Sarah Josepha Hale, who wrote
“Mary Had a Little Lamb,” helped
shape the Thanksgiving menu
we know today: She was an
editor at the popular magazine
Godey’s Lady’s Book in the
was obsessed
with Plymouth
Plantation.
She promoted
Thanksgiving
and her
ideal feast:
More has been
written about
this feast than
the others, and
it is where the
tradition of
Thanksgiving
as a harvest
festival started.
Waterfowl stuffed
with herbs or onions
(turkey wasn’t readily
available). Guests also likely ate
corn, pumpkin or beans grown
Plymouth colonists and
members of the
Wampanoag tribe
Thanks Again
Three states claim to be the birthplace of Thanksgiving.
Who deserves the title?
Date June 30, 1564 December 4, 1619 Fall 1621
Guest list Explorer René Goulaine de
Laudonnière, a group of French
Huguenots and the
local Timucua tribe
Thirty-five men who came from
England on the ship Margaret
(women and Native Americans
were not known to be present)
Menu Alligator, corn,
beans, squash,
pumpkins and
fowl—provided
by the Timucua
Nothing! The settlers brought
food on the ship but did not eat
it that day. According to Virginia
historians, the first Thanksgiving
was a religious fast.
Why it deserves
the title
To celebrate the
establishment of Fort
Caroline on the St. Johns
River, explorers broke bread
with the native community.
De Laudonnière wrote,
“We sang a psalm of
Thanksgiving unto God.”
During the ceremony, the men
proclaimed: “We ordain that this
day of our ship’s arrival...in the
land of Virginia shall be yearly and
perpetually kept
holy as a day of
Fun fact The feast was probably
celebrated in French because
de Laudonnière and his crew
were from France.
John J. Wicker presented the
Massachusetts governor with two
turkeys and a proclamation to “set
the record straight” about where
the first Thanksgiving took place.
Want an
authentic
Thanksgiving?
Serve alligator!
Jacksonville, FL Charles City, VA Plymouth, MA
Plymouth, MA, gets all the glory as the
location of the first Thanksgiving—but
was it? Officials in both Jacksonville, FL,
and Charles City, VA, insist the original
celebration took place in their town.
In fact, Virginia is hosting a 400th
anniversary festival this fall. Take a look
at the competing claims and you decide!
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140 FOOD NETWORK MAGAZINE ●NOVEMBER 2019
on the road