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Thanksgiving - Stories

Thanksgiving, which occurs on the fourth Thursday in November, is based on the colonial Pilgrims' 1621 harvest meal. The holiday continues to be a day for Americans to gather for a day of feasting, football and family.

Detail of illustration depicting Native American Squanto (a.k.a. Tisquantum), of the Patuxet tribe, serving as guide and interpreter for the Pilgrims at the Plymouth Colony, circa 1621.

Who Was Squanto, and What Was His Role in the First Thanksgiving?

Without Squanto, a.k.a. Tisquantum, to interpret and guide them to food sources, the Plymouth Colony Pilgrims may have never have survived.

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Wood engraving from Harper's Weekly magazine depicts onfield action during a football match between Yale and Princeton on Thanksgiving Day, November 1879. The match was a draw

How the First Thanksgiving College Football Game Kicked Off a Holiday Tradition

In 1876, Yale beat Princeton before a sparse crowd. By the mid-1880s, their annual contest was a major social event that attracted thousands of fans in New York.

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Ousamequin, chief of the Wampanoag signs a peace treaty with Governor John Carver (1576 - 1621).

Why the Wampanoag Signed a Peace Treaty with the Mayflower Pilgrims

The treaty that made the first Thanksgiving possible has a dark backstory.

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The Miserable Journey Aboard the Mayflower

The Pilgrims’ Miserable Journey Aboard the Mayflower

During their two-month journey to America, the Mayflower’s passengers faced cramped quarters, rough seas, limited food and numbing cold.

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Thanksgiving: A Timeline of the Holiday

From the earliest fall feasts to the first Thanksgiving football game to the Macy’s Day parade, here’s the full background on how the U.S. holiday evolved to the tradition it is today.

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Turkeys Were Once Worshipped Like Gods

The star of the Thanksgiving table was revered by the Maya.

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History of Black Friday: From Financial Crash to Shopping Mania: Photos

Black Friday has not always been about crowds shopping for sales at obscenely early hours the day after Thanksgiving.

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The First Thanksgiving

Colonists at the First Thanksgiving Were Mostly Men Because Women Had Perished

The three-day feast was about giving thanks, but it wasn’t much like today’s holiday.

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A group of friends or family members hold hands around a Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving History Facts and Trivia

What did they eat at the first Thanksgiving? Which president made Thanksgiving a federal holiday? Get Thanksgiving trivia to share around the table.

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The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

Quirky Vintage Photos of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

Snapshots of the iconic parade over the last eight decades.

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Thomas Jefferson. (Credit: VCG Wilson/Corbis via Getty Images)

Thomas Jefferson’s Complicated Relationship with Thanksgiving

The third president declined to participate in the tradition.

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The Curious History of Leftovers

People were once ridiculed for eating leftovers.

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