EIGHT - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, November 27, 2024
Celebrating Thanksgiving through the centuries
By Annalynn Black
Thanksgiving is a
holiday deeply rooted in
American culture, sym-
bolizing gratitude, family,
and feasting. The origins
of Thanksgiving date back
to 1621 when Pilgrims,
early settlers of the Plym-
outh Colony in present-day
Massachusetts, held a har-
vest feast after a success-
ful growing season. This
event is regarded as Amer-
ica’s “first Thanksgiving,”
although celebrations of
thanks have ancient origins,
with many cultures holding
festivals to celebrate the
harvest and give thanks for
a successful bounty.
The Plymouth settlers,
or Pilgrims, were English
Puritan separatists who
sought religious freedom in
the New World. Their first
winter in America had been
harsh, leading to the loss
of many lives. According
to the writings of Pilgrim
Edward Winslow, in 1621,
after their first successful
corn harvest, Governor Wil-
liam Bradford organized a
celebratory feast and invit-
ed the local Wampanoag
tribe to join. This event,
which lasted three days, is
widely regarded as the first
Thanksgiving. The gather-
ing included the Pilgrims
and about ninety Indians,
including King Massasoit
of the Wampanoag tribe.
The feast likely featured
dishes utilizing native in-
gredients such as venison,
various seafood, and indig-
enous vegetables. The fol-
lowing spring, the surviving
Pilgrims forged an alliance
with the Wampanoag tribe,
which taught them crucial
survival skills and helped
them adapt to the new en-
vironment.
The tradition of a har-
vest celebration did not
become an annual event
immediately. Thanks were
given at different times of
the year, often in a religious
context, and celebrations
varied from one colony to
another. It wasn’t until the
late 1660s that the prac-
tice became more uniform,
sometimes called “pub-
lic days of thanksgiving,”
recommended by colonial
leaders after particularly
bountiful harvests or other
good fortunes.
Life for the Pilgrims
was challenging, marked
by laborious farm work and
the negotiation of relations
with neighboring Native
American tribes. Their dai-
ly life centered around sur-
vival, and religious obser-
vance played a significant
role. The concept of setting
aside time to give thanks to
divine providence was root-
ed deeply in their religious
beliefs.
In the midst of the
American Civil War, Pres-
ident Abraham Lincoln
declared Thanksgiving a
national holiday in 1863,
marking it on the last Thurs-
day of November. Lincoln’s
decision is intended to lift
the nation’s spirits and fos-
ter a sense of unity. He
called it a day to express
gratitude “for our benefi-
cent Father who dwelleth
in the Heavens.” This pro-
nouncement followed years
of campaigning by Sarah
Josepha Hale, editor of
“Godey’s Lady’s Book”,
who passionately believed
a National Day of Thanks
would unify the country.
During this era, Ameri-
ca saw more formal Thanks-
giving celebrations. The
industrial revolution meant
that fewer Americans lived
and worked on farms, and
the holiday shifted to reflect
a more urban lifestyle. The
meal continued to be cen-
tral to the celebration, but
with new innovations and
food availability, the menu
could include a variety of
dishes, green bean casse-
role and pumpkin pie for
example. The tradition of
“pardoning” a turkey start-
ed later but symbolizes the
humanitarian sentiment of
the times.
The date of Thanks-
giving remained flexible
until President Franklin D.
Roosevelt set it during the
Great Depression to boost
retail sales. With Roos-
evelt’s encouragement, in
1941 Congress official-
ly designated the fourth
Thursday in November as
Thanksgiving Day, where
it continues to stand today.
He had tried to extend the
Christmas shopping season
by moving Thanksgiving
up a week, an unpopular
attempt that was derisive-
ly termed “Franksgiving”
according to History.com.
The holiday has
evolved significantly over
time in the United States.
Initially connected primar-
ily with religion and the
harvest, it’s now largely
secular and focuses on fam-
ily and culinary traditions.
The menu usually features
turkey, stuffing, mashed
potatoes, cranberry sauce,
various side dishes, and
pumpkin pie - foods that
are somewhat traditional
but can also reflect the
personal tastes and cultural
backgrounds of the cooks.
In recent decades,
Morrow County taking applications for
the WDAC
Thanksgiving has contin-
ued to evolve yet remains
fundamentally a day for
gratitude and spending
time with family. Modern
celebrations often extend
beyond the family-centric
model to include “Friends-
giving,” a version of the
holiday observed with
friends.
Parades have also be-
come an integral part of the
holiday in cities and towns
across the United States.
The most famous of these,
the Macy’s Thanksgiving
Day Parade in New York
City, began in 1924 and
attracts millions of view-
ers, both in person and on
television. Football has
also become a staple of
Thanksgiving celebrations,
with games played at both
professional and amateur
levels.
Furthermore, the holi-
day has been criticized and
led to an increase in aware-
ness and activism on behalf
of Native American groups
who remember the holiday
as a painful reminder of
colonization’s devastat-
ing effects on indigenous
peoples. Many Americans
celebrate the day as a time
of reflection and awareness
as well as family gatherings
and thankfulness.
This enduring holiday
indeed showcases the adap-
tive and inclusive nature of
American culture through
the diverse ways it has
been celebrated over the
centuries. As we look to fu-
ture Thanksgivings, it will
undoubtedly continue to
evolve, incorporating new
traditions while honoring
its historical roots.
Correction
From the story last
week. Joann Dickson is
the pastor of the Hopeful
Saints Episcopal/Lutheran
Ministry in Heppner.
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consists of seven members:
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Letters of interest must be
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ber 6. Please submit letters
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or by regular mail, Morrow
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and compensation amounts
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