Thanksgiving In Rockford: Here’s How Often It Snows That Week

Let's get one thing straight right away. There is very, very little chance that Rockford and the rest of Northern Illinois are going to hit with any snow this coming Thursday, better known as Thanksgiving Day.

Thanksgiving in Rockford doesn’t usually look like a greeting card. Most years, we sit down to turkey and stuffing with dry ground, cold sunshine, and maybe a few stubborn leaves that don't have the decency to fall in your neighbor's yard still clinging to the trees.

So, with this year’s forecast calling for sun and a high near 30 degrees on Thanksgiving Day, followed by snow on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, it might be fun to look back at the years when Thanksgiving itself actually brought snowfall to the Forest City.

Spoiler Alert: It’s not very many.

Looking Back Through The Weather Records, It's Pretty Clear That Thanksgiving In Rockford/Northern Illinois Doesn't Often Produce Measurable Snowfall

While a trace of snow pops up in roughly a third of all Thanksgivings, measurable accumulation is much rarer. Only a small handful of Thanksgivings have brought anything that would qualify as “shoveling snow,” and even fewer Turkey days produced what anyone would call a true holiday snowstorm.

The standout year is 1968, when Rockford recorded 4.5 inches of snow on Thanksgiving Day, still the snowiest Thanksgiving on record. Even longtime Rockford residents are surprised to learn that the city once had a Thanksgiving that got that much snow.

Behind that, you’ll find 1953 with 3 inches, 1949 with 2 inches, and 1947 with another 2-inch snowfall. Several other years (1945, 1950, 1959, 1975, 1977, and 1980) picked up smaller amounts ranging from half an inch to just under two inches, enough to make the day feel like mid-winter, but not enough to completely screw up anyone’s holiday plans.

In Our Area, Thanksgiving Happens Right On The Line Between Fall And Winter

In Rockford, the bigger snows tend to show up just before or, more commonly, just after the holiday. That includes this year’s forecasted weather conditions, with a quiet Thanksgiving Day on Thursday followed by a much more active pattern over the weekend.

There’s another quirky bit of Rockford weather history worth mentioning while we're at it, and that would be the records for latest measurable snowfall of the season.

Most people assume Rockford always gets its first accumulation sometime in November, and while that’s usually true, the record tells a different story. The latest first measurable snowfall on record didn’t occur until January 7, 1940. Imagine making it all the way through November and December without a single measurable snowflake, which is something that's almost unthinkable today.

With snow expected again shortly after this year’s Thanksgiving, it fits right into our area's historical pattern. Thanksgiving itself isn’t usually snowy, but winter’s arrival is never far behind.