Thanksgiving
The Pilgrims of Plymouth Colony landed in Massachusetts on the Mayflower in the fall of 1620. They did not have time to build proper shelter or to plant and harest crops before the brutal winter arrived. During that first winter, nearly half of the Pilgrims died from disease or starvation. The following year, with the help of local Indians, the Pilgrims had a good harvest. They thanked God for the harvest with three days of prayer and feasting in the fall of 1621.In 1863, during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving a national annual holiday to be celebrated the last Thursday in November.
1. Define: harvest __________________________________________________
2. Describe the problems facing the Pilgrims in the fall of 1620.
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3. Why did the Pilgrims have three days of prayer and feasting in the fall of 1621?
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4. What war was the United States fighting when President Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863?
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5. When is Thanksgiving Day in the U.S.A.?
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