Historical Thanksgiving

A Historical Turkey Ride

 

For four centuries Thanksgiving has been a time to show appreciation of what bounty we have. The tradition began in the fall of  1621 when the Mayflower carried passengers from Plymouth, England in search of a new home. After a long and treacherous journey they finally settled in Massachusetts. 

Long before the settlers arrived the area was inhabited by many Native American nations, among them the Wampanoag. The natives who been there for a very long time knew how to live well off the land they hunted, fished, and harvested. Chief Massasoit, the Wamapnoag leader, offered to help the pilgrims learn how to use the land in exchange for mutual protection. And so the Thanksgiving feast tradition began with a  shared harvest celebration. 

Here are more facts about the history of this day of thanks:

1)    The famous “Pilgrim and Wampanoag” story featured in modern Thanksgiving narratives was excluded from earlier Thanksgiving legends, largely due to tensions between Indians and colonists.

2)    Held every year on the island of Alcatraz since 1975, “Unthanksgiving Day” commemorates the survival of Native Americans following the arrival and settlement of Europeans in the Americas.

3)    President Abraham Lincoln declared the last Thursday in November as a national day of Thanksgiving, and in 1941 Congress established it as a national holiday.

4)    The original Thanksgiving feast in 1621 occurred sometime between September 21 and November 1. It lasted three days and included 50 of the 112 pilgrims inhabitants and approximately 90 Wampanoag members. Their menu included berries, shellfish, boiled pumpkin, and deer.

We hope this year your Thanksgiving is filled with gratitude and joy.

Turkey Then and Now

Yesterday's Turkey:

The turkey is known to be clan animal in some Native American cultures. Their feathers have been used in the traditional regalia of many tribes, particularly the feathered cloaks of eastern Woodland Indians like the Wampanoag and the feather headdresses of southern tribes like the Tuscarora and Catawba. The Turkey Dance, one of the most important social dances of the Caddo tribe, is associated with songs about war honors and tribal pride. Turkey dances are also found in other eastern tribes, such as the Lenape, Shawnee, and Seminoles.

In folklore, some legends portray the turkey as a wily, overly- proud trickster while others make the bird out to be shy and elusive. In parts of Mexico and the American Southwest, turkeys were domesticated and kept as food animals by some tribes, and their role in stories from these tribes is similar to chicken stories from Europe, with the birds mimicking the concerns and activities of human farmers. 

At the time of the first European contact wild turkeys were abundant because the and management skills of native people, which including burning forest undergrowth, provided a good habitat for wild turkeys (bison & elk, too). 

Ben Franklin nominated the wild turkey as a national symbol, citing the bird’s modesty, alertness, self- reliance and ability to live off the land. 

Today's Turkey: 
It's estimated that turkeys have 3,500 feathers at maturity. Some of the feathers are still used in the making of  Native American costumes and pen quills. 

Big Bird, of Sesame Street fame, is actually dressed in turkey feathers. Although he is not a turkey, his costume is made of nearly 4,000 white turkey feathers, which have been dyed bright yellow.

Turkey feather down has been used to make pillows.

More About Turkeys:

Only tom turkeys gobble.

Hen turkeys make a clicking noise.
Domesticated turkeys cannot fly.
Wild turkeys can fly for short distances up to 55 miles per hour and can run 20 miles per hour.