THE PLYMOUTH THANKSGIVING
STORY
When--who became known as--the Pilgrims
crossed the Atlantic Ocean in 1620, they landed on the rocky shores
of a territory that was inhabited by the Wampanoag (Wam pa NO ag)
Indians. The Wampanoags
were part of the Algonkian-speaking peoples, a large group that
was part of the Woodland Culture area. These natives lived
in villages along the coast of what is now Massachusetts and Rhode
Island. They lived in round-roofed houses called wigwams
that were made of poles covered with flat sheets of elm or birch
bark. Wigwams differ in construction from tipis
that were used by Indians of the Great Plains.
There were two language groups of Indians in New England at this
time. The Iroquois were neighbors to the Algonkian-speaking people.
Leaders of the Algonquin
and Iroquois people were called "sachems" (SAY chems). Each
village had its own sachem and tribal council. Political power flowed
upward from the people. Any individual, man or woman, could participate,
but among the Algonquins, more political power was held by men.
Among the Iroquois, however, women held the deciding vote in the
final selection of who would represent the group. Both men and women
enforced the laws of the village and helped resolve problems. The
details of their democratic system were so impressive, that about
150 years later, Benjamin Franklin invited the Iroquois to Albany,
New York to explain their system to a delegation who then developed
the "Albany
Plan of Union." This document later served as a
model for the Articles
of Confederation and the Constitution
of the United States.
We can only guess what the Wampanoags must have thought when they
first saw the strange ships of the Pilgrims arriving on their shores.
But their custom was to help visitors, and they treated the newcomers
with courtesy. It was mainly because of their kindness that
the Pilgrims survived at all.
The Algonkian tribes held six thanksgiving festivals during the
year. The beginning of the Algonkian year was marked by the Maple
Dance which gave thanks to the Creator for the maple tree and its
syrup. Second was the planting feast, where the seeds were
blessed. The strawberry festival was next, celebrating the first
fruits of the season. Summer brought the green corn festival to
give thanks for the ripening corn. In late fall, the harvest festival
gave thanks for the food they had grown. Mid-winter was the last
ceremony of the old year. When the Indians sat down to the "first
Thanksgiving" with the Pilgrims, it was really the fifth thanksgiving
of the year for them!
Thus it happened that the Indians supplied the majority of the
food: Five deer, many wild turkeys, fish, beans, squash, corn soup,
corn bread, and berries. For three days, the Wampanoags feasted
with the Pilgrims. It was a special time of friendship between two
very different groups of people. A
peace and friendship agreement was made between Massasoit and
Miles
Standish --giving the Pilgrims the clearing in the forest where
the old Patuxet village once stood--to build their new town of Plymouth.
It would be very good to say that this friendship lasted a long
time; but, unfortunately, that was not to be. As more English
and western European people migrated and colonized the "new world",
they did not accept the aid and assistance from the indigenous Indians
as did the original Pilgrims.
Today the town of Plymouth Rock has a Thanksgiving ceremony each
year in remembrance of the first Thanksgiving. There are still Wampanoag
people living in Massachusetts.
Thanksgiving Word Search
http://wilstar.com/holidays/puzzles/thankspuz.htm
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