First Thanksgiving Goes Back to 1621
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New York — (U.P.) — The first Thanksgiving day, when the Pilgrims and the Indians sat down at Plymouth to a feast of wild turkey and the fruits of a good harvest wasn't really a Thanksgiving.
Actually it wasn't even a day—the affair lasted a week by some accounts, three days by others.
With a good harvest in the fall of 1621, Gov. William Bradford called for a "Day of Festival" but without mentioning thanksgiving. According to the historian, H. S. J. Sickel, the "day" expanded spontaneously into a "week of feasting and revelry, not religious in character."
Even though it was not so designated, the first Pilgrim festival in America actually was a feast of Thanksgiving. During the previous winter half the colonists had died and the rest had existed during the summer on semi-starvation rations. Then, as Edward Winslow wrote to a friend in England, the Pilgrims found in autumn:
"Our corne did prouve well and God be praysed we had a good increase of Indian corne, and our Early indifferent good, but our Pease not worth the gathering . . ."
University Daily Kansan
To prepare for the festival, Gov. Bradford sent four men on a fowling expedition which was highly
However, the Indians did a little hunting on their own and contributed five deer to the occasion. So the 55 Pilgrims and the 90 Indians sat down to a real feast.
After a couple of days of feasting the affair took on some of the aspects of a Fourth of July celebration, what with Captain Miles Standish marching his soldiers up and down and firing blank volleys
successful—and a good thing, too, because King Massasoit turned up for the feast with 90 braves, instead of the few the Pilgrims had expected when they invited him.
On the menu were turkeys, ducks, geese, venison, lobster, eels, clams, oysters and fish. For beverages they had the Pilgrims' first wine, made from New England grapes, and beer, which has been described as the Pilgrims' "almost universal beverage." They had, in fact, brought beer with them on the Mayflower. John Alden, who later married Priscilla, was brought along as a barrelmaker.
The Indians taught them to make popcorn balls by shaking the corn over a fire in earthen jars and then pouring maple syrup over the popped kernels. Indian pudding—cormel and molasses boiled in a bag—is still a favored New England dish.
to the amazement of the Indians, who also were intrigued by the Pilgrims' bugles.
Other festivals followed in later years and the idea spread through other colonies but they were all celebrations of an informal nature. It was not until 1676—56 years after the "first Thanksgiving"—that a formal proclamation was issued by the Council of Charlestown, Mass., to set aside a day for public thanksgiving—and that day was not in November but June 29.
George Washington proclaimed Thursday, Nov. 26, a Thanksgiving day in 1789 and issued another Thanksgiving proclamation in 1795 but that was followed by a long gap until President James Madison set apart a day of Thanksgiving at the close of the War of 1812.
Not until Abraham Lincoln appointed the fourth Thursday of November 1864 as a day of Thanksgiving did it become an annual national holiday. Up to that time some Southern states had opposed observance of such a day on the ground that it was a relic of Puritan bigotry.
Before Leaving for the M.U. Game Get A Complete Car Check Up at
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Bridge Standard Service 601 Mass. Phone:
Correspondents Told What Duties Will Be
Other members of the advisory group who told the correspondents about the need for enthusiastic workers were Fred Ellsworth, secretary of the alumni association; Raymond Nichols, executive secretary to the chancellor; Thomas Yoe, director of public relations, and Richard Winternote, assistant to the alumni secretary.
County correspondents of statewide activities met yesterday to learn what their duties are to be for the year. Jerry Renner, journalism senior, gave the specific functions of a hometown correspondent.
Word of the death of Dale McMurry, known to many Kansans through his work as firemanship director for University of Kansas Extension, was received here today.
Former Instructor Killed in Plane Crash
Mr. McMurry, 29, was killed Monday in a jet airplane crash near El Toro, Calif. A captain and pilot in the Marine Corps reserve, he was recalled to active duty last May and was taking refresher training in jet aircraft.
Mr. McMurry joined the KU Extension staff in 1951 and had instructed volunteer firemen in many of the smaller communities of the state.
Eliza McCardle was only 17 years old when she married Andrew Johnson, who later became president of the United States.
the student union Cafeteria will be open during Thanksgiving vacation.
Dinner, 5:00 to 6:00
- Thanksgiving Day, 11:30 to 1:30
Lunch, 11:30 to 12:30
Breakfast, 7:30 to 8:30
the HAWK'S NEST will
Friday, Nov. 21, 1952
Close 7 p.m., Tuesday. Open 1:30 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 30
7:30 to 6 p.m. every day
SNACK BAR IN CAFETERIA
Library Director Sets Vacation Hours
Watson library hours for the Thanksgiving vacation were announced today by Robert Vosper, director of the library.
The library will close at 6 p.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 25. It will be closed
all day Thursday, Thanksgiving
day. On Wednesday, Nov. 26 and
Friday, Nov. 28 the library will be
open from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. On
Saturday, Nov. 29 it will be open
from 9 a.m. until noon. It will be
closed all day Sunday, Nov. 30 and
will reopen on Monday, Dec. 1
when regular library hours will
be resumed.
Foundation Offers Grants in Science
There were 1,600 more persons killed in U.S. motor vehicle accidents last year than in 1950.
The National Science foundation has announced its second graduate fellowship program for the academic year 1953-54. Fellowships will be awarded for graduate study in the biological, engineering, mathematical, medical, and physical sciences.
"THINK OF WHAT NEW YORK COULD DO FOR HIM."
Applications for the awards may be obtained from the Fellowship office, National Research council, Washington 25, D.C. The applications must be returned by Jan. 5.
The fellowships are limited to citizens of the United States. The majority of the awards will go to graduate students seeking masters or doctors degrees in science. A limited number of the awards will be made to post-doctoral applicants.
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