Thanksgiving history and origins
The 1621 Pilgrim feast, Lincoln's national proclamation, FDR's date change. Trivia about American history that even history fans miss specifics on.
Q1.Which WWII tank ace is credited with having destroyed the most tanks?Tap to reveal
Answer: Kurt Knispel
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q2.The Little Entente was an alliance formed against which nation?Tap to reveal
Answer: Hungary
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q3.In what year did Kentucky become the 15th state to join the union?Tap to reveal
Answer: 1792
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q4.Before the American colonies switched to the Gregorian calendar in 1752, on what date did their new year start?Tap to reveal
Answer: March 25th
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Hard.
Q5.In what year did the Berlin Wall fall?Tap to reveal
Answer: 1989
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q6.According to legend, the ancient Greeks constructed a huge wooden model of which animal to gain entrance to Troy?Tap to reveal
Answer: Horse
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Easy.
Q7.What Southeast Asian country was formerly known as 'Lan Xang'?Tap to reveal
Answer: Laos
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Hard.
Q8.What was the name of one of the surviving palaces of Henry VIII located near Richmond, London?Tap to reveal
Answer: Hampton Court
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q9.Which U.S. president took part in the Potsdam Conference, where the Allies reached a peace settlement with Germany?Tap to reveal
Answer: Harry S. Truman
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q10.What year were the Marian Reforms instituted in the Roman Republic?Tap to reveal
Answer: 107 BCE
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Food traditions and origins
Why turkey, why cranberries, why pumpkin pie. The trivia behind the menu is its own category.
Q1.Who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom for most of World War II?Tap to reveal
Answer: Winston Churchill
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q2.A collection of Sanskrit hymns and verses known as the Vedas are sacred texts in what religion?Tap to reveal
Answer: Hinduism
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Easy.
Q3.Which one of these countries was NOT in the Central Powers during WWI?Tap to reveal
Answer: Spain
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Easy.
Q4.What was the Canada's first capital?Tap to reveal
Answer: Kingston
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Hard.
Q5.Which British monarch was also known as "William of Orange"?Tap to reveal
Answer: William III
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q6.Which Australian Prime Minister disappeared in 1967 and was never found?Tap to reveal
Answer: Harold Holt
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Hard.
Q7.According to scholarly estimates, what percentage of the world population at the time died due to Tamerlane's conquests?Tap to reveal
Answer: 5%
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q8.All of the following are names of the Seven Warring States EXCEPT:Tap to reveal
Answer: Zhai (翟)
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q9.Who was the first man to travel into outer space?Tap to reveal
Answer: Yuri Gagarin
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Hard.
Q10.What year did Skoal, a smokeless Tobacco company, release their first line of Pouches, known as "Skoal Bandits"?Tap to reveal
Answer: 1983
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Macy's Parade and football
The Macy's Parade started in 1924. The Detroit Lions have hosted Thanksgiving NFL games since 1934. Trivia tests how invested you are in the secondary Thanksgiving traditions.
Q1.The collapse of the Soviet Union took place in which year?Tap to reveal
Answer: 1991
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Easy.
Q2.When was Napoleon Bonaparte crowned emperor of the French?Tap to reveal
Answer: December 2nd 1804
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q3.Spain was formed in 1469 with the marriage of Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of what other Iberian kingdom?Tap to reveal
Answer: Aragon
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Hard.
Q4.Who invented the "Flying Shuttle" in 1738; one of the key developments in the industrialization of weaving?Tap to reveal
Answer: John Kay
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Hard.
Q5.Where was Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan killed in 1521?Tap to reveal
Answer: The Phillipines
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q6.Who was the first man to travel into outer space twice?Tap to reveal
Answer: Gus Grissom
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Hard.
Q7.Who was a military strategist in the Eastern Zhou period?Tap to reveal
Answer: Sun Tzu
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q8.On which day did the attempted coup d'etat of 1991 in the Soviet Union begin?Tap to reveal
Answer: August 19
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q9.On what street did the 1666 Great Fire of London start?Tap to reveal
Answer: Pudding Lane
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Easy.
Q10.When did Canada leave the confederation to become their own nation?Tap to reveal
Answer: July 1st, 1867
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Hard.
Pop culture moments
Friends Thanksgiving episodes (ranked), Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973). The TV shows have their own Thanksgiving canon.
Q1.Which famous world leader is famed for the saying, "Let them eat cake", yet is rumored that he/she never said it at all?Tap to reveal
Answer: Marie Antoinette
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Easy.
Q2.In what year did Texas secede from Mexico?Tap to reveal
Answer: 1836
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q3.Which of the following African countries was most successful in resisting colonization?Tap to reveal
Answer: Ethiopia
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Easy.
Q4.What were the first states to break away from Yugoslavia?Tap to reveal
Answer: Slovenia, Croatia
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q5.What year did the Battle of Agincourt take place?Tap to reveal
Answer: 1415
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q6.What did the abbreviation "RMS" stand for in the RMS Titanic in 1912?Tap to reveal
Answer: Royal Mail Ship
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Hard.
Q7.On which day did construction start on "The Pentagon", the headquarters for the United States Department of Defense?Tap to reveal
Answer: September 11, 1941
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q8.Which Las Vegas casino was originally constructed and operated by mobster Bugsy Siegel?Tap to reveal
Answer: The Flamingo
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Q9.What was the capital of South Vietnam before the Vietnam War?Tap to reveal
Answer: Saigon
Sourced from Open Trivia DB (CC BY-SA 4.0). Difficulty: Medium.
Hosting Thanksgiving trivia
Thanksgiving trivia works between dinner and dessert — keeps the family engaged after eating. 20-25 questions across history + food + Friends + parade rounds.
Trivio.NET's Holidays & Events category has Thanksgiving packs. Free in the app, daily quizzes rotate in November.
Frequently Asked Questions
What's the best Thanksgiving trivia for mixed families?
Mix history (older crowd), food origins (universal), Friends episodes (millennial+), and Macy's Parade balloons (kid-friendly).
How long should Thanksgiving trivia be at dinner?
20-30 minutes max. After eating, energy is low. Keep it tight and fun.
Where can I find Thanksgiving trivia question packs?
Trivio.NET's Holidays & Events category has packs by year, by topic (history/food/parade), and by show (Friends, Cheers Thanksgiving).
Are Thanksgiving trivia questions appropriate for kids?
Most are — history (simplified), food, parade balloons. The NFL questions land for older kids. Skip drinking-age trivia.
