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The Pilgrims and America's First Thanksgiving
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On Sept. 6, 1620 the
Pilgrims set sail for the New World on a ship called the
Mayflower. They sailed from Plymouth, England and aboard
were 44 Pilgrims, who called themselves the
"Saints", and 66 others ,whom the Pilgrims
called the "Strangers."
The long trip was cold
and damp and took 65 days. Since there was the danger of fire on the wooden ship, the food had to be eaten cold. Many
passengers became sick and one person died by the time
land was sighted on November 10th.
The long trip led to
many disagreements between the "Saints" and the
"Strangers". After land was sighted a meeting
was held and an agreement was worked out, called the
Mayflower Compact, which guaranteed equality and unified
the two groups. They joined together and named themselves the
"Pilgrims."
Although they had first
sighted land off Cape Cod they did not settle until they
arrived at Plymouth, which had been named by Captain John
Smith in 1614. It was there that the Pilgrims decide to
settle. Plymouth offered an excellent harbor. A large
brook offered a resource for fish. The Pilgrims biggest
concern was attack by the local Native American Indians.
But the Patuxets were a peaceful group and did
not prove to be a threat.
The first winter was
devastating to the Pilgrims. The cold, snow and sleet was
exceptionally heavy, interfering with the workers as they
tried to construct their settlement. March brought warmer
weather and the health of the Pilgrims improved, but many
had died during the long winter. Of the 110 Pilgrims and
crew who left England, less that 50 survived the first
winter.
On March 16, 1621 , what
was to become an important event took place, an Indian
brave walked into the Plymouth settlement. The Pilgrims
were frightened until the Indian called out
"Welcome" (in English!).
His name was Samoset
and he was an Abnaki Indian. He had learned English from
the captains of fishing boats that had sailed off the
coast. After staying the night Samoset left the next day.
He soon returned with another Indian named Squanto
who spoke better English than Samoset. Squanto told the
Pilgrims of his voyages across the ocean and his visits
to England and Spain. It was in England where he had
learned English.
Squanto's importance to
the Pilgrims was enormous and it can be said that they
would not have survived without his help. It was Squanto
who taught the Pilgrims how to tap the maple trees for
sap. He taught them which plants were poisonous and which
had medicinal powers. He taught them how to plant the
Indian corn by heaping the earth into low mounds with
several seeds and fish in each mound. The decaying fish
fertilized the corn. He also taught them to plant other
crops with the corn.
The harvest in October
was very successful and the Pilgrims found themselves
with enough food to put away for the winter. There was
corn, fruits and vegetables, fish to be packed in
salt, and meat to be cured over smoky fires.
The Pilgrims had much to
celebrate, they had built homes in the wilderness, they
had raised enough crops to keep them alive during the
long coming winter, they were at peace with their Indian
neighbors. They had beaten the odds and it was time to
celebrate.
The Pilgrim Governor
William Bradford proclaimed a day of thanksgiving to be
shared by all the colonists and the neighboring Native
Americans. They invited Squanto and the other Indians to
join them in their celebration. Their chief, Massasoit,
and 90 braves came to the celebration which lasted for 3
days. They played games, ran races, marched and played
drums. The Indians demonstrated their skills with the bow
and arrow and the Pilgrims demonstrated their musket
skills. Exactly when the festival took place is
uncertain, but it is believed the celebration took place
in mid-October.
The following year the
Pilgrims harvest was not as bountiful, as they were still
unused to growing the corn. During the year they had also
shared their stored food with newcomers and the Pilgrims
ran short of food.
The 3rd year brought a
spring and summer that was hot and dry with the crops
dying in the fields. Governor Bradford ordered a day of
fasting and prayer, and it was soon thereafter that the
rain came. To celebrate - November 29th of that year was
proclaimed a day of thanksgiving. This date is believed
to be the real true beginning of the present day
Thanksgiving Day.
The custom of an
annually celebrated thanksgiving, held after the harvest,
continued through the years. During the American
Revolution (late 1770's) a day of national thanksgiving
was suggested by the Continental Congress.
In 1817 New York State
had 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 fourth Thursday of
each November as the holiday.
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