Giving Thanks for… Sarah Josepha Hale?
Tom Garfield received his BFA in art, and MA in education from the U of I. He has a passion for history and is the Dean of Academics at Veritas Scholars Academy. He has taught history for over 35 years and runs Heritage Arts Academy in Moscow .
Until just a couple of generations ago, most American school children knew the basic story of the ‘First Thanksgiving’. These kids were taught the story of the landing of the pilgrims in November of 1620 at Plymouth, instead of much further south, which was the original plan. But the pilgrims’ ship, the Mayflower, was blown north, landing in a cold, inhospitable landscape. Then, after a bitter winter during which about half their group died, the remaining pilgrims providentially avoided starvation that summer of 1621. A local Indian, a man named Sqaunto who amazingly could speak English, came to their rescue. Squanto, along with members of the Wampanoag tribe, helped the pilgrims learn the skills of planting corn, among other crops.
The resulting harvest was clearly an occasion for giving thanks to God and for throwing a party at which the pilgrims and the Wampanoags shared food, drinks and even games over three days.
The new colony’s governor, William Bradford, wrote a whole book about his colony’s experiences - Of Plymouth Plantation. Another witness to the first feast of thanksgiving was Edward Winslow. Here’s part of his description:
“Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together, after we had gathered the fruits of our labors; they four in one day killed as much fowl, as with a little help beside, served the company almost a week, at which time amongst other recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and amongst the rest their greatest king Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five deer, which they brought to the plantation and bestowed on our Governor, and upon the Captain and others. And although it be not always so plentiful, as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so far from want, that we often wish you partakers of our plenty.”
This unique event might have been lost under the weight and volumes of our history, even with George Washington’s declaring the first national Thanksgiving on December 18, 1777 and then in 1789. Succeeding presidents did not carry on the tradition Washington sought to start.
So, how did this otherwise obscure feast of the first pilgrims 400 years ago become the wonderful holiday millions of Americans celebrate today?
Partly it’s due to the fact that many early American colonies had annual harvest celebrations that were similar to the one in 1621. But we owe a great debt of gratitude to a women’s magazine editor in the 1840s. She read Bradford’s accounts and began a campaign of urging U.S. presidents to call for a national holiday to remember this first Thanksgiving. The editor’s name was Sarah Josepha Hale, who also happened to be the author of the well-known children’s poem - Mary Had a Little Lamb!
In addition to lobbying for a national holiday of Thanksgiving, Sarah wrote magazine articles that helped link the roasting of turkeys with this proposed celebration. Starting in 1846, her lobbying spanned the administrations of five presidents: Zachary Taylor, Millard Filmore, Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan and Abraham Lincoln.
Finally, Lincoln was the president who actually listened and appreciated the significance of such a holiday, particularly during the tumultuous years of the War Between the States. He announced the official beginning of the national holiday in 1863, setting the specific day as the last Thursday in November. He asked all Americans to pray that God would “commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife” and to “heal the wounds of the nation.” (Interestingly in 1939, during the Depression, FDR tried to move the holiday closer to the middle of November to give businesses a longer pre-Christmas sales season. His idea was overwhelmingly opposed and he signed a law in 1941 officially setting Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of each November.)
So, among the many reasons we have for giving thanks as we pass the mashed potatoes and gravy this year, let’s remember Sarah Hale!
- TOM GARFIELD
