telegraph, November 2, 1871.

• William H. Taft - 11/15/1909 Proclamation - Thanksgiving Day - 1909. This is the text of the November 15, 1909 William Howard Taft national Thanksgiving Day Proclamation.

• Franklin D. Roosevelt - 11/21/1933 Proclamation - Thanksgiving Day - 1933.

As your President, I appeal to you again-and to all Americans everywhere--to prove your faith and your belief in the teachings of God by doing your share to save the starving millions in Europe, in Asia, in Africa. Share your food by eating less, and prevent millions from dying of starvation. Reduce your abundance so that others may have a crust of bread. In short, prove yourselves worthy of the liberty and dignity which you have preserved on this earth, by helping those less fortunate who have been starved by the dictators for so many long years and who still starve even in liberation.

Ours should be a continuous thanksgiving for the fact of victory and for the blessings which are still with us in this land. The brave men and valiant women who made this possible under God will inspire us to face our new problems with resolution. They are problems which call for the best in us. As long as we remain true to the spirit of these men and women, to the religious faith which carried them to victory we shall not fail.

We have this America not because we are of a particular faith, not because our ancestors sailed from a particular foreign port. We have our America because of our common aspiration to remain free and our determined purpose to achieve for ourselves, and for our children, a more abundant life in keeping with our highest ideals.

Let us determine to carry on in that same spirit--in a spirit of tolerance, and understanding for all men and for all nations--in the spirit of God and religious unity.

As our forefathers pushed the frontier into the wilderness, they took their churches with them. The spires of the meetinghouses rose in the midst of the new settlements--in the Appalachians, across the plains of the Ohio and Mississippi Valleys, and on to the Pacific coast.

Today, the main stream of our growth is no longer into the wilderness. Frequently, it is taking place in the oldest communities in our land, as it is right here in Alexandria. But churches are still going forward with the new internal expansion of our country. And as an example, a few years ago there was only one church of your denomination in this city of Alexandria. Today, there are four, and the other denominations have increased as well as the Presbyterian. I am happy to say the Baptists have, too.

There are some who foolishly say that religion is dead or dying in this country. They have not consulted the statistics. The facts are that the churches, and the church memberships, are growing. Perhaps this growth is not rapid enough--perhaps it is not as great as we might wish. Real Christians can never be satisfied with the progress of their faith. But growth there is--and vitality, and widening influence.

It is just as important for the future of this country that the churches keep pace with our present expansion as it was for our forefathers to carry their faith with them when they laid the foundations of this great Nation. Democracy is first and foremost a spiritual force. It is built upon a spiritual basis--and on a belief in God and an observance of moral principles. And in the long run only the church can provide that basis. Our founders knew this truth--and we will neglect it at our peril.

You can see this truth demonstrated in the history of your own denomination. Every denomination has made its particular contribution to our Nation, and certainly the Presbyterians have done their share. One of the great Presbyterians of colonial times was John Witherspoon, the president of Princeton University and a signer of the Declaration of Independence. He taught the doctrines of complete religious liberty and national independence. And today many of the finest men and women in our Government, as this congregation bears witness, are Presbyterians. Indeed, the democratic nature of our Government owes much to the democratic forms and the democratic experience of the Presbyterian church. I can brag a lot on the Presbyterians because I started a Sunday School in the Presbyterian Church when I was 6 years old, and that is where I met Mrs. Truman.

This is the Sunday before Thanksgiving. In Thanksgiving, we have a purely American holiday--fashioned out of our own history, and testifying to the religious background of our national life. That day expresses what we mean when we say that out form of government rests on a spiritual foundation.

Yet, we must not congratulate ourselves too much upon the past, or upon the purely physical growth of our churches in the present. Our churches must keep pace not only with the changes in our physical development, but also, and more importantly, with the changes of social problems. Our churches must not become a place to hide from the facts of the world about us, nor a mere badge of social respectability. Too often our churches have been blind to their most important function, which is to bring about the application of religious principles to our daily lives and in our work. We must all wage a ceaseless war against injustice in our society. The churches in particular are a force which should fight for brotherhood, and decency, and better lives for all our people.

In foreign affairs, as well as in our domestic affairs, the churches should hold up the standard and point the way. The only hope of mankind for enduring peace lies in the realm of the spiritual. The teachings of the Christian faith recognize the worth of every human soul before Almighty God. The teachings of the Christian faith are a sure defense against the godlessness and the brutality of ideologies which deny the value of the individual. We must try to find ways to carry these spiritual concepts into the field of world relations. The point 4 program is one of the ways in which we can do this. That program reflects our belief that we are all our brothers' keepers. And it is an evidence of our faith that by following the path of justice and righteousness we can turn back the dark forces that seek to plunge the earth again into savagery.

It is from a strong and vital church--from the strength and vitality of all our churches--that government must draw its vision. In the teachings of our Savior there is no room for bigotry, for discrimination, for the embittered struggle of class against class, or for the hostilities of nation against nation. St. Paul, in writing to the early church at Colosse, said, "Here there cannot be Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, freeman, but Christ is all, and in all."

Here are the seeds of our vision of society. But we cannot keep that vision strong, or carry it out, without God's help. And the churches must help us to keep that vision always before us. Religious faith is the strength of our Nation, and the hope of all mankind.

"I heartily congratulate you on the entire Victory obtained by General Gates over Burgoin. This is a Striking Instance of the Truth of the Observation in Holy Writ "Pride goeth before a Fall." Our sincere Acknowledgments of Gratitude are due to the supreme Disposer of all Events. I suppose Congress will recommend that a Day be set apart through out the United States for solemn Thanksgiving.

"I rejoyce that my Friend General Gates, after what had happend, is honord by Providence as the Instrument in this great Affair."

Samuel Adams to James Warren: "I hope our Countrymen will render the just Tribute of Praise to the Supreme Ruler for these signal Instances of his Interposition in favor of a People struggling for their Liberties. Congress will, I suppose recommend the setting apart one Day of publick Thanksgiving to be observd throughout the united States."

"I heartily congratulate you on the entire Victory obtained by General Gates over Burgoin. This is a Striking Instance of the Truth of the Observation in Holy Writ "Pride goeth before a Fall." Our sincere Acknowledgments of Gratitude are due to the supreme Disposer of all Events. I suppose Congress will recommend that a Day be set apart through out the United States for solemn Thanksgiving.

"I rejoyce that my Friend General Gates, after what had happend, is honord by Providence as the Instrument in this great Affair."

Samuel Adams to James Warren: "I hope our Countrymen will render the just Tribute of Praise to the Supreme Ruler for these signal Instances of his Interposition in favor of a People struggling for their Liberties. Congress will, I suppose recommend the setting apart one Day of publick Thanksgiving to be observd throughout the united States."

• Dr. John Concannon, webmaster, Gaspee Virtual Archives. Notes on John Allen and his "Oration on the Beauties of Liberty". Allen's "Oration" is likely to have influenced political thinking at the critical time when the Committees of Correspondence were forming in direct reaction to both the Gaspee Affair and the subsequent, but unrelated, attempt by the British ministry to pay the salaries of Massachusetts colonial judges directly from the treasury. Both of these events were considered by Allen to be deliberate and threatening attempts on American liberties, and both were cited by Thomas Jefferson as the key reasons members of the Virginia House of Burgesses met to form the first intercolonial Committee of Correspondence in March of 1773. See Jefferson, Thomas; Thomas Jefferson Papers, July 27, 1821, Autobiography Draft Fragment, January 6 through July 27. Available here.

• Baldwin, Thomas, 1753-1825. A Sermon, Delivered February 19, 1795: Being the Day of Public Thanksgiving. With introduction by David Barton.

"I may not here omite how, notwithstand all their great paines & indnstrie, and ye great hops of a large cropp, the Lord seemed to blast, & take away the same, and to threaten further & more sore famine unto them, by a great drought which continued from ye 3. weeke in May, till about ye midle of July, without any raine, and with great heat (for ye most parte), insomuch as ye corne begane to wither away, though it was set with fishe, the moysture wherof helped it much. Yet at length it begane to languish sore, and some of ye drier grounds were partched like withered hay, part wherof was never recovered. Upon which they sett a parte a solemne day of humilliation, to seek ye Lord by humble & fervente prayer, in this great distrese. And he was pleased to give them a gracious & speedy answer, both to their owne, & the lndeans admiration, that lived amongest them. For all ye morning, and greatest part of the day, it was clear weather & very hotte, and not a cloud or any signe of raine to be seen, yet toward evening it begane to overcast, and shortly after to raine, with shuch sweete and gentle showers, as gave them cause of rejoyceing, & blesing God. It came, without either wind, or thunder, or any violence, and by degreese in yt abundance, as that ye earth was thorowly were and soked therwith. Which did so apparently revive & quicken ye decayed Corne & other fruits, as was wonderfull to see, and made ye Indeans astonished to behold; and afterwards the Lord sent them shuch seasonable showers, with enterchange of faire warme weather, as, through his blessing, caused a fruitfull & liberall harvest, to their no small comforte and rejoycing. For which mercie (in time conveniente) they also sett aparte a day of thanksgiveing. This being overslipt in its place, I thought meet here to inserte ye same."

5. Let us charge our children and households to keep the right ways of the Lord, to do judgment and justice,and let us set them an example of it in our own holy, humble, thankful and obedient lives; that in so doing we may inherit the blessings, and avoid the threatnings [sic] recorded, Isaiah 1: 19,20. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land. But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword (of divine justice). For the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.

"At his command empires rise and fall. He setteth up and pulleth down at his pleasure. He prospers or blasts a nation according to his sovereign will. In all respects we depend upon him as absolutely in this relation as in that of individuals. Shall we never, then, as a community, acknowledge our dependance and give him thanks for the distinguishing favours which he may have conferred on us? Is it not fit, is it not important, that in every relation which he hath instituted, which he sustains, and which he crowns with his kindness, we should confess his sovereignty, acknowledge his power, and praise his goodness? Yes, my brethren. We have a national character in support in our carriage and demeanour toward Almighty God, a character which he observes, and according to which he will treat us. The history of the whole world is a confirmation of this truth. The history of the nation which was governed by the author of our text illustrates it in a most striking manner: And it requires no gift of prophecy to foresee and foretell, that if we are not thankful to God as a people, he will withdraw his unnoticed benefits and teach us by adversity to enquire after him whom in our prosperity we had forgotten."

• Prince, Thomas, 1687-1758. Extraordinary events the doings of God, and marvellous in pious eyes. Illustrated in a sermon at the South Church in Boston, (New-England) on General Thanksgiving, Thursday, July 18, 1745. The Fifth edition. [London], 1746. 30 pp.

EQUALLY illustrious have been the exertions of providence in behalf of America, from the very commencement of the late war to this day. Tho these only may it be ascribed, that the designs and plots of our enemies were so seasonably and providentially made known to us, from time to time, in the first stages of the war, to our great advantage: That the enemy suffered such uncommon slaughter in some of the first battles*, which damped their spirits, and kept them in a measure inactive the rest of the year, and gave time for the country to make more effectual provision for her own defence;--That a spirit of union and resistance flew instantly, like a stream of electric fire, through the continent:--The the union increased and grew up into an happy establishment, in spite of all the art and opposition either of our open or secret enimies:--that General WASHINGTON, that prodigy of a man, was appointed to command the confederate armies; and that we were furnished with arms, ammunition and implements of war, even from our enemies, when we were in the greatest need of them, and the most important enterprises must have failed had it not been for those providential supp1ies*. A watchful providence was no less conspicuous in secreting, in a very remarkable manner, from our enemies, at particular times, our want of ammunition and our great weakness, which had they been known, we might at once have been wholly ruined: in that spirit of magnanimity and suffering patience which sustained us in the dark years of seventeen hundred seventy six, and seventy seven. We were now pressed with an army of towards sixty thousand men, aided by more than twenty thousand seamen in eighty men of war, with a still greater number of privateers, gallies and gun-boats, which were not less mischievious and distressing than their capital ships*. This tremendous military force, sufficient to have alarmed and spread terror through any kingdom upon earth, was commanded by the most accomplished generals and admirals Great-Britain could furnish from all Europe. If we may credit their own historians, this army was furnished with the finest and most numerous train of artillery, with which any one, of that number, ever was supupplied in the known world; and this was served by the most experienced and approved engineers which Europe could produce.

WHAT but the mighty operations of providence inspired us with magnanimity and resolution to declare ourselves INDEPENDENT, and by one capital stroke to found the AMERICAN REPUBLIC, at the very time when the enemy with these mighty armaments spread our coasts, poured in their troops upon us, and shook the continent with their thunder? When the enemy were in full force, and at the highest tide of victory, our army was next to nothing. In face of this mighty force, it was to be raised, armed and disciplined. We feared, and our enemies were positive, that it never could be done. How did the excellent greatness and goodness of GOD appear in supporting us in this dreadful crisis? What else could have influenced the surprizing movements, and given the memorable victories of TRENTON and PRINCETON*, which snatched us from the jaws of destruction; I had almost said, raised us from the dead, giving life and joy to all America? The victory of Bennington, tbe defeat of the enemy at fort Stanwix, the capture of Bargoyne and the British army, at Saratoga, and the giving us a powerful and generous ally in one of the capital powers of Europe; the detection of Arnold's horrid conspiracy, the splendid victories, the judicious and almoft incredible marchs and efforts of General GREENE, by which the Carolinas were recovered to the States, and the glorious victory over the Earl Cornwallis, in Virginia, are among the mighty acts of HIM, who is excellent in greatness and wonderful in working.

THE combining of so many circumstances and great events, as united their influence in the ever memorable victory of York, displayed the greatness, wisdom and almighty power of the Supreme Ruler. To nothing but the divine wisdom can we ascribe the joint counsels of a WASHINGTON and ROCHAMBEAU, in that singular effort of generalship, which deceived and astonished the British generals, and at once transplanted the confederate armies from the banks of the Hudson to York. None by H P., who sits king upon the floods, and holdeth the winds in his fists, could have ordered the arrival and movements of the French fleet, as to defeat the British, and co-operate with the combined armies in the reduction of our enemies. Who, but the Being that holds a sovereign inluence over the hearts of men, could inspire armies and generals of different nations with such union and magnanimity, as though all had been animated with one soul, to effect the glorious work before them? This quieted the southern States, afforded rest to many thousands of our brethren, who before lay down and rose up in fear and distress; gave strength and honour to America at home, friends, favour and glory in the kingdoms of Europe; dispirited our enemies and gave a finishing stroke to the war.

* See document for statistics provided in footnotes.