Pocahontas: The First Thanksgiving

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The first Thanksgiving was a celebration of coming together between Native Americans and the English settlers in the fall of 1621 in Plymouth Colony. Before this first Thanksgiving, the settlers were preparing for the harsh coming winter by gathering food and supplies. With the help of Squanto, a Wampanoag Indian who knew English, the settlers to grow corn and use fish to fertilize the soil for better harvest. Squanto helped the Colonists learn how to fish. This brought the Wampanoag Indians closer to the English settlers. They began to work together, soon the Native Americans offered to help hunt for and with the English settlers. The leader of the Wampanoag, Massasoit and 90 of his mencame for the first Thanksgiving. For three days, the English and the native men, women and children celebrated together playing games, singing songs, dancing and feasting on their harvest. Their meal consisted of corn, shellfish and other roasted meat like duck, goose and venison. This marked the historic and first Thanksgiving holiday of the history of our nation. …show more content…

Pocahontas was an influential Indian who shaped Jamestown. Pocahontas’ real name was Matoaka. She was the daughter of Wahunsenaca or chief Powhatan. Pocahontas was a Powhatan Indian and at the time the Powhatan tribe was strong. It was Pocahontas who helped save a colonist named John Smith from being clubbed to death. Because Pocahontas had saved John Smith she built trust between the colonists and the Powhatans. Pocahontas became an important figure for the peace and negotiation during this time period. She had helped the Indians from not fighting the colonists and vice versa. As an immediate result of her saving John Smith the Indians and the new colonists worked together and were beneficial to each other. In the future Indian and Colonists began to fight again. But Pocahontas relationships with the colonists did not end, she continued to associate and help other

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