The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1910-11-24
ORIGIN OF
THANKSGIVING
DATES BACK TO 1907 WHEN
COLoNISTS LANDED IN
America.
After Close of Revolution Marked
Tendency Deveoped to Make
Day Regular Institution

The origin of Thanksgiving Day
dates back into early history, where
we learn that the earliest Thanks
giving service was held by the Church
of England men the Pouham ~colonists
who August g., 1907 20. 81, landed
upon Monhegan, near the Kehnebec
and under the shadow of a high cross
listened to a semon by Chaplain
Seymour, ''giving good thanks for
our happy meetings and safe arrival
into the country
Next we pass to Plymouth where
in 1921 the autumn after the arrival
a notable Thanksgiving was held.
The brief accounts present a joyous
picture. As we learn from Window
the harvest being gathered, the gov
ern0r "sent four raen out fowling,
that SO We might after a special
manner, rejoice together in 1922
there is no mention of Thanksgiving
but in 1923 a day was kept not, how
ever, in the autumn as a harvest
festival. but in July, upon the arrival
of same provisions. After this no
thing more is heard of Thanksgiving
at Plymouth for nealy half a cen-
fury. Distant religious societies.
however hay have kept occasional
Thanksgiving as the people at Barn.
stable observed Thanksgiving on De-
cember %, 1886, and December IL,
1859.
I'm the Massachusetts, colony the
first Thanksgiving was held at Bos-
to- July 8, 1880, it being a special
occasion having no reference to har-
vests. In 1857 there was a Thanks
giving for victory over the Peqnots,
and in 1923 for the arrival of ships
and or the harvest. The Thanksgiv-
irg Days from 1854 to 1854 number
ed about twenty-one or less than N
in every two years.
From this period until the Revolu-
ton a Thanksgiving of some kind oc-
Cured nearly every other year, and
even twice in the same year, as in
1912. Some of these days were APP
pointed by the royal governors while
again they were ordered by the king
or queen or by the home board of
trade. After the close of the Revolu-
tion a tendency to make Thanksgiv-
ing Day a regular institution in New
York was at once apparent and Gov.
John Jay in 1895 issued a procla-
nation for the 11th o November.
AT an early period also the mayors
of New York were accustomed to APP
point a day of thanksgiving in ac-
cordance with the recommendations
of the council land that of December
16, 1899, appears to have been the
first so ordered. Yet the observance
of the day until Governor Clinton's
time was more or less broken. The
festival was kept however, by Epis-
copalians acordicng to the provisions
of the Prayer Book, other religious
boaies at the same time following
their own preferences.
AT the east end of Long Island
there was no little murmuring be-
cause the day did not coincide with
the local custom. 1t appears the
people of South Hampton observed
Thanksgiving on the Thursday after
the cattle were driven home from
the common pastures at Montauk
point, the day of the return of the
cattle being fixed annually with due
solemnity, at the town meeting.
Hence there was a collision and the
herdmens were divide striving as
the herdmens of Abrams cattle
strove with those of Lot. Here was
the beginning o fthemovement which
led to the first presidential procla-
nation Matchmaking Thanksgiving
.Day.