ANSWERS FOR: Can I win a Turkey with this quiz? No, but you might learn a little about Thanksgiving.
1. Where was the first Thanksgiving? (Is this a trick question?)
Possible answers include:
1554-French Huguenots, near present-day Jacksonville, FL;
April,1598-the Don Juan de Onate Expedition near El Paso, TX
1565-Spanish settlers at St. Augustine, FL
1607-English colonists in Popham, Maine
1610-English settlers in Jamestown, VA
1619-English settlers at the Berkeley Hundred, in VA
1621-a “harvest” celebration at Plymouth Plantation
1623-1st known Thanksgiving observance at Plymouth
2. Who were the Pilgrims?
The Pilgrims were Separatists from the Church of England who went to Holland in 1608 and then, in 1620, returned briefly to England before beginning their journey to the New World.
3. How many passengers were on the Mayflower when it left Plymouth, England? 102
How many crewmembers? 26-30
4.What was the name of the baby born during the crossing? Was the baby a boy or girl?
Oceanus, a boy; another boy, Peregrine White, was born aboard ship, in Cape Cod (Provincetown) Harbor in Dec. 1620
5. How many days did the journey across the Atlantic take?
66 days
6. Where did the Mayflower first land?
Cape Cod, near present day Provincetown
On what date did the Mayflower sail to Plymouth?
December 16, 1620
7. What is the Mayflower Compact?
An agreement to make just and equal laws for the general good of the colony
How many men signed it? 41 men
Why is it important in the History of US?
1st time in U.S. history that a group of citizens had established their own kind of
government
8. Name the first Indian to visit Plymouth. Samoset
How had he already learned to speak English? _From visiting English fishermen Name the Indian who was most helpful to the colonists. Squanto
Who was the tribe’s chief? Chief Massasoit, of the Wanpanoag
9. What did they eat at the “First” Thanksgiving in Plymouth?
Wild geese, duck, lobster, eels, clams, oysters, deer, corn, popcorn, honey,
carrots, cucumbers, turnips, onions, radishes, beets, cabbages, berries, fruits
10. Who urged the creation of a national Thanksgiving holiday?
Sarah Josepha Hale, editor of “Godey’s Ladies Book”
Which President issued the first national proclamation?
Abraham Lincoln When?_1863
Sources:
Debnam, Betty, The Mini Page, November 19, 1995
“First Thanksgiving in April” El Paso Mission Trail Association, undated
Foley, Sheila, Faith Unfurled: The Pilgrims’ Quest for Freedom. Lowell, MA:
Discovery Enterprises, Ltd., 1993
McGovern, Ann, If You Sailed on the Mayflower. New York: Four Winds Press, 1969
Richardson, Joan, “History of holiday grows more complex,” Detroit Free Press,
November 24, 1994, 1-A, 6-A
“Whither the First Thanksgiving?”, American History 1994
Williams, Alicia Crane, “Women & Children First” American History, 1994. p. 44-47, 73
