Wampanoag the People of the Dawn and Thanksgiving

Wampanoag Man & Woman

The Wampanoag were the Native People who shared the first Thanksgiving with the the Pilgrims in Plymouth Colony.  The Wampanoag had seen other white people or Europeans before.  The European diseases had wiped out many of the their tribe.  When the Pilgrims arrived the Wampanoag were surprised they had brought children.  Eventually the Pilgrims helped the Europeans out.  Tisquantum or Squanto taught the Pilgrims how to plant corn, how to fish, and how to gather berries.  He also taught the Pilgrims how to fertilize the corn by including a fish with the seed(s).  

The first Thanksgiving is rather interesting from the Wampanoag perspective.  The Native American story is quite different from the Pilgrim story.   The tribe was alarmed because that heard gunfire in the direction of the village so they went to help out their friends.  When they arrived the Wampanoag chief. . . Chief Massasoit, saw that it was not an attack but a hunting party out hunting birds. . . possibly turkey.  Since there was not enough meat for the Natives the chief sent men into the forest and they hunted and brought back 5 deer.  Sharing food or food as a gift was a very meaningful thing to the tribe.  So in actuality. . . the first Thanksgiving was a venison (deer meat) feast, and not a Turkey Day feast.  They possibly DID have turkey but the majority of the meat was venison.  They party or feast went on for 3 days.  

The sad thing about this is many more of the tribe would die of European diseases.  The Native Americans had not evolved the immunity to the common European diseases like measles.  The Europeans also violated treaty after treaty.  Many Native Americans consider Thanksgiving a day of mourning.  But it is true that the Wampanoag did enter a treay of peace with the people of Plymouth Colony.  

I learned much of this from an article from the magazine:  Indian Country Today.   The article was called:  The Wampanoag Side of the First Thanksgiving Story.  The article has a lot more to it and I recommend you read it.  The perspective is fascinating.   

So, Happy Thanksgiving... and remember that it can be a time to be grateful for our blessings we have.  Without the help of the Wampanoag Tribe the first Thanksgiving never would have happened.  

On a side note, one of my ancestors was shipwrecked off the shore of the East Coast of North America.  She was wounded by some "Indians" or Native Americans and yet survived.  She was rescued by an older Native American man and nursed back to health.  She was taken to a European colony and she married again.  She and her husband were friends with her "Indian father's" tribe.  It is a long story and very interesting so maybe I will share more someday. 

I myself am part Iroquois . . . . a Native American Confederation consisting of several tribes near the Great Lakes.   And studies have shown that perhaps as much as 80% of North Americans are at least part Native American. 

Pilgrim with Native American Friend

(This is an older drawing.)

NOTE  The printable version of the drawings will be on the Holidays page and the All Printables page. . . you just click the button at the top.  The Wampanoag drawing and the Pilgrim and Native American Friend drawing are at the bottom of the All Printables page.  Both drawings are  also under Thanksgiving under the button at top labeled Holidays.