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Thanksgiving: A Yankee Holiday?

KENNESAW, GA – Find out how families and Civil War soldiers celebrated Thanksgiving at a living history program Saturday, November 20 sponsored by the Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History and the Root House Museum. The indoor event will be held from 10 am – 4 pm in the Southern Museum’s theater.

“In the South, Thanksgiving was celebrated as it is today. Businesses stayed open and families ate their usual southern fare,” said Maryellen Higginbotham, Curator at the Root House Museum.

A vignette of a typical 1860s dining/sitting room will feature costumed docents and their characteristic Thanksgiving meal in the South. Scents of country ham, desserts, and corn bread will be in the air as the docents share information about the differences of Thanksgiving in the North and South. Also, stories of how soldiers in the camp celebrated will serve as a contrast to the normally family-oriented holiday.

“Thanksgiving was proclaimed by President Lincoln during the Civil War, after twenty years of encouragement from the editor of a ladies magazine.” said Jennifer Legates, Director of Education and Public Programs at the Southern Museum, a Smithsonian Institution affiliate.

Thanksgiving on the Battlefield and Home Front is free with admission to the Southern Museum. Admission is $7.50 for adults, $5.50 for kids 12 and under, and children three and under are admitted for free.

The Southern Museum features collections of rare Civil War weapons, uniforms, and other personal items; an exciting exhibit about The Great Locomotive Chase, including a movie; and a full-scale locomotive factory that helped rebuild the South after the war. Currently, a hands-on exhibit called Railroading in the Southeast offers a fun family learning environment.

The co-sponsor of the event, the Root House, is owned and operated by the Cobb Landmarks Historical Society. The 150-year-old frame house is more typical of its time and place than the grand mansions often on display. Open from 11 am – 4 pm, Tuesday – Saturday, the Root House is complete with gardens flourishing with flowers and vegetables available in Cob County before the 1860s. For more information, call 770-426-4982.

The event will be held at the Southern Museum, located 20 miles north of Atlanta, off I-75 at exit 273. For more information, visit www.southernmuseum.org or call (770) 427-2117.