5 Things You Didn’t Know About the First Thanksgiving

The Pilgrims and Wampanoags Probably Didn’t Eat Together

We commonly think of Thanksgiving as a feast of togetherness between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans. But contrary to popular elementary school lessons and imagery, the pilgrims and Native Americans probably never ate together. Why? Because there was no reason for them to. They had a violent history and didn’t even speak the same language. While there was Squanto, the English-speaking Native American who played a large role in enabling the Pilgrims to survive their first harvest, the idea that the community gathered together isn’t realistic. There isn’t even evidence that the Wampanoags were even invited to any harvest meals.

There Probably Wasn’t A Turkey

On Thanksgiving, the pilgrims didn’t eat corn on the cob, potatoes or cranberries. While they were accustomed to eating foul, we can’t confirm that they had turkey on the day. The meal most likely consisted of deer because that was readily available and they sure didn’t eat that with a fork like we see in pictures. The reason so many people associate Thanksgiving with turkey and cranberry sauce is because of the Victorians who prepared the meal that way. They were the ones that actually made Thanksgiving a national holiday, beginning in 1863, when President Abraham Lincoln issued his presidential proclamations. Prior to this, Americans who didn’t live in New England didn’t even celebrate the holiday.

Historians No Little About the Day

Historians can’t even confirm if the first Thanksgiving even happened. Why? There are no recorded instances of colonists sharing a meal with any Native Americans after harvests. The groups actually had a bad history, much of which included violence, so it’s hard to believe that the two groups managed to get together in celebration, let alone peace. The reason why the traditional Thanksgiving story became so popular is because there of the large number of British, Irish and European immigrants who began moving to America. They needed a story of their new home’s “peaceful” heritage. Thus, the popular Thanksgiving story was born.

Native Americans Celebrate An “Unthanksgiving Day” Every Year

While traditional Thanksgiving images promote the idea of peace between two groups commonly known to be at odds, the story behind it sadly takes away from the truth about the colonists’ early settlements in America and the damage their presence caused to the Native American people and their land. In the past, a small group of Native Americans staged an occupation of Alcatraz Island in 1969, to reclaim “The Rock” for their people, and also receive government-funded support to rebuild their new nation and reclaim their heritage. While it attracted hundreds of supporters, it only lasted 19 months until food supplies diminished and poor conditions pushed many of the protestors away. Today, an annual “Sunrise Gathering” commonly called “Unthanksgiving Day” is held on the island to commemorate those protestors.