Virginia: First Official Thanksgiving in the New World

Thanksgiving lore is all about Pilgrims and Indians, feasting on turkey at Plymouth, Mass. But many Virginians claims that the first true Thanksgiving occurred on the banks of the James River, a full year before the Pilgrims landed.

In 1619 the ship Margaret, captained by John Woodleefe, carried 38 men to Berkeley Hundred, a land grant on the James River near present day Charles City County, VA. With them they brought official written instructions from Richard Berkeley, their benefactor, that they annually give thanks on the day of the ship's arrival at the plantation. That day "shall be yearly and perpetually kept holy as a day of Thanksgiving to almighty god."

On the other hand, Pilgrims were the first folks in the New World who combined elements associated with our modern Thanksgiving: a communal feast of autumn’s harvest. Berkeley's group simply prayed and thanked God for safe deliverance to the Virginia Colony. Europeans, especially Spanish, had been doing that for centuries.

But in support of Virginia’s claim, Abraham Lincoln -- not the Pilgrims -- created Thanksgiving Day by an 1863 proclamation. There is no mention of pilgrims, Plymouth or pumpkin pie. No turkey, either. It was all about giving thanks to God, just like at Berkeley.

Berkeley Plantation still stakes claim as the site of the first Thanksgiving, with an observance every year in early November. The 1776 mansion and expansive grounds are open to the public year-round for tours.

Click ‘Post a comment’ to weigh in: Berkeley or Plymouth? Either way, let’s all give thanks for family and friends, and please pass the pecan pie!