Chapter 1 The Pilgrims First Harvest Feast In October 1621 the Pilgrims hosted a historic feast They had landed at Plymouth Massachusetts just about one year earlier after a long difficult sea voyage from England Since then they had built their first homes planted their first crops and learned to communicate with the native people The Pilgrims had settled a new American colony It was time to celebrate Autumn had brought fields full of fresh ripe vegetables Plymouth governor William Bradford decided to do something special in honor of the colony’s first good harvest He wanted the Pilgrims to give thanks to God for their successful settlement He declared that there would be a great feast He invited Chief Massasoit and the rest of the Wampanoag tribe Ninety Wampanoags joined the 50 or so Pilgrims for a huge three day celebration Plymouth was the second permanent English colony in America The first in Jamestown Virginia had been settled in 1607 4
PEOPLE OF THE FIRST LIGHT The Wampanoags had lived for thousands of years by the coasts of modern-day Massachusetts and Rhode Island Their tribal name means People of the East It also means People of the First Light because the Sun rises in the east The Wampanoag lived in villages Their homes were bark-covered huts called wigwams They fished planted corn and other crops and hunted wild game Some of the more interesting animals they hunted included pigeon bear moose raccoon skunk and squirrel They preserved food through traditional methods of drying and smoking Plymouth governor William Bradford welcomes Wampanoag Chief Massasoit to the Pilgrims first harvest feast When the Pilgrims arrived in 1620 the Wampanoag had recently suffered some major losses to their population Many Wampanoag had died due to war and disease The Pilgrims started their settlement at a former Wampanoag village called Pawtuxet The tribe had abandoned the village a few years earlier during a plague that was unintentionally spread by European fishermen Some of the remaining Wampanoag helped the Pilgrims by teaching them how to farm the land and survive the harsh seasons The Wampanoag people of today work to preserve their cultural heritage They share their stories of what life was like when the Pilgrims arrived in America 5
The harvest was plentiful so the Pilgrims knew they would have enough food to last through the coming winter Although there are just two known eyewitness accounts of this feast of thanksgiving we do know a few details They served freshly caught fowl such as swan duck and goose Their tables were also filled with wild fruits and berries Vegetables such as corn cabbage carrots cucumbers radishes turnips onions and beets made a colorful display Many Pilgrims afterwards wrote so largely of their plenty here to their friends in England which were not feigned but true reports Plymouth governor William Bradford Of Plymouth Plantation 1620 1647 6
The Wampanoag added food to the celebration too They offered their Pilgrim friends fish clams lobsters oysters five deer and several wild turkeys Many people think the Pilgrims feast of 1621 turned into the annual Thanksgiving celebration Americans observe today In fact the Pilgrims did not even hold a similar celebration the very next year It would be another 242 years before Thanksgiving would become an official national holiday 7
