Thanksgiving derives from a harvest celebration of Native Americans and early settlers. Early American settlers survived their first winter in the New World with help from Wampanoag Indians. They invited the Wampanoag to celebrate their first harvest by sharing a meal of wild turkey, fish, vegetables and dried fruit. On Thanksgiving, Americans gather for a traditional dinner, which harks back to that 1621 harvest celebration, and share food and other resources with those who are less fortunate.
(Pamphlet, 2 pgs.)