( CNN ) -- Throughout American history , the annual celebration of family and gratitude known as Thanksgiving has been a central part of The White House and the U.S. presidency . This week , President Barack Obama kept the tradition alive by pardoning Cobbler , the National Thanksgiving Turkey , in a Rose Garden ceremony . His feathered understudy , Gobbler , was also allowed to live , and both birds will live out the rest of their days on display at George Washington 's Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens in Virginia . Here is a look , by the numbers , at Thanksgiving and the role American presidents have played in the holiday over the years : . 1 - The first one was in 1789 , when President George Washington issued a proclamation naming November 26 as a day of national thanksgiving . 1 - Number of weeks ahead the usual annual date of Thanksgiving was moved by President Franklin D. Roosevelt , in order to boost the Christmas shopping season . 4th - The Thursday in November set aside by Congress in 1941 to be observed as Thanksgiving Day and a federal legal holiday . 65 - Years since the first turkey presentation at the White House . 2 - Turkeys pardoned by President Obama each year since he has been in office . 1 - Turkey pardoned by Obama in 2011 that , after a sudden and mysterious illness , was euthanized this week at the Mount Vernon Estate in Alexandria , Virginia , former home of George Washington and retirement resort for presidentially-pardoned avians . 26 lbs . - Weight of the Georgia possum served for Thanksgiving dinner in 1909 to President William Howard Taft and his family in the White House . 600 - Members of the 1st Armored Division and the 82nd Airborne Division serving in Iraq who were joined by President George W. Bush for their Thanksgiving dinner in 2003 . 4 - Total number of visits Bush made to Iraq as president since the war began in 2003 . 1 bite - Amount of turkey eaten by former President Bill Clinton on Thanksgiving Day in 2011 , who told CNN 's Dr. Sanjay Gupta he lives a [ mostly ] vegan lifestyle these days .
Presidents have played a role in the annual Thanksgiving celebration since 1789 . President Obama continued the tradition by pardoning a turkey at The White House this week . TL;DR A new study finds that Americans are more likely to eat their holiday dinner on Thanksgiving.