History of Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving

By: Bea Escalante

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving day is celebrated on the last

Thursday of November every year.

Families gather to eat dinner together and give thanks for all they have received during the year.

Thanksgiving FoodThe traditional food items are:

Turkey Mashed Potatoes

Corn Bread

Corn

Stuffing

Sweet Potato

History In 1620, the Puritans sought freedom from the

religious persecution of King James in England.

They sailed to find a new place to live on a ship called the Mayflower.

The Mayflower The Mayflower was a ship meant to carry food and

supplies, not people!There

were 102 people.

Most passengers

were men, but there were also

women and children.

The Journey

It took the Puritans or Pilgrims 66 days to arrive to America.

New World = New Home

On November 11, 1620 the Pilgrims arrived to Massachusetts and settled there.

The Thanksgiving Feast

In 1621, a year after their arrival to America, the pilgrims had a 3 day feast to celebrate their first successful harvest.

The Thanksgiving Feast

They invited the Wampanoag Indians to the feast. The Wampanoag had taught the pilgrims how to fish, hunt, and harvest.

Official Holiday In 1863, in the middle of the American Civil War,

president Abraham Lincoln proclaimed that Thanksgiving Day would be celebrated every year on the last day of November.

He thought this would unite the country.

Thanksgiving in Modern times

Thanksgiving is one of the most important holidays in the United States. For some people, it is more important than Christmas.

Thanksgiving Parade Macy’s (department Store) has a parade every

Thanksgiving morning in New York city.

About 3,5 million people gather on the streets of New York to see the Parade.

About 50 million people watch the parade on television.

The Official Pardoning of the Turkey

Every year, the current president of the United States “pardons” a turkey.

That means that instead of killing it, the turkey is sent to a farm to live a happy life!