Pirates: Authentic to the Thankgiving Story
Last modified on 2009-09-13 00:05:53 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
First, when the Mayflower sailed in 1620 the Pilgrims had cause to pray for safe passage without interception by Algerian Corsairs, also known as Barbary Coast Pirates. The Algerian pirates were known for slave trading in white European Christians.
Second, the Plymouth pilgrims lost the first shipload of goods they sent back to repay their debts. The ship Fortune was lost to French privateers only weeks after the fall feast of 1621.
Tags: thanksgiving trivia, thanksgiving fun facts, the pirates history, pirates in history, algerian pirates, the barbary coast pirates
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The Speedwell
Last modified on 2009-09-11 02:36:43 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
The little side-kick ship that was supposed to cross over with the Mayflower in 1621 was called the Speedwell. The Speedwell was originally meant to be the backup escape plan for the Pilgrims in case they decided New England was too much, and they wanted to return home.
Unfortunately she was refitted with too large a mast which cracked her, and she had to be left behind.
An interesting note about the Speedwell is that she reportedly served in the English war against the infamous Spanish Armada in 1588.
Tags: thanksgiving trivia, thanksgiving fun facts, the speedwell, speedwell history
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King Phillip’s War, 1675-1676
Last modified on 2009-09-11 02:49:17 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
Over time Mayflower Pilgrim Edward Winslow, and Ousamequin the Massasoit (Grand Leader) of the ally Wampanoag Indians, became sincere friends. Unfortunately the next generation would not share this hard-won affection.
Edward Winslow’s son, Josiah Winslow, who served as governor in Plymouth from 1673-1680, chose a course of domination, rather than respectful diplomacy, in his dealings with the Indians. Ousamequin’s son, Metacomet (nicknamed King Phillip by the English), who served as Massasoit during that time period, could see the writing on the wall, and in resistance started an uprising that would eventually take more lives per capita than any war in American history.
Tags: thanksgiving fun facts, thanksgiving trivia, history in new england, the pequot, king phillips war
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Pequot Massacre, 1634-1638
Last modified on 2010-02-26 15:05:57 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
The Pequot Indians were annihilated to the brink of extinction by the English during the attack of 1637. The war started when a Pequot leader was taken for ransom and murdered by a notorious Dutch slaver and privateer, John Stone. His actions set off a string of events that ended badly for the Pequot.
After the 1637 vengeance annihilation of most of the Pequot tribe, Native allies to the English (including the Mayflower Pilgrims) expressed that the Pequot massacre “went too far.” War among Native groups had never been so complete and final as to wipe out entire tribes.
You can learn more about the Pequot War and its aftermath at the Mashantucket Pequot Museum online (PequotMuseum.org).
Tags: thanksgiving trivia, pequot tribe, pequot massacre, the pequot, history in new england
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Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show
Last modified on 2009-09-14 14:22:53 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show, which ran from 1883 to 1913, was the widely known, and hugely influential precursor to Hollywood. It was Buffalo Bill’s Wild West shows that unintentionally seared the Plains Indian stereotypes into the American mind.
Namely, Euro-America, which was in this time period all but separated from Indian contact through reservation segregation, came to view all Indians as Plains Indians, and to view our resulting relationship with the Indians as friendly. This wasn’t the case, of course, but the dramatization was apparently convincing.
Hollywood (and other American media) simply went on to pick up the stereotypes right where Buffalo Bill left off.
It is this misinformed Euro-American mindset that was transferred to our national Thanksgiving holiday traditions, and that has been carried on to this day.
Tags: thanksgiving fun facts, thanksgiving trivia, buffalo bill’s show, buffalo bill’s wild west show, native stereotypes, the plains indian, national thanksgiving holiday, traditions american
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The Original 13 Colonies Were Not the Originals
Last modified on 2009-09-12 23:50:27 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
Plymouth was not, and is not our second surviving European colony. And Jamestown was not, and is not the first.
The earliest surviving colonies on present day American soil are those of the Spanish. We simply celebrate the English colonies because the winners of war write the history they want their children to remember.
Tags: 13 original colonies of, thanksgiving fun facts, thanksgiving trivia, facts 13 colonies, original thirteen colonies, history of colonies
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Why Americans Don’t Know Their History
Last modified on 2009-09-20 18:46:08 GMT. 0 comments. Top.
Americans have a long-held disdain for history study; and it’s no wonder. The overwhelming consensus that “history is boring and irrelevant” stems from generations of dry, white-washed, socially “safe” K-12 history textbooks. Plain and simple.
The sad part is, real history is always better than fiction. Just go a little deeper than the surface appearance and you find scheming, conspiracies, religious arrogance, and human shortcomings. The very twists and turns of real human drama is what has the power to make history study so incredibly captivating.
If you think history is boring, then chances are you suffered (or are suffering) under the age old withholding of historical truth and controversy. What you got instead was good ol’ boy American pseudo-patriotism.
If we want things to be different for our kids, and if we want to raise real patriots with a diversity-rich mindset (all for one, and one for all), then we must allow them to explore, discuss, and ruminate on the sensitive controversies of our real past.
Be prepared, though: they’ll bring you up to date on all the wild stuff you missed!
Support the Reality Thanksgiving Revolution.
Tags: thanksgiving fun facts, thanksgiving trivia, better than fiction, history is boring
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Tags: 13 original colonies of, thanksgiving fun facts, thanksgiving trivia, facts 13 colonies, better than fiction, history is boring, buffalo bill’s show, native stereotypes, the plains indian, national thanksgiving holiday, traditions american, pequot massacre, the pequot, history in new england, the pirates history, the barbary coast pirates
Posted August 31, 2009 by Admin
