The November 16, 2013 The Lord Craven Chapter of Colonial Dames held their meeting at the Hieronymus Seafood Restaurant Blue Room, 5035 Market Street in Wilmington, NC.
Colonial Dames member, Carol Jutte displayed a poster
of information about Heraldry & COA at the November Colonial Dames meeting. In the middle of the display panel is one of Carol Jutte's ancestors who did not
have a painted COA hanging in Washington, DC headquarters. Carol had the COA painted
and it will now hang at NSCDXVIIC Headquarters. The name of Carol's ancestor was Thomas
Howys, the painting is of his coat of arms.
The guest speaker was Mary Ann Hepler and her workshop was titled "Great Warrior Path." Mary Ann provided an informative and interesting information about the Path that the Indians used coming down from the north to the south and some paths turning east and west. Often these paths became our paths and eventually our roads.
Nora
Hickam gave a memorial for Mr. Buski who was the genealogist for CDXVIIC at
Headquarters who passed away on November 3, 2013. Lord Craven chapter sent a donation to CDVIIC in
memory of Mr. Buski. Visit the web site below for additional information.
The First
Thanksgiving Feast
There
is no exact record of when the First Thanksgiving was celebrated, we do know
that it was between Sept 21, and Nov. 9,1621 and that it was a 3 day
celebration. We know from 2 quotes some
of the foods that were served, cod, sea bass, wildfowl, corn meal and 5 deer,
brought by the Indians. It may not be
politically correct to say Indian, but that is what the Pilgrims called the
native people.
The
most important foods in the English diet were meat, fish and bread, some fruit
was eaten, and vegetables were called sallet herbs or roots at that time, and
not a favorite of the Pilgrims. Shellfish was plentiful, but was considered poverty
food.
The
record from the Mayflower tells so there were no animals aboard except for 2
dogs but though they are not listed there were probably goats, chickens, pigs
and cats on board. They could use the milk from the goats and some of the eggs
from the chickens, the animals were needed to build up stock.
The
first Thanksgiving was a secular celebration, it was a Harvest Celebration. The winter of 1620 had been devastating to the
Pilgrims and with the help of the Indians they had had a bountiful harvest. Fifty Pilgrims and 90 Indians attended the 3
day harvest feast. Four women had
survived the winter, Elizabeth Hopkins, Elinor Billington, Mary Brewster and
Susanna Winslow, they oversaw the preparation and cooking of the food with the
help of the children and servants.
The
people on benches at long tables, the few chairs were taken by the most
important men.They
ate with knives, a few spoons, no forks, around there necks they wore large
napkins, about 36 inches square, they were important as they were used both
serve and eat. It was fine to eat with
your fingers, and you could use the corner of your napkin to pick up and eat a
piece of hot food with. Wooden trenchers were used as plates and could be share
with another person. Small bowls or cups
were used for soup or drinks.
The
meal was started with a prayer or “Thanksgiving before Meate”. The meal was served by the children and
servants. They did not eat meals in
courses at we do, all the food was placed on the table, sort of potluck
style. There was not a serving of each
dish for everyone. Beverages served would be Beer, by both adults and children,
Aqua Vitae or strong waters, and water.
Our
Thanksgiving
Pilgrim Thanksgiving
Turkey
Wildfowl, turkey, ducks, swan and goose
Potatoes
No white potatoes then
Sweet
Potatoes the wealthy had them in England,
aphodisac, but
Pilgrims would not have them
Corn Indian
corn probably ground into meal for bread
Indian
Pudding
No molasses at that time
Cranberries
or Craneberries
used in a stuffing or “pudding in the belly”
Pickles
pickled cucumbers or cowcumbers were favorites
of the Pilgrim children
Gravy
meat was either roasted or boiled.
There was no
Wheat flour to thicken a sauce with – they used
Bread crumbs or egg yolks to thicken sauces
Apple
Pie
no fruit trees at that time
Pumpkin
Pie Pumpkin
was cooked with meat in stews
Other
Desert
There were native berries, strawberries,
Blueberries,
raspberries, crab apples, and nuts.
They were incorporated in dishes, there was
Little sugar to
make sweet dishes.
posted by Ruth-Anne Bolz
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