Evolution
of Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is a well known holiday throughout
the United States. It’s a time to get together with family and celebrate each
others company with all sorts of foods, the same types of foods that were at
the first Thanksgiving. At least that’s what many who celebrate the holiday
believe. The truth about Thanksgiving is a little more than just the Mayflower
and turkey. More people were involved in the coming of Thanksgiving than just
the Pilgrims and Indians, but why is it all left out of the modern day
knowledge?
The origin of Thanksgiving as many today know it
is somewhat true but some of the ideas around it, mostly main ideas around the
holiday, have been stretched and are not as true as one would think. Many would
start the story of Thanksgiving by saying that Pilgrims came from England as to
escape religious persecution. The reality behind it is that while there is
definitely a possibility that a handful were escaping persecution, many came
over on the Mayflower to make money. Another issue with the story is that they
were called Pilgrims. Many of them would have called themselves Separatists for
removing themselves from England. All of these facts a simple to find if more
people looked into the real origin of Thanksgiving. I looked on the New York
Times, and History.com to easy find facts that disprove these misconceptions.
The meal shared by the Indians and the Separatists is true,
however this wasn’t really the start of Thanksgiving. While it was celebrated
in parts of the country, Thanksgiving wasn’t declared a holiday until 1863 when
Sarah Josepha Hale, the “Mother of Thanksgiving” as some would say, wrote
Abraham Lincoln a letter asking him to make it a national holiday. After the
Civil War ended Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving as a national holiday as
a form of thanks for the victories at Vicksburg, Mississippi, and Gettysburg as
said on History.com. This is where the technical start of Thanksgiving began.
The most important part of Thanksgiving to many
who celebrate it is the food. Turkey and cranberries, corn, and bread. These
are just some of the many foods that are a necessity at the table, but unfortunately,
they all aren’t the foods that many believe were at the first Thanksgiving.
Squanto was an Indian living in New England when he was taken by the English
and sold into slavery in Spain in 1614. Once he got out of slavery, he lived in
England for a while, where he learned english, then returned to New England in
1619 only to find that his tribe had been killed off by a smallpox outbreak. In
1621 the Separatists came to New England and met Squanto who showed them the
best fishing spots, and how to farm properly. Another tribe also helped show
the Indians how to grow corn and other foods. The meal was shared by the
Separatists and the Indians, that much is true, but Turkey was not for certain
part of the meal. It’s been debated that many “wild fowl” could’ve been a part
of the meal, but over the years advertising has many Turkey the main food on
the menu. The same goes for cranberry sauce. Cranberries were for sure not at
the first Thanksgiving, but through advertising have become a major part of the
holiday. Smithsonianmag.com showed that 88% of families eat Turkey on
Thanksgiving and that 20% of the turkeys eaten every year take place on
Thanksgiving.
Sources:
New York Times
History.com
Smithsonianmag.com
Sources:
New York Times
History.com
Smithsonianmag.com
