This photograph from the 2023 turkey pardon ceremony was taken by Matthew DAgostino on November 20, 2023 on the South Lawn of the White House. President Joseph R. Biden oversaw the ceremony alongside Steve Lykken, seen here at right, chairman of the National Turkey Federation (NTF), and Jennie-O Turkey Store vice president Jose Rojas, left. During the ceremony, President Biden formally pardoned the official National Thanksgiving Turkey, Liberty, and the alternate, Bell. Liberty and Bell were raised by Jennie-O in Willmar, Minnesota. After the ceremony, the turkeys were transferred to the University of Minnesota to be looked after and cared for the remainder of their lives. Presidents and their families have received turkeys for the holidays since the 1870s. The origin of the turkey pardon, however, dates to 1863when President Abraham Lincoln offered clemency to a turkey purchased for Christmas dinner at his son's request. The pardoning of a Thanksgiving turkey became a formalized tradition during the George H. W. Bush administration.
Photographer
Matthew D'Agostino
Date of Work
November 20, 2023
Type
Photograph
Credit
Matthew D'Agostino for the White House Historical Association
American artist John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) is the creator of two major paintings currently on display in the White House Collection. Both are striking, but one of them puzzles visitors perhaps more than any other item in the building. Although his parents were American, Sargent was born in Florence, Italy, and spent most of his youth abroad. He trained as
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