Reasons for Thanksgiving: Presidential Hopes & Pilgrim Facts

There have been Thanksgiving celebrations in what’s now the U.S. since the earliest settlements, but it’s only been a yearly national holiday since the Civil War. There’s a lot more to the story than students learn in elementary school.

Politifact looks into the origins of Thanksgiving , trying to separate myths from facts. Historians agree about the basic story we learned about the Pilgrims’ feast. They were celebrating a harvest that would help them live through the next winter in much better condition than the first. A large number of Indians feasted with them and contributed several deer to the feast. (The article goes into detail about the reasons for the friendly relations—that lasted 50 years, and then were never regained.)

At that first Thanksgiving feast, they almost certainly did not have some of our Thanksgiving staples: potatoes and sweet potatoes, salad, and pies. In fact, as late as the 1950s oysters were a Thanksgiving tradition, along with other seafood and meats. Turkey was a luxury for most people for much of American history.

The article also looks into other American thanksgivings (some were religious events rather than feasts) from colonial days through Washington’s first Thanksgiving proclamation, various state holidays, and finally Lincoln’s establishment of a national holiday. (It also mentions Franklin Roosevelt’s attempt to move it up a week to boost the weak economy with extra shopping.)

The “Mother” of Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving, Unity-- & Inclusion

Vocabulary Practice: Thanksgiving