On November 27, 1868, without bothering to identify the village
or do any reconnaissance, Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong
Custer led an early morning attack on a band of peaceful Cheyenne
living with Chief Black Kettle.

Convicted of desertion and mistreatment of soldiers earlier that year
in a military court, the government had suspended Custer from rank
and command for one year. Ten months into his punishment, in September 1868, General Philip Sheridan reinstated Custer to lead
a campaign against Cheyenne Indians who had been making raids
in Kansas and Oklahoma that summer. Sheridan was frustrated by
the inability of his other officers to find and engage the enemy, and despite his poor record and unpopularity with the men of the 7th
Cavalry, Custer was a good fighter.

George Armstrong Custer
(December 5, 1839 – June 25, 1876)

The so-called “storm of the century” hit the eastern part of the
United States, killing hundreds and causing millions of dollars
in damages, on November 25, 1950.

Forming over North Carolina just before Thanksgiving, the storm
quickly moved north, striking western Pennsylvania, eastern
Ohio and West Virginia. These areas were blanketed with several
feet of snow for several days and travel was impossible for nearly
a week in some places.

An accompanying windstorm covered a far greater area. New York
City recorded a 94 mile-per-hour wind gust. At Bear Mountain, just
north of the city, a 140 mph gust was recorded.

Three days after his assassination in Dallas, Texas, John F. Kennedy
was laid to rest with full military honors at Arlington National
Cemetery in Virginia.

Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, was shot to death
while riding in an open-car motorcade with his wife and Texas
Governor John Connally through the streets of downtown Dallas.

Ex-Marine and communist sympathizer Lee Harvey Oswald was the alleged assassin. Kennedy was rushed to Dallas’ Parkland Hospital, where he was pronounced dead 30 minutes later. He was 46.

Vice President Lyndon Johnson, who was three cars behind
President Kennedy in the motorcade, was sworn in as the 36th
president of the United States less than two hours later. He took
the presidential oath of office aboard Air Force One as it sat on
the runway at Dallas Love Field airport. The swearing in was
witnessed by some 30 people, including Jacqueline Kennedy,
who was still wearing clothes stained with her husband’s blood.
Seven minutes later, the presidential jet took off for Washington.

The first Macy’s Day Parade was on November 27 in 1924. The
parade originally featured Macy’s employees and live animals
from the Central Park Zoo. Floats, instead of balloons, were the
main attraction.

The parade began in Harlem at 145th Street and ended in front
of the Macy’s flagship store on 34th Street. It was originally
called the Macy’s Christmas Parade, but was renamed the
Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade in 1927.

An estimated 250,000 spectators attended the first parade.

Today,  about 3.5 million people attend.   

‘Andy the Alligator’ in the 1933 parade.

Mickey Mouse made his first debut in this 1934 parade.

The Tin Man made his debut months after the release of “The Wizard of Oz” in 1939.

A group of elephants participated in the 1954 Thanksgiving
Day Parade. 

A marching band through Times Square, 1959. 

A performance by the Rockettes, 1964.