On Thanksgiving Day, the most peculiarly American national holiday was first celebrated in 1621 by residents of the Plymouth Colony. These settlers, who later were called Pilgrims left England because they wanted to separate from the established church and worship God in their own way. After leaving England, the Pilgrims settled in Holland in 1608.
Finally in 1620 they embarked on the Mayflower seeking religious freedom in the New World. Complete with its original destination was the colony of Jamestown, Virginia, a storm brought them out of their way and arrived in November 1620 north of Plymouth, Massachusetts. The first winter was one of great hardship for the settlers, since more than half the colony died of starvation and disease. However, those who survived continued to fight and spring planted his first crop of corn.
Corn Squanto, an Indian warrior, he befriended them and taught the colonists how to plant and cultivate corn, and helped to establish good relations with neighboring Indian tribes. In the fall of 1621, after a good harvest, Governor Bradford proclaimed a "day of giving thanks to God for us in a special way rejoicing after picking the fruit of our work."
In a gesture of friendship, the Pilgrims invited the Indians together neighbors to a party, in which they share turkeys and geese, corn, lobster, clams, squash, pumpkins and dried fruits.
Due to a poor harvest and problems with the Indians, it was not possible to celebrate Thanksgiving next year. However, in 1623 the Governor Bradford proclaimed July 30 as the Day of Thanksgiving to celebrate the end of a long period of drought.
Thanksgiving Day, a celebration nacionalDespués 1623, the celebration of Thanksgiving was irregular and usually with a regional base. However, in 1789, shortly after the thirteen colonies had come together, President George Washington had an agreement for Congress to hold a national day of "public thanksgiving and prayer." Approved the resolution and 26 November 1789 held the first National Day of Thanksgiving. The proclamation for George Washington urged Americans to give thanks to God for his protection, for victory in the struggle for freedom and for peace and prosperity in the new country.
During the following years have not had an annual national celebration of the holiday. However, in 1846, Mrs. Sarah Hale, editor of Godey's Lady Book, a magazine for women, launched a campaign to make Thanksgiving Day a national holiday. After 9 years achieved its goal and the Thanksgiving Day was designated a national holiday, just before the Civil War.
On October 3, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln, issued the first proclamation of Thanksgiving Day since 1789. From the time of Lincoln, the President has proclaimed annually on the fourth Thursday of November as Thanksgiving Day.
The general pattern of this conclusion has also been kept unchanged since the nineteenth century. The menu, with any regional variations, usually consists of baked turkey, stuffing, cranberries, a dish made with corn, sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie. Today, Thanksgiving Day remains a holiday during which American families gather to share the fruits of a bountiful harvest and to give thanks to God for his blessings on their land.
MENU:
Menu Thanksgiving Day
Baked stuffed turkey, onions in cream sauce, pumpkin pie, cranberry sauce, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, plum pudding, chopped pecan pie, cranberry juice, milk, coffee.
Turkey. He was chosen by the English immigrants to celebrate their first Thanksgiving dinner for the first harvest in their new land of freedom. Since it first day so far, the turkey is an essential element in this celebration.
Corn. The use of corn represents the survival of the colonies. Maize cultivation was very important to the Pilgrims and Native Indians. Was the main dish and consumed at every meal. There were many varieties of corn: white, blue, yellow and red.
Some corn was dried to preserve it and save it as food for the winter months. Threshing the corn is always to make cornmeal, which could be used to make bread, pudding, syrup, or could be mixed with beans to make succotash (cooking whole kernel corn.)
The Pilgrims did not know the corn before meeting the Indians. The Indians gave the Pilgrims seeds and taught them how to cultivate it. Currently the United States grow more acres of corn than any other grain.
Pumpkin. The pumpkin is a food native to America that fed the native American territory for more than five thousand years. It also complements the nutrition of the first settlers, who incorporated this plant as an important element of their diet.
Most winter squash are harvested when ripe, or when the shell is hard and can not eat. Due to the protection of the shell, these pumpkins can be harvested in the fall and stored for several months during the winter in a cool, dry place. Many of the pumpkins are available throughout the year although most available time is during late summer, autumn and winter, becoming more scarce in the spring.
Cranberry sauce. Was served at the first Thanksgiving Day and continues to serve today. The cranberry is a soft acid / sour, from the North American continent. The settlers found it in the wild throughout the northeastern U.S. besides the center-north area, where they expanded westward.
Originally called him "craneberry" due to the shape of the flower that was similar to the head and neck of a crane (crane), or because they often watched herons eating this fruit. He eventually lost the "e", resulting in the name cranberry.
Traditions in the United States
Family Dinner
Most people in the United States celebrate this festival with family gatherings in their homes where they prepare a feast. In many homes it is common to offer a prayer of thanks. The traditional main dish for dinner is a great roast turkey or baked. This turkey is traditionally accompanied with a filling made of cornbread and sage. Is traditionally served with a jelly or cranberry sauce. Besides vegetable dishes are usually served as green beans (green beans, green beans, beans), sweet potatoes (yams) and mashed potatoes (potatoes) with gravy, a sauce made from the juice of turkey is often served too great assorted desserts, pumpkin pie being the most popular. It is also common to prepare the pecan pie and apple.
Parade in Manhattan
Annually, the department store chain Macy's made a big parade through the streets of Manhattan, New York, which attracts millions of people to Broadway to see the huge giant balloons and watch performances by guest artists.
Start the holiday shopping season
Most businesses and offices are closed on this day. Some stores, malls, restaurants and bars are open. The Friday following the holiday is traditionally the opening of the holiday shopping season. This day is known as Black Friday. Stores and shops all offer bargain prices and many people go from early morning to the mall.Escuchar
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