History of the First Thanksgiving - the Pilgrims and the Mayflower Compact

History of the First Thanksgiving - the Pilgrims and the Mayflower Compact

On Traveling Through History, we dive into the history of the first Thanksgiving Day in America in 1620, when the Pilgrims came to the New World in their ship the "Mayflower" and settled a new community at Plymouth, Massachusetts.  These settlers were fleeing religious persecution in their own country, and wanted to find a place they could settle and freely exercise their right to practice their version of Christianity which was a Puritan and strict version of the faith.  They established the "Mayflower Compact" as a new form of democratic government, the first to be tried in the Americas at the time.

In September 1620, a small ship called the Mayflower left Plymouth, England, carrying 102 passengers—50 men, 19 women and 33 young adults and children.  Just 41 were true Pilgrims, religious separatists seeking freedom from the Church of England.  Seeking the right to worship as they wished, the Pilgrims had signed a contract with the Virginia Company to settle on land near the Hudson River, which was then part of northern Virginia.  The Virginia Company was a trading company chartered by King James I with the goal of colonizing parts of the eastern coast of the New World. London stockholders financed the Pilgrim’s voyage with the understanding they’d be repaid in profits from the new settlement.

Storms threw them off their course and instead of reaching the Virginia Colony, they landed in Provincetown Harbor in November, 1620 after a treacherous and uncomfortable crossing that lasted 66 days.  They set out to create a temporary set of laws for ruling themselves as per majority agreement.  While on board the Mayflower in Provincetown Harbor, the Pilgrims drew up the Mayflower Compact and all the men aboard the ship— 41 adult male colonists, including two indentured servants—signed the Mayflower Compact on November 11, 1620 (although it wasn’t called that at the time).  This document created the way for the Pilgrims to govern themselves.  The Mayflower Compact was important because it was the first document to establish self-government in the New World.  It remained active until 1691 when Plymouth Colony became part of Massachusetts Bay Colony.  After exploring the area, the Pilgrims decided to settle in Plymouth.

In the spring, with help from the Indians, the Pilgrims planted corn (maize), peas, and barley.  They also hunted fowl and deer, searched for wild berries and fruits, and fished. In late fall after the corn harvest, the Pilgrims gave thanks by celebrating the first Thanksgiving feast with the Indians as partners and friends.  In November 1621, after the Pilgrims’ first corn harvest proved successful, Governor William Bradford organized a celebratory feast and invited a group of the fledgling colony’s Native American allies, including the Wampanoag chief Massasoit. Now remembered as American’s “first Thanksgiving”—although the Pilgrims themselves may not have used the term at the time—the festival lasted for three days.

We review a short video about the Pilgrims and their journey over to the new World on the Mayflower and their first attempts at settlement as well as the First Thanksgiving celebration.

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