Thanksgiving Annotated Bibliography
Teaching about the Theme of
Gratitude, Pilgrims, Wampanoags, and Patuxets
by
● Videos
Anderson, J., (1984).The first Thanksgiving feast. Plymouth, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.
This is a recreation of Pilgrims' lives and the first Thanksgiving which is illustrated by photographs from the Living History Museum. Actors and actresses are used to portray Native American and Pilgrim life in a seventeenth - century setting at the Plymouth Plantation in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The author also gives a detailed, honest description of how the holiday possibly began from both perspectives.
Bartlett, R. M., (1965).Thanksgiving Day. New York, NY: Thomas Y. Crowell Company.
A very detailed description of the Pilgrims' journey across the ocean and their first year of life in the new country including their First Thanksgiving celebration is given by Bartlett. The illustrations are well done and the author has added extra details that enhance the story. Use critical analysis when discussing this book with students.
Bragg, B. (1997). The very first Thanksgiving: Pioneers on the Rio Grande. Niwot, CO: Roberts Rinehart.
The text provides an alternative definition to the first Thanksgiving celebration. The author portrays an expedition of European-descent settlers in 1597 as they traveled from Santa Barbara in New Spain (or Mexico) north to the Rio Grande River to find a better life. Their Thanksgiving feast was held near present-day El Paso as the settlers rejoiced in the possibilities of a new colony in America. Native people are almost invisible in the story, although they were living in the area. The only mention of Native people is in the description of “Indian friends” who provided some assistance to the settlers during the journey and some food for the Thanksgiving celebration. Don Juan, the leader, declared the land they traveled through, the river, and the land to the north as the possession of the King of Spain.
Brown, M. W. (Ed.).(1988).Homes in the wilderness: A pilgrim’s journal of Plymouth Plantation in 1620.North Haven, CT: Linnet Books.
The text contains a simplified version of a journal by William Bradford and others who came to America in 1620, explore Cape Cod, and then build their settlement at Plymouth. It also portrays the pilgrim writers’ views of Native people as “savages” who felt justified in taking corn belonging to Native people as a sign of God’s good providence, in entering Native people’s homes and taking contents, and in digging up Native American graves and taking away the “prettiest” items. At the close of the text, the journals portray a pilgrim perspective on encounters with Samoset and Squanto.
Bruchac, J. (1996).The circle of thanks: Native American poems and songs of Thanksgiving. Bergenfield, NJ: BridgeWater Books.
The text is a collection of thanksgiving prayers of 14 Native nations to illustrate that thanksgiving among Native people is not limited to one day, but is part of every day. The Mohawk thank Mother Earth for caring for caring for them, the Papago give thanks for rain, the Cherokee express thankfulness to plants for their medicines, the Kwakiutl thank cedar trees for its wood to make baskets and black bears for food, and the Pima thank the wind for its healing power.
Bruchac, J. (2000).Squanto’s journey: The story of the first thanksgiving. San Diego: Silver Whistle.
The author briefly describes Squanto’s experiences with being taken by English fur traders as a slave to Spain in 1614 and eventually helping the English survive in Plymouth. After being freed from slavery, Squanto returned to England where he learned the English language. English traders asked Squanto to accompany them to the New World to help solve conflicts between English traders and the Wampanoag. When Squanto returned to his homeland, he discovered most of his people, the Patuxet, one of the divisions of the Wampanoag’s, had died from disease. However, rather than take revenge against the English, Squanto was willing to share the land and taught the English how to plant food, hunt, and fish to survive. According to the author, it was Squanto’s assistance that enabled the English to have the food they served at the feast. The author’s note provides helpful background information on the research completed for the text and a glossary clarifies some of the terms used.
Bulla, C. R., (1954). Squanto: Friend of the Pilgrims. New York, NY: Scholastic Book Services.
The story of Squanto is told in a realistic format. His first voluntary trip to England is detailed as well as his second trip and his forced slavery. Squanto finally comes back to his homeland only to discover his entire village has perished from sickness. Squanto befriends the new Pilgrims and teaches them important skills for survival. Simple and somewhat stereotypical illustrations are dispersed throughout the chapters.
Bunting, E., (1988).How many days to America? A Thanksgiving story .Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.
A family from a Caribbean Island tells their story of traveling across the ocean to reach America and freedom. The story highlights are colorfully displayed through illustrations. The climax of the story comes when the new pilgrims arrive in America and are welcomed with a feast on Thanksgiving Day.
Cohen, B., (1983).Molly's pilgrim. New York, NY: William Morrow & Company.
A modern day Pilgrim's story and a refreshing explanation of why Thanksgiving is celebrated is beautifully illustrated and told through the embarrassment of young Molly. Molly's Russian, Jewish mother helped her ease through the discomfort of being a new student while also facilitating her acceptance of her own background.
Dalgliesh, A., (1954).The Thanksgiving story. New York, NY: Charles Scribner's Sons.
Dalgliesh gives a very simple description of the first year of the Pilgrims in their new land. There is also an account of a small skirmish between the usually peaceful Native Americans and the Pilgrims before the First Thanksgiving celebration in America. se critical analysis when discussing this book with students.
Davis, K. C. (2002). Don’t know much about the Pilgrims. New York: HarperCollins.
The author uses a question and answer format to clarify misconceptions and provide realistic descriptions about who the Pilgrims were, how and why they came to America, and what happened to them once they arrived. The author clarifies that Pilgrims both stole corn from the Patuxets and benefitted from Squanto’s help with growing, gathering, hunting, and fishing for food. The text describes the treaty between the Wampanoags and the Pilgrims, which led to peaceful relationships between the two groups for more than 50 years. It also clarifies that the “first Thanksgiving” was really a harvest festival or feast, which Native people had celebrated for many years in the Americas. Thanksgiving became a national holiday in 1863.
Dorris, M., (1994).Guests. New York: Hyperion Books for Children.
Moss is a young Native American boy struggling with his passage into manhood. He is questioning himself and the impression he gives to others at the very same time his village has invited guests for their very special harvest celebration. This enjoyable book gives a unique Native American perspective of how the First Thanksgiving may have possibly taken place.
Dupuy, T. N., (1965). Holidays. New York, NY: Franklin Watts Incorporated.
A five page summary about the origins of the First Thanksgiving is presented in factual form. Also, Dupuy mentions the second Thanksgiving possibly resulting from the Native American Massacre in 1622.
George, J.C.. (1993). The first Thanksgiving. New York: The Putnam and Grosset Group.
This is a detailed, illustrated children's book that relays the story of the First Thanksgiving. The story begins with the history and movement of the Plymouth Rock as well as the arrival of the first Pilgrims. The harshness that the Pilgrims met their first winter in the new land was offset by the kindness and teaching of Squanto, Massasoit and the Wampanoag people. Their help and kindness as well as the Pilgrim's successful harvest was the reason for the first "Harvest Feast."Use critical analysis when discussing this book with students.
Grace, C. O. & Bruchac, M. M. (2001).1621: A new look at thanksgiving. Washington, DC: National Geographic Society.
The text is embellished with beautiful photographs taken from the living history museum of Plimoth Plantation and the interpreters who re-enacted the1621 harvest gathering among the Wampanoag and the English colonists. The authors encourage readers to question traditional views of Thanksgiving, offers critical perspectives on the Pilgrims’ treatment of the Wampanoag, and provides background on Wampanoag culture and history. The text portrays the gathering between the Wampanoag and English colonists as a harvest celebration and clarifies how Thanksgiving became a national holiday and how Native people view the national holiday.
Harness, C. (2006). The adventurous life of Myles Standish and the amazing-but-true survival story of Plymouth Colony. Washington, DC: National Geographic.
The author provides a lively interpretation of the reasons why the Pilgrims left England and then Holland for the New World and the many challenges they endured during their journey, and their struggles to survive once they arrived. She also sketches in the historical context of the time period, including political and religious changes, wars, and health conditions. Myles Standish was a soldier whose primary responsibilities seemed to be protection of the Pilgrims, teaching them how to protect themselves, and serving as “Captain-General” of the tiny Pilgrim army. The text includes details of the Pilgrims’ lives in England and Holland; what they brought with them to the New World; how they decided where to settle; the Mayflower compact; the deaths during the first winter; efforts to build houses and other common buildings during the first year; their interactions with Samoset (a Pemaquid sagamore or chief), Tisquantum (a Patuxet), and Massasoit (a great Wampanoag leader) and how Tisquantum taught the Pilgrims to live from the land; the clothing the Pilgrims wore; and a drawing of the New Plymouth colony. The “first Thanksgiving” is described in only one chapter, which includes the author’s speculations about the food served, but asserts that Massasoit’s hunters contributed five deer and that Myles Standish led his troops in a military parade and showed off the largest canon. Readers could speculate about the purpose of this demonstration of military strength. The text contains a timeline of world events during Standish’s lifetime, 1584 - 1660, a list of people who sailed on the Mayflower, a diagram of the ship, resources used in preparing the book, and additional print and websites readers can consult for further information.
Koller, J. F. (1999).Nickommoh! A thanksgiving celebration. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.
The author makes the case that the first Thanksgiving did not occur after the Pilgrims arrived in the New World, but was a traditional harvest celebration of the Narragansetts in New England. Using some of the language of the Narrangansett people of Rhode Island today, the author describes a typical Narrangansett thanksgiving to celebrate the harvest prior to contact with Europeans. The author’s note provides additional background about the Narrangansett’s Nickommoh and the glossary explains the Narrangansett terms used in the text.
Lasky, K. (1996).A journey to the new world: The diary of Remember Patience Whipple. New York: Scholastic.
The diary is fictional, but based on historical research. The main character portrays the perspective of a Pilgrim girl who traveled on the Mayflower and settled at Plimoth in North America. Her descriptions of Native people are consistent with other Pilgrim perspectives, but refers to Native men by their “Pilgrim” names. She places no blame when Pilgrim men take Native people’s corn or give Native guests liquor. However, she does question the limited role Pilgrim girls have at this time. One of the last diary entries is a traditional depiction of the first Thanksgiving, with the Pilgrims providing a feast for 90 “Indians.”
McGovern, A.,(1969).If you sailed on the Mayflower. New York: Scholastic Incorporated.
McGovern provides a wealth of information in a question/answer format about the Pilgrims and their entry into a new land. It is easy to find information in this document.
Peters, R. M. (1992).Clambake: A Wampanoag tradition. Minneapolis: Lerner.
Peters, a Wampanoag, provides some of the historical background information on the Wampanoags of southeastern Massachusetts, including how they met their need for food prior to the invasion of the Pilgrims. The text also portrays how one Wampanoag boy today learns about the clambake tradition, as a way of maintaining some of the significant Wampanoag cultural traditions.
Sewall, M., (1986).The Pilgrims of Plymouth. Atheneum, NY: Macmillan Publishing Company.
Sewall write about the Pilgrims' lives in the old verse that gives the book a feel of authenticity. The dialogue gives a pure and true perspective of how the pilgrims actually thought and felt about their Native American neighbors. The first difficult years are explained as well.
Sewall, M., (1990).People of the breaking day. New York, NY: Macmillan Publishing Company.
The story of the Wampanoag people, before the arrival of the Pilgrims, is laid out with illustrations. Sewall portrays the daily life of the Wampanoag people playing, cooking, celebrating, and hunting. Important cultural aspects are also brought to life for the reader in the natural voice of the Wampanoag people.
Sewall, M., (1995).Thunder from the clear sky. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division.
This is a story about the struggles of the Wampanoag Indian tribe and the settlement of the English in Southern New England. The author offers a perspective from the Wampanoag Indians and the Pilgrims. The story ultimately concludes with the end of life as the Native Americans knew it in New England.
Swamp, Chief Jake.(1995).Giving thanks: A Native American good morning message. New York: Lee & Low Books.
The text is based on the Thanksgiving Address, an ancient message of peace and appreciation of Mother Earth and all her inhabitants. This thanksgiving message comes from the Iroquois tradition and the six nations which compose the Iroquois Confederacy, including the Oneida. The text and beautiful illustrations portray the Iroquois tradition of thankfulness for all living things.
Waters, K., (1989). Sarah Morton's day. New York, NY: Scholastic Incorporated.
Sarah Morton lives on the Plymouth Plantation during the year 1627. The short story is about this nine-year old and her daily routine at the plantation. Beautiful photographs detail the reality of her life from morning chores, the process of dressing, cooking, to waiting for a new ship to arrive. This is a detailed portrayal of pilgrim life.
Waters, K., (1996). Tapenum's day: A Wampanoag Indian boy in Pilgrim times. New York, NY:Scholastic Incorporated.
The third book in the trilogy that includes Sarah Morton's Day: A Day in the Life of a Pilgrim Girl and Samuel Eaton's Day: A Day in the Life of a Pilgrim Boy, this book explores the life of Tapenum and his struggle and preparation towards becoming a warrior counselor. The time period is the 1620's and an accurate portrayal is given of Native American life at the time of colonization. The photographs taken by Russ Kendall are from the Plimoth Plantation in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
Chorlian, M. (2001, September). Samoset and Squanto. Cobblestone 22.
The articles contain a stronger Native American perspective than past issues. They acknowledge that Pilgrims settled on Wampanoag land, differences between Pilgrim and Wampanoag cultures (implying many aspects of Wampanoag culture were superior to the Europeans), Squanto’s significant contributions to the Pilgrims’ early survival, and the eventual removal of the Wampanoags and other Native people from their homelands due to conflicts over land.
Yoder, C., (1989, November).Pilgrims to a new world. Cobblestone 10.
Articles include a bit of the Pilgrims’ history as well as interviews with the actresses who play Mistress Fuller and Sarah Morton of the Plymouth Plantation in Massachusetts. The issue is a potpourri of easily understandable information.
(1992). William Bradford:The first Thanksgiving. [Videocassette]. approximately 30 minutes with activity book.Living History Prods. $59.95.
Grades 1-4."The events leading up to the First Thanksgiving are presented as an adventure story. It begins with the Puritans enduring an arduous ocean voyage in the pursuit of religious freedom in a new land and the signing of the Mayflower Compact. William Bradford's role as peacemaker is emphasized, with Miles Standish depicted as a warrior. Once on land, the Native Americans are shown as being key to the Pilgrim's survival. Squanto plays a starring role in this segment. After surviving many hardships, the newly elected Governor Bradford proclaims a day of Thanksgiving, to be shared by the Pilgrims and Indians as equals.If this animated video looks like a transposed comic strip, so be it .It works. The information is historically accurate, even incorporating details such as the Indians teaching the settlers to use fish to fertilize the soil. What often is presented as dry and dull is shown here as an exciting adventure that today's TV - oriented children will learn from and enjoy watching."The previous video was critiqued by Margaret Gross, a teacher at Madison School in Hinsdale, Illinois. Use critical analysis when discussing this video with students.
Rabbit Ears (Producer). (1993). Squanto and the first Thanksgiving.(American Heroes & Legends Series). [Videocassette].approximately 30 minutes. Dist. by Listening Library. $9.95.
Grades 1-6"Graham Greene, an Oneida Indian, narrates the story of Squanto (or "Tisquantum") whose place in American history is too often ignores. The video follows Squanto from childhood in the Patuxet tribe through his kidnapping, trips to Spain and England, and return to America. The heartbreak of discovering his entire tribe was wiped out by smallpox isn't lost on viewers. Squanto's subsequent introduction to the Mayflower Pilgrims, who had suffered a similar loss in their first harsh winter, and his willingness to help, aptly portray his kindness and nobility. Indeed, many historians doubt the Pilgrims would have survived without Squanto's help. The tree-day feast of Thanksgiving that followed their first successful harvest, under Squanto's tuition, shows the impact one man can have on a nation's history. This is less about the holiday than it is about one kind-hearted, intelligent man who did not allow personal tragedy to embitter his life. Michael A. Donato's paintings, shown in ichnographic style, are bold and evocative, with heavy black outlines that call to mind Native American art-work. This would be a valuable addition to and any collection. It has a multitude of possible uses that make it much more than merely a holiday video."The previous video was critiqued by Teresa Bateman, a teacher at Brigadoon Elementary School in Federal Way, Washington. Use critical analysis when discussing this video with students.
Video Dialog (Producer).(1991). The first Thanksgiving. [Videocassette]. 19:30 min. with teaches guide. Dist. by Barr Films.
Grades K-3."Using the framework of the story of Love Brewster, a Pilgrim boy, as he helps prepare for the first Thanksgiving feast, this live action production compares and contrasts the lifestyles of the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag people as it tells of the origin of the Thanksgiving holiday. Love meets some Wampanoag men who give him a turkey. He returns to Plymouth and helps to set up games for the feast.A female narrator tells about the pilgrim's journey to America and their difficulty adjusting to the new land. We see how Samoset and Massasoit helped the newcomers. The similarities between the Pilgrims and the Native Americans are stressed. Women in both groups are shown cooking and making clothing, while the men are shown hunting and building. Filmed on Plymouth Plantation, the "actors" are the plantation staff. The acting is of mixed quality and it is disconcerting to hear the Native Americans speak "American English" while the pilgrims try their best to speak in 17th century British accents. Also jarring is the ethnic diversity of the Wampanoag and the multiplicity of hairstyles they sport including a modern "rat's tail."However, the technical qualities are good, the information is presented well, and the story is involving enough to hold the attention of young students. Schools will find this a very popular video at Thanksgiving time and good for colonial and Native American studies. Public libraries with large collections should find it useful as well."The previous video was critiqued by Louise L. Sherman, a teacher at Anna C. Scott School in Leonia, New Jersey. Use critical analysis when discussing this video with students.
The Oyate web site contains several valuable and informative resources dealing with Thanksgiving. One is an essay “Deconstructing the Myths of ‘The First Thanksgiving’” by Judy Dow and Beverly Slapin which refutes many common beliefs about the Plimoth settlers, why the Wampanoags attended the harvest celebration, and who likely provided the food for the celebration. Another resource is a list of recommended books to use, a lengthy list of books to avoid in teaching about Thanksgiving, and recommendations of primary sources which provide a colonist’s perspective on Thanksgiving. See http://www.oyate.org/resources.html
This web site provides a virtual tour of the recreated historical village of Plimoth Plantation as it appeared during 1627 with individual homes, common storehouses, a common house, cow house, and hay house. It also includes the homesite of a Wampanoag Hobbamock and his family who lived close to the Pilgrims. The family’s house, gardens, and artifacts are included in the tour. See http://www.plimoth.org
A new component of the Plimoth Plantation website is You are the historian: Investigating the first Thanksgiving. The web site is geared for students to explore the question of what really happened during the fall of 1621 when the English colonists and Wampanoags celebrated the harvest through a feast lasting three days. The site allows students to learn more about life among the English colonists and Wampanoags during 1621 and different perspectives on the “first Thanksgiving.” Lesson plans to guide teachers’ and students’ use of the web site are also provided. See www.plimoth.org/olc/index_js2.html
The website Looking for Thanksgiving Sites? invites teachers and students to study what really happened at Thanksgiving and to learn about the Pilgrims and Wampanoags by exploring two linked websites: Plimoth Plantation and Kate Waters. The Pilmoth Plantation website is described above, but also includes research articles on Thanksgiving and the Wampanoag. The Thanksgiving articles include: “As American as Pumpkin Pie,” “Native Traditions of Giving Thanks,” “Partakers of Our Plenty,” and “Fast and Thanksgiving Days of Plymouth Colony” while the Wampanoag articles are “Maushop Brings His People Home: Dugout Canoe Trips to Martha’s Vineyard,” “Holistic History: Including the Wampanoag in a New Exhibit at Plimoth Plantation,” “Stitches in Time: Traditional Wampanoag Sewing,” and “Ancient Technology: Building a Wampanoag Home of the 17th Century.” The Kate Waters website answers kids questions about the Wampanoag and children in Plimoth based on her research for Sarah Morton's Day and Tapenum's Day: A Wampanoag Indian Boy in Pilgrim Times. Go to http://teacher.scholastic.com/fieldtrp/childlit/thnksgiv.htm
Ahern, J.(1991, September - October).A Thanksgiving quiz. Social Studies, 82, 176-178.
Ahern addresses the issue of misinformation about the Thanksgiving holiday. As well as providing basic facts about the First Thanksgiving, he also provides a quiz that can be presented to the students along with other background information that will present a more honest representative description of the Pilgrims and the Native Americans.
Correia, S. T., Fierst, P. M., Gregory, K. G., Johnson, D. E., Le Cloux R. M., O’Connor, T. M., Tetzlaff, L. L.& Vinoski, C. S.(2001, Fall).Teaching and learning about Thanksgiving. Wisconsin Council for the Social Studies Journal, 5-7.
The authors encourage teachers to invite students to research different ideas about the “first” Thanksgiving and decide on the accurate version. They also suggest resources students might use during their research. One possibility is the Spanish feast of Thanksgiving near present day El Paso, Texas in 1597.Another possibility is a “Day of Thanksgiving aboard a ship near present day Labrador in 1578 with an English explorer. Yet a third possibility is a feast of thanks held by the Spanish in St. Augustiane, Florida in 1565.Finally, students could explore Native Americans’ days of Thanksgiving for successful harvests prior to European arrival in the Americas.
Edinger, M. (2005). The Pilgrim maid and the Indian chief. Educational Leadership, 63, 78-81.
The author reviews the challenges for teaching elementary students to discern fact from fiction when teaching about Pilgrims and Native people. She uses primary sources, such as Mourt’s Relation which describes the Pilgrims’ first year. The author also recommends well-researched nonfiction children’s books about Pilgrims and Wampanoags by Marcia Sewall, Penner’s Eating the Plates: A Pilgrim Book of Food and Manners, and Connie and Peter Roop’s Pilgrim Voices: Our First Year in the New World. However, when she used historical fiction, her students tended to believe the story was factual. In addition, the author took her class to Plimoth Plantation, a carefully researched enactment of how Pilgrim life in 1627. However, students were confused by the Hobbamock’s Homesite, which included Native people and other staff speaking about the Wampanoag, their lifestyle, and their relationship with the Pilgrims during the 1600s. Students thought the Wampanoag lifestyle remained the same since the 17th century. The author encourages teachers to use primary sources or well-researched secondary sources and help elementary students distinguish facts from fiction.
Gorelick, J. & Simermeyer, G. (2006). Harvest ceremony: Beyond the Thanksgiving myth. Social Education, 70, 411-413.
The article is a lesson plan designed for use with high school students. It contains a lengthy essay about the Wampanoags, the immigrants (rather than pilgrims), the contact between the two groups, and the immigrants’ harvest celebration held to celebrate a successful harvest. The authors offer several classroom discussion topics including: (1) compare the traditional Thanksgiving story to the events described in the essay and (2) were the Wampanoags invited to the harvest celebration? The article provides additional insight into the Wampanoags in the past and present and their relationship with the Europeans.
Hirschfelder, A. & Califf, J. (1979).A Thanksgiving lesson plan: Celebration or mourning? It’s all in the point of view. Interracial Books for Children Bulletin, 10, 6-13.
The article contains 10 activities and background reading teachers from different grade levels can use to provide Native people’s perspective on Thanksgiving. The lessons encourage students and teachers to learn more about the Wampanoags, how Native people viewed Europeans’ movement into their homelands, the detrimental effects of the Pilgrims and other Europeans on Native Americans in New England, and the assistance Native people provided to the Pilgrims when they first arrived. Activities also promote a greater understanding of why Native Americans today consider Thanksgiving a time to mourn and want to regain lands that were taken.
Pepper, F. C.(1990).Unbiased teaching about American Indians and Alaska Natives in elementary schools. ERIC Digest: RIEDEC90, 3.
This journal article is filled with pertinent information for teachers. Curriculum, the role of accurate information, myths and information to dispel them, teaching suggestions, and further references are all presented in a factual, clear format. This is a useful resource for teachers who are concerned about presenting truthful and unbiased information to their students about American Indians.
Quinn, A.(1994, November 24).The miracle harvest. The New York Times, pp. A33.
Quinn tells the public that the origins of Thanksgiving rested in the hands of Abraham Lincoln. He created the holiday for political reasons during a rough period in the Civil War. He used the holiday to boost his image for the upcoming election campaign. Quinn also compares the Pilgrims' Harvest Festival with Lincoln's Thanksgiving using the common denominator of death as the factor that links the two celebrations together throughout history.
Seale, D., Slapin, B. & Silverman, C. (1998).Thanksgiving: A Native perspective. Berkeley, CA: Oyate.
This is the best resource for understanding more about Native people’s views of Thanksgiving. It includes articles addressing the importance and longstanding tradition of giving thanks among Native people, background on the Wampanoag, and conflicts between the Pilgrims and other colonists and the Wampanoags and other Native nations. It offers different strategies for teaching about Thanksgiving in order to avoid perpetuating stereotypes and misunderstandings about the traditional “first Thanksgiving.”
Wilson, S. M.(1991).Pilgrims' paradox. Natural History, 22, 23-26.
Wilson holds the position that Thanksgiving was created by Lincoln to bolster his image during the Civil War. He also details the Pilgrims' progress as a settlement and a political entity. An honest evaluation of Squanto's presence and importance in the Pilgrim settlement is also given. This article is an excellent reference that touches on important factors that should be considered when discussing/evaluating the origins of Thanksgiving.