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Presidential turkey pardon, a tradition that began with Lincoln in 1863
by Tom Emery
Each year just before Thanksgiving, the President ceremoniously pardons a turkey, a light-hearted moment in his otherwise grueling schedule. The tradition is traced to Abraham Lincoln, who wrote a pardon at the behest of his youngest son, Tad, in 1863.
Though the origin is debated, many researchers believe that Lincoln was the first to bestow a Presidential pardon on a turkey, thus saving it from the dinner table. The reprieve, though, was actually issued at Christmas.
In late 1863, th...
