It’s fast approaching: Thanksgiving at Summerfields Friendly Village
Everything comes from somewhere, including the turkey. Summerfields Friendly Village, all ages living community will soon be celebrating Thanksgiving. Whether you’re in the Willow, the Holly, the Tamarack or Ponderosa, you’ll enjoy the perfect setting for wonderful celebratory meal.
Just as Summerfields Friendly Village came to be a reality through a dream fostered by The Temple Companies, the famous “Turkey Meal” at Thanksgiving also had a unique start in history.
How the turkey wound up on the Thanksgiving Table
The absolute centerpiece of Thanksgiving
There’s no winning argument against turkey being the centerpiece of Thanksgiving! Historically speaking, and many are not aware of this, but the majority of dishes in the traditional American version of the dinner are created from foods that are native to the “New World.” According to tradition, the Pilgrims learned about and received these foods from the Native Americans.
So, what was on the table at the “First Thanksgiving” table?
“The First Thanksgiving,” as it has traditionally become known, started at the 1621 feast. Attended by Pilgrims and the Wampanoag at Plymouth Colony the “fixins” included venison, clams, waterfowl, fish, fruits and berries and squash. William Bradford, an English Separatist moved to Holland to escape persecution from King James 1 of England.
He emigrated to the Plymouth Colony aboard the Mayflower in 1620 and went on to serve as Governor of the Plymouth Colony for about 30years. In his journal was noted that “besides waterfowl, there was a great store of wild turkeys, of which they took many.” Many of the foods that were included in the first feast (except, notably, the seafood) have since gone on to become staples of Thanksgiving dinner.
Actually, the inclusion of the turkey on Thanksgiving precedes Lincoln’s nationalization of the holiday itself in 1863. Alexander Hamilton actually proclaimed that no “Citizen of the United States should refrain from turkey on Thanksgiving Day.” Benjamin Franklin also held regard for the wild turkey as an American icon. Interesting to note that turkey was uncommon as Thanksgiving fare until after 1800. By 1857, the turkey had become part of the traditional dinner in New England.
One of the most recognizable icons of Thanksgiving
Most Thanksgiving turkeys are stuffed with a bread-based mixture and roasted. Deep fried turkey is an up and coming popular way to prepare Thanksgiving turkey, but it has a number of safety risks.
A turkey in the White House?
Now don’t take that the wrong way. Thanksgiving turkey consumption is so ingrained in U.S. culture that every year since 1947, the National Turkey Federation has presented a live turkey to the President prior to each Thanksgiving.
So, what placed the turkey on the table? Well, the journal (noted above) of William Bradford tells us, “a great store of wild turkeys, of which they took many…”