First Thanksgiving Feast in 1621 | Statistics & Facts

The First Thanksgiving in America 1621

The first Thanksgiving feast took place in autumn 1621 in Plymouth, Massachusetts, marking a pivotal moment in early American colonial history. This three-day harvest celebration brought together approximately 50 English colonists, known as Pilgrims, and 90 Wampanoag men, including their leader Ousamequin (also known as Massasoit). The gathering was not initially called a “Thanksgiving” by its participants, but rather served as a harvest festival celebrating the colonists’ first successful crop yield after a devastating winter that had claimed nearly half of the Mayflower passengers. The event occurred sometime between September 21 and November 11, 1621, with historians suggesting late September around Michaelmas as the most likely timeframe. This celebration has since become the foundational narrative for America’s modern Thanksgiving holiday, though the historical reality differs significantly from popular mythology.

The 1621 harvest feast emerged from a complex diplomatic relationship between the Plymouth colonists and the Wampanoag people, who had been devastated by European diseases between 1614 and 1620. The Wampanoag leader Ousamequin initiated contact with the settlers in March 1621, seeking a mutual protection alliance against rival tribes, particularly the Narragansett. The colonists, struggling to survive after losing approximately half their population during the harsh winter of 1620-1621, desperately needed Native assistance. Tisquantum, commonly known as Squanto, played a crucial role as interpreter and agricultural advisor, teaching the colonists vital techniques like fertilizing soil with fish remains to grow corn. The harvest celebration represented both an agricultural success and a diplomatic milestone, cementing an alliance that would last approximately five decades until the outbreak of King Philip’s War in 1675. Only one eyewitness account survives through Edward Winslow’s letter dated December 11, 1621, providing the primary historical record of this significant gathering.

Facts About the First Thanksgiving Feast in 1621

Data Source: Plimoth Patuxet Museums, National Archives, Edward Winslow’s 1621 Letter (Mourt’s Relation, 1622), William Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation, Pilgrim Hall Museum

The historical facts surrounding the 1621 harvest feast reveal a gathering far more complex than traditional narratives suggest. The 140 total attendees consisted of dramatically unequal numbers, with 90 Wampanoag men significantly outnumbering the 50 English colonists. Among the English survivors were only 4 adult women—Eleanor Billington, Elizabeth Hopkins, Mary Brewster, and Susanna White—who were responsible for preparing much of the feast alongside servants and young daughters. The Mayflower had arrived in December 1620 with 102 passengers, but the brutal first winter claimed approximately half the colony, leaving the survivors grateful for their first successful harvest. The presence of 90 Wampanoag men represented not merely social guests but a significant diplomatic delegation, underscoring the political nature of this gathering as much as its celebratory aspect.

The three-day duration and specific food contributions paint a vivid picture of this historic event. Colonial Governor William Bradford sent four men on a fowling expedition, who successfully killed enough wildfowl in a single day to feed the company for nearly a week. The Wampanoag delegation contributed five deer, which were likely processed into stew and other preparations. The celebration took place outdoors due to limited colonial infrastructure, with attendees sitting on the ground or barrels with plates on their laps. Activities included military exercises with firearms, racing, and attempts at communication in broken English and Wampanoag languages. The single surviving eyewitness account comes from Edward Winslow’s letter dated December 11, 1621, published in Mourt’s Relation in 1622. Remarkably, the word “Thanksgiving” was never used by participants to describe this event—that terminology would not be applied until 1841 when Unitarian minister Alexander Young annotated Winslow’s account in his publication Chronicles of the Pilgrim Fathers.

English Colonist Demographics at the First Thanksgiving in 1621

Data Source: Pilgrim Hall Museum, Plimoth Patuxet Museums, Mayflower passenger records, Edward Winslow’s 1621 letter

The English colonist demographics in 1621 reveal a community devastated by their first New England winter yet determined to survive. Of the 102 original Mayflower passengers who departed England in September 1620, only 50 remained alive by the autumn harvest celebration, representing a staggering 51% mortality rate. The gender imbalance was particularly stark, with only 5 adult women surviving compared to 24 adult men. Four of these women—Eleanor Billington, Elizabeth Hopkins, Mary Brewster, and Susanna White—bore the enormous responsibility of preparing feast food for approximately 140 people alongside young daughters and male and female servants. The 21 children and teenagers represented 42% of the surviving colonists, ranging in age from Peregrine White, an infant born aboard the Mayflower in December 1620 in Cape Cod Bay, to teenagers in their late teens. Elder William Brewster, in his fifties, represented the oldest member of the community and served as a spiritual leader.

The survival of these 50 colonists represented remarkable resilience in the face of catastrophic losses during the winter of 1620-1621. The 52 deaths resulted from a combination of disease, malnutrition, exposure to harsh weather, and inadequate shelter. Many colonists continued living aboard the Mayflower while constructing their settlement, exposing them to cramped, unsanitary conditions that facilitated disease transmission. The 4 adult women who survived and prepared the feast food bore an incredible burden, cooking for approximately 140 people over three days while managing their own families and households. The presence of 21 children and teenagers ensured the colony’s future but also added to the survival challenges, as young people required care and feeding during the desperate early months. The demographic composition at the 1621 harvest feast fundamentally shaped the event’s character—this was a community celebrating survival as much as agricultural success, grateful to have endured conditions that killed half their population within months of arrival.

Wampanoag Participation in the First Thanksgiving Feast 1621

Data Source: Plimoth Patuxet Museums Wampanoag Training Manual, National Archives, Edward Winslow’s 1621 Letter, Historical accounts from Wampanoag perspectives

The Wampanoag participation in the 1621 harvest feast represented a sophisticated diplomatic maneuver rather than a simple social gathering. Ousamequin, known to the English as Massasoit, led 90 Wampanoag men to Plymouth, creating a gathering where Native Americans outnumbered colonists nearly two-to-one. This significant delegation demonstrated both the political importance of the occasion and Wampanoag military strength. The 5 deer brought by Wampanoag hunters provided substantial protein for the three-day celebration and likely represented a diplomatic gift certifying the alliance according to Wampanoag cultural traditions. Tisquantum, commonly called Squanto, played a crucial intermediary role as interpreter and cultural bridge. Remarkably, Tisquantum had been kidnapped by English sailors in 1614, sold into slavery in Spain, escaped to England where he learned English, and returned to North America in 1619 only to discover his entire Patuxet village had been wiped out by disease. The Plymouth colonists had built their settlement directly on the cleared land where his village once stood.

The Wampanoag motivation for attending and supporting the colonists stemmed primarily from strategic political calculations rather than altruism. Between 1614 and 1620, European diseases had devastated Wampanoag communities, killing thousands and dramatically shifting the regional balance of power. The Wampanoag found themselves significantly weakened compared to their traditional rivals, the Narragansett tribe, who had been largely spared from the epidemic. Ousamequin initiated contact with the Plymouth colonists in March 1621, seeking to forge a mutual protection alliance that would restore Wampanoag military strength through access to English weapons and support. The formal treaty signed in March 1621 pledged mutual defense and established trade relations. Wampanoag agricultural knowledge proved essential to colonial survival—they taught the English to plant corn using the Native technique of fertilizing with fish, to identify edible plants, and to hunt and fish in unfamiliar territory. The three-day harvest celebration in autumn 1621 served to solidify this alliance through the cultural practice of communal feasting and gift exchange. This partnership would endure for approximately 50 years until mounting tensions over English territorial expansion and cultural conflicts erupted into King Philip’s War in 1675, one of the bloodiest conflicts in American colonial history that resulted in thousands of deaths and the effective destruction of Wampanoag political independence.

Food and Menu at the First Thanksgiving Feast 1621

Data Source: Edward Winslow’s 1621 Letter, William Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation, Plimoth Patuxet Museums culinary research, Pilgrim Hall Museum food historians

The food served at the 1621 harvest feast differed dramatically from modern Thanksgiving menus, reflecting the limited resources and combined English-Wampanoag culinary traditions. Wildfowl dominated the English contribution, with Edward Winslow’s letter documenting that four colonists killed enough fowl in one day to feed the company for nearly a week. While popular imagination centers on turkey, historians suggest ducks and geese were more likely, as these waterfowl were easier to hunt with the colonists’ available weapons and more abundant in the Plymouth area. The 5 deer brought by Wampanoag hunters provided the celebration’s primary red meat, likely processed into venison stew and roasted portions. Seafood played a significant role, with historical accounts confirming the colonists had taken good stores of cod, bass, eels, and shellfish. The coastal location meant clams, lobster, and mussels were readily available and probably featured prominently.

Vegetables and grains reflected Native American agricultural influence combined with English gardening traditions. Corn served as the staple grain, prepared in various forms including cornbread and nasaump, a Wampanoag dish of boiled cornmeal mixed with vegetables and meats that the colonists had adopted. The successful harvest included beans and squash, both Native crops grown using the Three Sisters agricultural method. Pumpkin likely appeared in some form, though not as pie due to the absence of butter, wheat flour, sugar, and baking ovens. English garden vegetables like onions, carrots, and turnips may have supplemented the menu. Wild fruits and nuts including cranberries, gooseberries, plums, chestnuts, and walnuts were abundant in the fall season. Significantly absent were potatoes and sweet potatoes, which had not yet been introduced to New England from South America. Pies, cakes, and butter-based desserts were impossible to prepare without wheat flour, butter, sugar, and ovens—supplies the colonists either lacked or had exhausted. The feast was likely served communally with dishes shared among attendees, reflecting both English community-oriented dining customs and Wampanoag communal traditions. Most attendees ate outdoors, sitting on the ground or on barrels with plates on their laps, as Plymouth had few permanent buildings by autumn 1621.

Activities and Entertainment During the 1621 Harvest Celebration

Data Source: Edward Winslow’s December 11, 1621 Letter, William Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation, Wampanoag cultural traditions documented by Plimoth Patuxet Museums

The activities during the 1621 harvest celebration extended far beyond eating, encompassing military displays, physical competitions, and cross-cultural exchanges that reflected both celebration and diplomacy. Edward Winslow’s letter specifically mentions that the colonists “exercised our arms,” referring to firearms demonstrations and military drills. This activity served multiple purposes—it provided entertainment, demonstrated English military capability to their Wampanoag allies, and maintained the colonists’ combat readiness. The sound of gunfire may have actually alerted the Wampanoag to the celebration; some historians suggest Ousamequin and his 90 men initially approached Plymouth after hearing celebratory gunfire, concerned it might indicate an attack, before being invited to join the festivities.

Physical competitions and social activities characterized much of the three-day gathering. Men competed in foot races, providing entertainment and allowing both English and Wampanoag participants to demonstrate athletic prowess. The colonists and their guests consumed beer and liquor, with historical sources noting that men drank and struggled to communicate in broken English and Wampanoag languages. This language barrier posed significant challenges, though interpreters like Tisquantum facilitated basic communication. The Wampanoag contribution of 5 deer during the celebration represented both practical provision and ceremonial gift-giving, with the venison formally “bestowed on our governor, and upon the captain, and others” according to Wampanoag diplomatic customs that understood alliances through ritual exchange of gifts. The three days of communal feasting allowed extended time for relationship building between the two communities. Winslow’s letter mentions “other recreations,” suggesting additional entertainment activities that went unspecified but likely included storytelling, music, or games. The celebration’s outdoor setting—necessitated by Plymouth’s limited infrastructure of only seven dwelling houses and four common buildings by autumn 1621—created an informal atmosphere where approximately 140 people gathered on common ground. Historical debate continues regarding whether Wampanoag women and children attended; traditional Wampanoag culture included women in harvest celebrations, and Ousamequin had informed colonists in March 1621 that Wampanoag women would come to plant corn and dwell near Plymouth during summer, suggesting female presence was possible though not confirmed in surviving accounts.

The Historical Context and Legacy of the 1621 Harvest Feast

Data Source: Plimoth Patuxet Museums, National Archives, Colonial Williamsburg historical research, Wampanoag oral history and modern perspectives

The historical context of the 1621 harvest feast reveals profound differences between the actual event and its mythologized version in American culture. The gathering was never called “Thanksgiving” by its participants—that terminology emerged 220 years later in 1841 when Unitarian minister Alexander Young added a footnote to Edward Winslow’s published letter describing it as “the first Thanksgiving, the harvest festival of New England.” The event was fundamentally a harvest celebration combined with diplomatic alliance building, not the religious thanksgiving day that 17th-century Puritans understood. True Puritan days of thanksgiving were solemn religious observances spent entirely in church, often declared in response to specific divine interventions like military victories or ended droughts. The Plymouth colonists’ first actual day of thanksgiving occurred in July 1623 when rain ended a drought threatening their crops.

The motivations and aftermath of the 1621 gathering tell a far more complex story than popular narratives suggest. English colonists sought survival and military protection after losing half their population during their first winter. The Wampanoag, devastated by European diseases that killed thousands between 1614 and 1620, sought to restore their political and military strength through alliance with the better-armed English colonists against their rivals, particularly the Narragansett tribe. This was a strategic political treaty between two weakened groups, not a simple act of neighborly kindness. The alliance proved durable, lasting approximately 50 years and enabling both groups to achieve their immediate objectives. However, the long-term consequences for the Wampanoag were catastrophic. As English settlement expanded and cultural conflicts intensified, the alliance collapsed in the early 1670s, erupting into King Philip’s War from 1675-1676. This devastating conflict resulted in hundreds of English deaths and thousands of Native American deaths, with the Wampanoag ultimately losing their political independence and much of their remaining territory. Many Wampanoag and other Native peoples were killed, sold into slavery, or forced from their ancestral lands.

The 1621 event’s transformation into America’s central Thanksgiving narrative occurred primarily between 1880 and 1920, coinciding with peak immigration to the United States. Americans increasingly viewed the Pilgrims as representing ideal founding settlers, implicitly contrasting them with new immigrants from Ireland, Italy, Eastern Europe, and Asia who were often considered inferior. This narrative served nationalistic purposes but erased vast portions of American history, including earlier thanksgiving celebrations by Spanish colonists in Florida in 1565 and Texas in 1598, as well as Indigenous thanksgiving traditions that existed for thousands of years before European arrival. The Wampanoag people, who continue to live in New England today, have complex relationships with Thanksgiving—some embrace it while others observe a National Day of Mourning on Thanksgiving Day, protesting since 1970 in Plymouth to confront the myth of the First Thanksgiving and remember the devastating impact of European colonization. The holiday was declared a national observance by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863 during the Civil War as an attempt to unite a divided nation, and was permanently fixed as the fourth Thursday of November by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1941. Understanding the authentic 1621 harvest feast—with its political complexity, survival desperation, cross-cultural negotiations, and tragic aftermath—provides a more honest foundation for reflecting on American history than simplified myths of harmonious friendship between Pilgrims and Native Americans.

Disclaimer: This research report is compiled from publicly available sources. While reasonable efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, no representation or warranty, express or implied, is given as to the completeness or reliability of the information. We accept no liability for any errors, omissions, losses, or damages of any kind arising from the use of this report.

Email ID:

Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.

Email

Email *

SUBSCRIBE