What Really Happened at the First Thanksgiving? Dr. Ed Iannuccilli
Dr. Ed Iannuccilli
What Really Happened at the First Thanksgiving? Dr. Ed Iannuccilli
Last week, The Mt. Hope Farm in Bristol, RI, celebrated its 400th anniversary with a host of events to commemorate the day; the Native Americans of The Pokanoket Tribe an important part of the observance.
I had the privilege of moderating a panel discussion entitled, “What Really Happened at the First Thanksgiving?” The impetus was the suggestion that 400 years ago, The Farm was one of the sites where a Thanksgiving harvest was celebrated. As we learned that evening, that was not the case.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe panelists were historians Donald Brown, Jr., Merritt Meyer and David Weed; gentlemen qualified to lead a discussion of the history of The Pokonokets and what led to a harvest with the early English settlers.
Among the attendees in the packed barn were several Native Americans wearing kaleidoscopic colors of traditional Indian dress. An occasional harmonious jingle of bells rang out.
The conversation centered upon what took place between the Pokanokets and the Pilgrims, . . . a relationship that resulted in a fifty-year treaty beginning in 1620. How did they come to that treaty, and what became of it?
At the time, The Pokonokets occupied a vast forest acreage to hunt deer, elk, and bear; rivers, and bays to fish for herring and trout, and to harvest quahogs; and the land to plant corn and other vegetables. In the winter, they moved inland from the harsh weather. In the spring, they moved to the coast. Long before The Pilgrims’ arrival, they had traded, and fought with, European explorers since 1524.
Prior to the arrival of the Pilgrims, the tribal nation was devastated by a mysterious disease that came from the European ships. Historians believe it was either smallpox, yellow fever, or leptospirosis. “The Great Dying” pandemic lasted three years, and by 1619, two-thirds of the Native Americans (once numbering up to 100,000) had been killed by it.
Tribal leader Ousamequin, or Massasoit (great sachem), faced an impossible situation. His nation’s population had been ravaged by disease, and he needed to keep peace with the neighboring Narragansetts. He further reasoned that the better weapons of the English who would arrive after the settlers, guns versus his people’s bows and arrows, would make the settlers better allies than enemies.
In their first winter, half the settlers died from cold, starvation, and disease. Ousamequin and his men offered help as a sign of peace, teaching them how to plant beans, squash, and corn, and to use fish remains as fertilizer. By the fall, the Pilgrims had their first harvest of crops.
To give thanks, they celebrated a harvest feast that became the basis for what is now called Thanksgiving. The Native Americans joined, bringing deer to share. Fowl, fish, eel, shellfish, and cranberries were part of the table.
The evening in The Barn offered us a marvelous dose of history; one we all need to understand and study further, with special emphasis upon what really happened four hundred years ago and in the years that followed. There is so much more to the story.
