The First Thanksgiving

As you enjoy the next few days off for Thanksgiving break, you may be wondering what the break is even for. While you’re not going to argue against no classes for half a week, you might be curious as to what Thanksgiving really is.

Thanksgiving is a unique holiday, celebrated only in the United States. America was settled by English Pilgrims who fled from Europe in search of a better life with no monarchy. Upon arriving in Massachusetts in 1620, the Pilgrims established the village of Plymouth. It was only after a very brutal winter that the surviving pilgrims met Squanto, a Native American who taught them how to grow corn, catch fish, avoid poisonous plants, and much more.

The following November, a year after they arrived in America, the Pilgrims had a successful first harvest of corn. To show his gratitude, Plymouth governor William Bradford invited a group of Native American’s to join in a fest. This feast, that lasted 3 days long, consisted of deer and various fowl (birds), according to written records. While no one knows the exact menu of this unofficial first Thanksgiving, it is assumed that most of the meal was prepared with traditional Native American spices and cooking methods.

It was not until two years later, in 1623, that the Pilgrims celebrated their second Thanksgiving feast after a long drought had threatened their corn harvest. Thanksgiving then become a tradition in New England settlements, through to the American Revolution when George Washington issued the first Thanksgiving proclamation. This thanksgiving was to express gratitude for the end f the war on independence.

In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln established Thanksgiving as a national holiday. Since then, Americans have celebrated the holiday on the fourth Thursday of November every year. Today, Thanksgiving is a day to spend time with family and those you are thankful for, eat a delicious abundance of food (check out the article on traditional American thanksgiving food), watch some American football, and enjoy the start to the holiday season!