The “first Thanksgiving” most often refers to a 1621 meal between the Pilgrims and the Native Wampanoag people, though historians have uncovered earlier examples, including Spanish colonists who celebrated alongside the Seloy tribe in Florida in 1565 and Virginia settlers who took part in "a day of thanksgiving to Almighty god" in 1619.
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It was originally intended to promote Macy’s upcoming holiday sales. Although it took place on Thanksgiving Day, the parade was initially called the Macy’s Christmas Parade—the name didn’t change until 1927.
In 1981, public relations firm Talbot looked to promote one of its clients, Butterball Turkey, by starting a holiday hotline for customers to ask culinary questions. Forty years later, 50 experts still answer roughly 100,000 questions in November and December from people experiencing "turkey trauma."
The Thanksgiving myth didn’t really start in 1621, argues historian David Silverman in this interview with Smithsonian. Rather, it took hold over 200 years later. During the Civil War, Thanksgiving was declared a national holiday by Abraham Lincoln as a way to promote national unity. The tidy story of friendship between Native Americans and colonists was used to quell racial tensions of the late 19th century.
The Wampanoag Nation is most famous for its role in the first Thanksgiving with the Pilgrims who set up their colony in what is today Plymouth, Massachusetts. Four centuries later, a few thousand of their descendants remain in the region as part of federally recognized tribes. When Thanksgiving comes around each year, instead of celebrating, some Wampanoag mourn in remembrance of the disease, violence, and death brought on by European migration to the continent. Read their memories of the holiday here.
Explore Thanksgiving beyond the familiar Pilgrim narrative and learn about the Wampanoag Nation. Trace how early cooperation gave way to disease, conflict, and loss—and how Wampanoag traditions and perspectives continue to shape the understanding of the holiday today.
There is no record of turkey on that first table, though one account vaguely refers to "fowl." The meal mostly consisted of seafood and venison.
Whether you want to see the floats in the parade or prefer to learn more about the balloons, performers, and more, this interactive website has it. Click on each of the visuals to see details about the float or balloon. The Beagle Scout Snoopy balloon, for instance, has a giant hat that is as long as 17 beagles lined up end to end.
Snoopy and Bullwinkle and Clifford, oh my! This slideshow has photographs of all those characters (and more) from when they debuted as balloons at the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. These photos span from the original parades in the 1920s through the early 2000s.
An essential character in American tradition, the wild turkey is more than just the meat you eat on Thanksgiving. Listen to this four-part miniseries to learn what they symbolize, the long-lasting efforts to preserve this bird, and why their conservation matters.
Edward Winslow’s short 1621 letter offers the only firsthand account of the first Thanksgiving, describing celebratory gunfire that drew Wampanoag leader Massasoit and 90 men—initially fearing conflict—before the gathering turned into shared feasting.
Art, music, sports, entertainment, movies, and many other subjects—these elements define who we are as a society and how we express ourselves as a culture. Take a deep dive into the topics shaping our shared norms, values, institutions, and more.