Immediately following President Obama’s “pardon” of the National Thanksgiving Turkey, George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate, Museum & Gardens will welcome the turkey with a ceremony featuring a trumpet fanfare and proclamation read by Washington’s farm manager, “James Anderson.” The turkey will arrive to the front of the Mansion in a horse-drawn carriage guided by staff dressed in 18th-century costumes for the ceremony.
The turkey will be on display for visitors during “Christmas at Mount Vernon”, a daily program that takes place November 25 through January 6. He will reside in a custom-made enclosure situated near Aladdin, a camel who represents the camel George Washington had on the grounds to entertain visitors during Christmas of 1787.
After the holiday season, the turkey will live at Mount Vernon’s nationally-recognized livestock facility.
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It is especially appropriate that Mount Vernon was selected to house the National Thanksgiving Turkey as George Washington issued the first proclamation for a National Day of Thanksgiving in 1789.
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