The beginning of Thanksgiving Day

On September 16 1620, a ship sailed from England and headed to America. The name of the ship was the Mayflower. There were 102 men, women, and children on the ship, and many of them were Pilgrims.

The Pilgrims wanted to worship God in their own way, but the King of England didn’t allow that. They decided to go to America to worship God as they wished.

On December 21, 1620, the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, Massachusetts. It was the beginning of winter, and they didn’t have enough food. Many got sick and died, but the Pilgrims didn’t want to go back to England.

Friendly Native Americans helped the pilgrims. They showed them how to fish and how to plant corn and other vegetables.

By the fall of 1621, the Pilgrims had a lot of food. They were happy and grateful. They decided to have a parade and a big diner to thank God and their Native American friends. They had turkey, fish, corn, and pumpkin. They invited many Native Americans to the dinner. After dinner, the Pilgrims and the Native Americans played games. This is the first Thanksgiving Day.