The event we associate with "the First Thanksgiving" took place in the autumn of 1621, when a group of colonists from Plymouth threw a party to
celebrate the harvest.The colonists were said to have shared the feast with the local Wampanoag tribe. But the only names on record are Massasoit (the chief), Quadequina (Massasoit's brother), Squanto (a translator), Hobbamock
and Tokamahamon. At least 52 Pilgrims were there, so native Americans comprised only about 12% of the guest list.
We did a little better -- 16% of our Thanksgiving cards feature a native American (or at least one who claims to
be; his name is "Hugh" and we're skeptical).
According to the Museum of 17th-Century Plymouth, the first Thanksgiving feast lasted for THREE DAYS. The Puritans may have been more fun than popularly supposed. The
colonists served wild fowl, venison, ducks, geese and turkey at the party. Massasoit's men later went out and shot five deer as their contribution. There's no mention of yams, or cranberry, or beer. The question of whether POPCORN
was served has been the subject of heated debate among historians and archaeologists for years. Isn't tenure great? What a deal.
In 1777, the Continental Congress declared the first national Thanksgiving, but after 1815 America
pretty much FORGOT all about it until 1863 when it was revived as the last-Thursday-in-November celebration we know today.
By the way, the event we associate with "the First Thanksgiving" wasn't the first. Ten similar
feasts preceded it, from April 3, 1513 to December 4, 1619 in places as disparate as Virginia, Florida, Newfoundland and the Texas Panhandle.
Historians are having a great time with this one, too. One, in a paper titled
"Thanksgiving: Turkey or Tacos?" presents evidence that the first Thanksgiving took place on April 30, 1598 in El Paso, Texas.
