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Welcome to Animated CyberKisses |
A brief history of Americas Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving and the Pilgrims seem to go together, just like Christmas
and Santa Claus--but the truth is, the Pilgrims never held a
Thanksgiving feast, in the fall. Before you cancel the turkey,
take a look at the origin of that particular myth..
The Pilgrims did have a feast in 1621, after their first harvest,
and it is this feast, which people often refer to as
"The First Thanksgiving". This feast was never repeated,
though, so it can't be called the beginning of a tradition,
nor was it termed by the colonists or "Pilgrims" a Thanksgiving
Feast. In fact, to these devoutly religious people, a day of
thanksgiving was a day of prayer and fasting, and would have
been held any time that they felt an extra day of thanks was called for.
Nevertheless,
In 1621, after a hard and devastating first year in the New World the
Pilgrim's fall harvest was very successful and plentiful. There was corn,
fruits, vegetables, along with fish, which was packed in salt, and meat that
was smoke cured over fires. They found they had enough food to
put away for the winter. The Pilgrims had beaten the odds. They built
homes in the wilderness, they raised enough crops to keep them alive
during the long coming winter, and they were at peace with their Indian
neighbors. Their Governor, William Bradford, proclaimed a day of
thanks that was to be shared by all the colonists and the neighboring
Native American Indians.
The 1621 feast has become a model that we
think of for our own Thanksgiving celebration and we do know
something of the truth about it. We can assume, for example, that
the harvest feast was eaten outside based on the fact that the
Colonists didn't have a building large enough to accommodate
all the people who came. Native People were definitely among
the invited guests, and it's possible, even probable, that turkey
(roasted but not stuffed) and pumpkin in some form,
found their way to the table. We know that the feast
went on for three days, included ninety "Indians", and food was
plentiful. In addition, to the venison provided by the Indians,
there was enough wild fowl to supply the village for a week.
The fowl would have included ducks, geese, turkeys and even swans.
During the American Revolution (late 1770's) a day of national
thanksgiving was suggested by the Continental Congress.
In 1817 New York State adopted Thanksgiving Day as an annual custom.
By the middle of the 19th century many other states also celebrated a
Thanksgiving Day. In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln appointed a
national day of thanksgiving. Since then each president has issued
a Thanksgiving Day proclamation, usually designating the third
Thursday of each November as the holiday.
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