When was the first Thanksgiving celebrated in America, who celebrated it, and what was the original meaning of this holiday? In the year 1620, a small band of Christian Pilgrim Separatists from Plymouth, England decided to sail for the New World with the intention of establishing a new Christian colony in America. The good ship Mayflower finally arrived in Cape Cod Bay on November 9th (Old Calendar) and immediately sought refuge in Provincetown harbor. After a brief but hostile encounter with some local natives in the Barnstable area, the Pilgrims finally found a suitable location for their new settlement in what is now Plymouth, Massachusetts, in the third week of December.
The Pilgrims had originally planned to barter with local natives for neccessary food and supplies, but the natives had been badly treated by English sailors frequenting the area, and were not interested in trading with the Pilgrims. The Pilgrims' first winter in the New World was therefore a terrible ordeal for them, mostly due to a lack of adequate food and shelter. Only about 60 of the original 102 members of the group survived to see the following spring.
Then, in the third week of March, 1621, a lone native boldly strode up to the gates of the settlement and greeted the Pilgrims in English. He said his name was Samoset, and he spoke a broken English he'd learned from the many English vessels that visited the area. He said he was not of these parts, but was of the Moratiggon tribe to the far north, and was one of the sagamores thereof. Samoset proved to be a valuable source of information about the local area, and eventually helped the Pilgrims to establish a friendly relationship with the natives.
The Plymouth Colony was the first truly successful Christian colony to be established in America. But the success of the colony was only achieved through the chance occurrence of two miraculous prophetic events. To learn the truth about what actually was responsible for the success of the original Plymouth Colony of Massachusetts, please click on the link below and order your copy of Edward Oliver's new revised and expanded 350-page book "Prophets and Frauds." Read the true story of how it was that Thanksgiving came to be the first official Christian holiday celebrated in America.
Click Here to Order Edward Oliver's book "PROPHETS AND FRAUDS"
