Image by (V)oluntary (∀)mputation

Happy Thanksgiving from the College of Law Library! Although everyone hears about the first Thanksgiving, did you know that Congress didn’t officially establish the last Thursday in November as Thanksgiving Day until 1941? And not long after that another famous Thanksgiving event occurred – Arlo Guthrie’s arrest for littering, immortalized in song as “Alice’s Restaurant.”

Yes, it’s true. Alice exists. The restaurant and church existed (the church is now the site of the Guthrie Center, actually). And, on November 28, 1965, Officer Obie (a.k.a. William J. Obanhein) did actually arrest Arlo Guthrie for littering. You can even go up to Stockbridge, Massachusetts in May and see all of the sites on the annual “Garbage Trail Walk.”

Since the release of song detailing the events surrounding the arrest – and the subsequent film – listening to “Alice’s Restaurant” has become a Thanksgiving tradition for many Americans. Turn on the radio on Thanksgiving around noon, and you’re likely to hear it on at least one station.

And, just like the dump in the song, the library’s closed, of course – we reopen on Sunday, November 27th. In the meantime, we hope you’re all having an enjoyable few days off!