The Pilgrims who sailed to this country aboard the Mayflower were originally members of the English Separatist Church (a Puritan sect). They had earlier fled their home in England and sailed to Holland (The Netherlands) to escape religious persecution. There, they enjoyed more religious tolerance, but they eventually became disenchanted with the Dutch way of life, thinking it ungodly. Seeking a better life, the Separatists negotiated with a London stock company to finance a pilgrimage to America. Most of those making the trip aboard the Mayflower were non-Separatists, but were hired to protect the company's interests. Only about one-third of the original colonists were Separatists.
    The Pilgrims set ground at Plymouth Rock on December 11, 1620. Their first winter was devastating. At the beginning of the following fall, they had lost 46 of the original 102 who sailed on the Mayflower. But the harvest of 1621 was a bountiful one. And the remaining colonists decided to celebrate with a feast -- including 91 Indians who had helped the Pilgrims survive their first year. It is believed that the Pilgrims would not have made it through the year without the help of the natives. The feast was more of a traditional English harvest festival than a true "thanksgiving" observance. It lasted three days.
    Governor William Bradford sent "four men fowling" after wild ducks and geese. It is not certain that wild turkey was part of their feast. However, it is certain that they had venison. The term "turkey" was used by the Pilgrims to mean any sort of wild fowl.
    Another modern staple at almost every Thanksgiving table is pumpkin pie. But it is unlikely that the first feast included that treat. The supply of flour had been long diminished, so there was no bread or pastries of any kind. However, they did eat boiled pumpkin, and they produced a type of fried bread from their corn crop. There was also no milk, cider, potatoes, or butter. There was no domestic cattle for dairy products, and the newly-discovered potato was still considered by many Europeans to be poisonous. But the feast did include fish, berries, watercress, lobster, dried fruit, clams, venison, and plums.
    This "thanksgiving" feast was not repeated the following year. But in 1623, during a severe drought, the pilgrims gathered in a prayer service, praying for rain. When a long, steady rain followed the very next day, Governor Bradford proclaimed another day of Thanksgiving, again inviting their Indian friends. It wasn't until June of 1676 that another Day of Thanksgiving was proclaimed.
    On June 20, 1676, the governing council of Charlestown, Massachusetts, held a meeting to determine how best to express thanks for the good fortune that had seen their community securely established. By unanimous vote they instructed Edward Rawson, the clerk, to proclaim June 29 as a day of thanksgiving.
     October of 1777 marked the first time that all 13 colonies joined in a thanksgiving celebration. It also commemorated the patriotic victory over the British at Saratoga. But it was a one-time affair.
    George Washington proclaimed a National Day of Thanksgiving in 1789, although some were opposed to it. There was discord among the colonies, many feeling the hardships of a few Pilgrims did not warrant a national holiday. And later, President Thomas Jefferson scoffed at the idea of having a day of thanksgiving.
    It was Sarah Josepha Hale, a magazine editor, whose efforts eventually led to what we recognize as Thanksgiving. Hale wrote many editorials championing her cause in her Boston Ladies' Magazine, and later, in Godey's Lady's Book. Finally, after a 40-year campaign of writing editorials and letters to governors and presidents, Hale's obsession became a reality when, in 1863, President Lincoln proclaimed the last Thursday in November as a national day of Thanksgiving.
     Thanksgiving was proclaimed by every president after Lincoln. The date was changed a couple of times, most recently by Franklin Roosevelt, who set it up one week to the next-to-last Thursday in order to create a longer Christmas shopping season. Public uproar against this decision caused the president to move Thanksgiving back to its original date two years later. And in 1941, Thanksgiving was finally sanctioned by Congress as a legal holiday, as the fourth Thursday in November.
 

SOCIAL STUDIES/FINE ART: Read The First Thanksgiving by Linda Hayward. Students can illustrate the meal between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans.

FINE ART:  Students can make turkeys by using a small paper plate for the body. They should cut out feathers out of colored paper or use real feathers to glue onto to the plate. They can cut out a face and waddle for the turkey, and two legs.

L.A./HEALTH:  Read aloud Thanksgiving at the Tappletons by Eileen Spinelli. Have students plan a Thanksgiving meal that includes all of the food groups. Each student should draw and color the meal, and list the food groups that they used.

L.A./S.S.:  Students can make a sequence book telling the story of the Pilgrims and Native Americans. They can include:  1. The Pilgrims were brave people who were not allowed to worship as they pleased.,  2. The Pilgrims decided to come to America.,  3. The Pilgrims sailed on the Mayflower.,  4. Many Pilgrims did not survive the trip.,  5. The Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock.,  6. The Pilgrims built a new life with new homes.,  7. The Native Americans taught the Pilgrims how to survive in America.,  8. The Pilgrims taught the Native Americans how to hunt and build things too.,  9. The Pilgrims and Native Americans thanked each other with a feast.,  10. We call that feast Thanksgiving.

MUSIC:  Teach students the words to "This Land is Your Land" by Woody Guthrie.

MISCELLANEOUS:  Pair up with another classroom. One room should dress up as the Indians, the other as the Pilgrims. Join together to sing songs, hear stories, play games, and of course, to eat!!

Fun Project:  Eight days before the holiday post a large turkey on the bulletin board with 8 removable feathers.  Number the feathers from 1 to 8, and key them to special activities:

    1. Make a list of Thanksgiving dinner foods, one for each letter of the
        alphabet.
    2. Read a Thanksgiving story.
    3. Write a thank-you note.
    4. Decode a Thanksgiving message.
    5. Write a story about a surprising Thanksgiving visitor.
    6. Make table decorations.
    7. Make a list of 20 things that you are thankful for.
    8. Have a Thanksgiving treat.

       Each day, starting 8 days before, call on a student to pluck the appropriate days feather. All students must follow that day's activity sometime after they finish their work that day.

The Plymouth Thanksgiving Story, Click Here! - A very informative collection of information, including some challenging observations from a Native American viewpoint. Recommended reading!

Plymouth, Massachusetts: It's History and People, Click Here - from The Plymouth, MA Homepage, Click Here!

Thanksgiving Articles, Click Here, by Ralph F. Wilson.