Behind the turkey

It's turkey time! Golden, baked turkeys, mom's stuffing, cranberry sauce, marshmallow-covered yams and pumpkin pie. Ah, the traditions of Thanksgiving.

However, these things are not as traditional as many think.

The original colonists landed at Plymouth Rock Dec. 11, 1620, numbering 102. Only about a third of those who sailed on the Mayflower were the Puritan pilgrims we think of today.

At the end of the 66-day journey, the separatists, who called themselves "saints," made an agreement with the non-separatists, who they called "strangers." This was known as the "Mayflower Compact," after which the two groups merged and called themselves pilgrims.

The first winter the pilgrims endured was brutal. At the beginning of the following autumn, 46 of the original 102 had succumbed to the harsh winter and lack of food.

The Wampanaogs, a local tribe, helped save the pilgrims by befriending them and helping them survive through the winter.

Squanto was the tribe member who taught the settlers techniques to cultivate corn and grow native vegetables.

He was able to help the settlers because he spoke English. He learned the language as a slave in Europe. He was released from slavery and returned to his tribe, but it had been eradicated by the plague brought by earlier settlers.

After a successful harvest the following year, the pilgrims decided to have a celebration feast of thanksgiving. Of those present, there were 91 American Indians. The feast was reminiscent of a traditional English harvest festival, lasting three days.

Gov. William Bradford sent "four men fowling" after wild ducks and geese. Whether they ate wild turkey is unknown, although the term "turkey" was used by the pilgrims for any sort of wild fowl.

It is very unlikely the first Thanksgiving feast included pumpkin pie or yams. By this time, the pilgrims' supply of flour and sugar had long been lacking. They still believed most forms of potato were poisonous, ruling out not only yams, but mashed potatoes as well. Boiled pumpkin was eaten, though.

No dairy products were present because of the pilgrims' lack of domesticated cattle. Their feast did include a form of fried bread made from corn meal, fish, berries, watercress, lobster, dried fruit, clams, venison and plums. The amount of fowl caught for the feast was enough to feed the entire settlement for a week.

Contrary to popular belief, the feast wasn't annual. "Thanksgiving" was not celebrated again the next year. The next time any form of this celebration was practiced was in 1623, when, during a severe draught, the pilgrims gathered to pray for rain. When it rained the next day, Bradford proclaimed another day of thanksgiving, again inviting the pilgrims' American Indian friends.

Thanksgiving was not declared a holiday until June 1676, when the governing council of Charlestown, Mass., met to determine how best to express thanks for the good fortune the pilgrims had. By unanimous vote, June 29 was declared as a Day of Thanksgiving. The natives were probably not included in this celebration since it was in part to celebrate the colonists' recent victory over the "heathen natives."

Although a one-time occurrence, October 1777 was the first time all 13 colonies joined in a thanksgiving celebration. It also marked the victory over the British at Saratoga.

George Washington proclaimed a National Day of Thanksgiving in 1789, although some were opposed to celebrating the hardships of so few. Later, President Thomas Jefferson "scoffed at the idea of having a day of thanksgiving."

What we now know as Thanksgiving was started through the efforts of a magazine editor named Sarah Josepha Hale. Hale wrote many editorials promoting her cause in Boston Ladies' Magazine, and later Godey's Lady's Book.

Hale's dream was realized when in 1863 President Lincoln declared the last Thursday in November as a National Day of Thanksgiving. Every president declared a Day of Thanksgiving, although the date changed a few times. In 1941, Thanksgiving was finally sanctioned by Congress as a legal holiday, as the fourth Thursday in November.

So while feasting and celebrating, remember to be thankful for those before us who made this long weekend possible.

History compiled from:

http://wilstar.com/holidays, http://pilgrims.net, www.theholidayspot.com