Like Christmas, the origins of Thanksgiving are hotly debated.
Like Christmas, we can thank stories of Thanksgiving passed down through generations by word of mouth, in letters and documents, period media reports, and great literary works for the making of all that we celebrate of the holiday today.
Historians these days love to deconstruct “the facts” surrounding Thanksgiving. They tell us we are wrong to think of it as we do. They say the “first Thanksgiving” celebrated in grade school plays likely never happened.
But facts are stubborn things, noted President John Adams. Here are some stubborn facts about Thanksgiving that cannot be dismissed:
Edward Winslow was a real person. He was 26 years old when he sailed on the Mayflower yet he is one of the few heralded Pilgrims of the Plymouth settlement.
That is regrettable because he was a key player in the...
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