The expanded edition includes a new chapter on Thanksgiving era pirates, and how they are connected to Plymouth, plus more games, and more resources for improving relations with American Indians.

Available in paperback or spiral bound through Lulu.com/TeachFromTheHeart. ISBN 978-0-557-08714-3. Coming soon in paperback to Borders.com and Amazon.com.

Historical Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas

The following 7 Table-Setting Steps will walk you through the basics of re-creating period ambiance through both English and Native Wampanoag place settings. These steps are taken from the complete living-history how-to guide, The American Patriot’s Treasury of Historical Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas: Old-World Table Settings, Recipes, Games, Hand Crafts, and Party Ideas for Cultural Enrichment and Pleasure.

This proper English setting includes a pewter mug, breadplate, spoon, and salt dip. The wood bowl could be replaced by a medium size wood plate. The knife should be straight-edged and pointed. Includes a white linen serviette.

Step 1: Make your own table cover and serviettes

The most authentic fabric choice for the 1621 table is linen, with white being far and away the most popular color choice of the time period. Natural colors were also used, however, as was cotton fabric. Whatever your preference, buy enough fabric to cover your table, and calculate yardage for serviettes based on width of fabric and size desired (there was no standard: serviettes are described as being “bath towel-sized,” and could have been either rectangular or square). Cut all pieces out on the grain, then hand finish the edges with cotton thread for the greatest authenticity, or machine finish all edges. For more details on making serviettes see:http://www.letsplayhistory.org/3squaresaday/carries-chat/serviette/

One way to use the serviette

Step 2: Buy your wood bowls or plates

Wood bowls and plates are fairly easy to find new in today’s market. Simply search online using “Wood Plates” as your search terms, and you’ll have plenty of providers to choose from. In the LPH guide you will find resources for learning how to turn your own plates, or for buying unfinished plates and finishing them in period authentic fashion. Shown here is a set of plates that have a more modern wide brim. A narrow brim would increase the style authenticity for the time period.

Modern wood plates with wide brim

Step 3: Shop for metal mugs

Reproduction pewter mugs are the hardest table item to find, whether new or used. Even finding reasonably priced steel, tin, or aluminum mugs can prove a challenge. Try shopping second hand stores, eBay, outdoor outfitters, and flea markets. To relieve stress, be resigned to having mismatched, less-authentic mugs the first year, and go with whatever you can find. Then join in the wholesale purchasing co-op at LetsPlayHistory.org for new, lead-free sets of 8 reproduction mugs (and other pewter items).

Three inauthentic mug choices shown on the right

Step 4: Omit your forks, and add proper spoons and knives

As of 1621, the English still thought forks sinfully effeminate, and they wouldn’t use them. Instead, their pointed, straight-edge knives were used like the fork is used today. Additionally, the pointed knife tip was necessary for dipping salt. Pewter spoons are another item very difficult to find, but authentic alternatives would include hand carved wood or bone spoons.

Wooden spoons prove fun to use on Thanksgiving!

Step 5: Add a salt dip

Pewter salt dips are the easiest of the pewter items to find, at least in used condition. They measured roughly 3 to 4-inches across the mouth, and were set out in the center of the table to be used communally. A small wood bowl of similar dimensions also fits the bill for period authenticity, though it wouldn’t have been as common among the middle class Mayflower pilgrims.

Pewter salt dips were used communally

Step 6: Create an optional Wampanoag place setting

If you would like to stir everyone’s delight, add a plausible Wampanoag place setting to your Thanksgiving table. Primitive hand carved bowls and spoons are an authentic option. Shown here is an inverted turtle shell, which is a favorite in theory, however be aware that real turtle shells pose certain health risks. For imitation turtle shells join the wholesale purchasing co-op at LetsPlayHistory.org. As for Native knives, flint knives are the only authentic choice, as in 1621 the Native Peoples were not yet using steel objects. Many tribes across America still make flint knives, and a number of craftsmen sell on eBay. Purchasing information, as well as resources for learning how to make your own flint knives, are found in the LPH guide.

Plausible Wampanoag place setting

Step 7: Add optional decorations, music, prayers

If you really want to “wow” your guests, enhance the old-world ambiance with hand made period décor items, traditional English or Wampanoag music, and offer Native prayers, as well as English prayers spoken in the archaic King James vernacular (a potentially humorous endeavor, indeed!). You could also introduce a period card game, or other activity while you wait for the turkey to cook. The possibilities are endless. See the LPH guide for many more early New England suggestions.

Milkweed is an indigenous fall bloomer (silk specimen)

This feasible, though less than historically perfect table setting still provides an enchanting old-world look and feel

Article and Photos by Carrie Franzwa, LetsPlayHistory.org, Nov. 2008

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Carrie Franzwa, America’s “Angel of Thanksgiving Past,” is an advocate for restoring American history to the Thanksgiving holiday, and is the author of this nation’s first Thanksgiving living-history how-to book, “The American Patriot’s Treasury of Historical Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas: Old World Table Settings, Recipes, Games, Hand Crafts, and Party Ideas for Cultural Enrichment and Pleasure.” She and her husband, David Franzwa, are also the co-founders of LetsPlayHistory.org, an online community for history enthusiasts, reenactors and educators in America.

From the start of the Thanksgiving holiday in 1863, Euro-Americans have romanticized the observance of this historic interracial event of 1621 New England.  For all their noble intentions, however, this holiday suffered censoring and stereotyping as Euro-American Victorians, then the Edwardians, attempted to mold history to the demands of their genteel sensibilities.

Still today, for all the advances of ethnic minorities in America in recent history, the Thanksgiving holiday has continued steady in Victorian and Edwardian traditions and stereotypes that harbor historical deceit.

Indeed, scarce few American families today enjoy emotional connection with the originating history. Somehow the perceived “true story” got itself permanently relegated to the status of a fourth grade story that adults already know, and don’t particularly want to hear again.

At this point in time it isn’t that Americans are against the idea of being honest with our history, it’s that they are on automatic pilot where holiday traditions are concerned, and they honestly don’t know that they don’t know the real history is missing.

As a nation that loathes our own ignorance, and that consistently demonstrates a heart for the oppressed, it’s time we wake up and come full circle in our own healing process by embracing the treasures of our heritage, for better or for worse.

To this end America is being hailed to join a grassroots movement to put 1621 back into the holiday of Thanksgiving. With a little imagination it can prove a magically entertaining hobby for families, and has the added benefit of cultural enrichment.

Our family has discovered this magical alternative, and not only is it more fun than former traditions, but it has led us to cross new ethnic bridges of understanding… right at home where the heart is.

As our story goes, we were originally motivated by holiday boredom to start digging up our nation’s past in hopes of using it to make our annual Thanksgiving get-togethers more enjoyable. We were actually only after historical how-to information for setting a period-authentic table, and perhaps some instructions for a few authentic games.

But what we ended up discovering was a whole different world; one that none of us had heard of before.

The first real eye-opener was our discovery of the little known true-life story of Squanto – the Native Wampanoag man who provided survival-skills training to the Mayflower Pilgrims. Like most middle age Americans, I personally did recall being told he spoke English, but I could not for the life of me recall ever being told how he learned it.

This Native ally, Squanto, learned to speak English as a result of being taken into Europe to be sold as a slave. Although he didn’t end up a slave, he was there against his will for five years.

The great irony is that his ability to speak English is what made the 1621 English thanks-giving feast possible.

In addition to Squanto’s story, our family also came to hear for the first time the unfavorable Thanksgiving sentiments held by certain segments of our Native-American and African-American populations. These fellow countrymen are openly incensed by the farce that Thanksgiving continues to be; so full of stereotypes and lingering sanitization, that their hearts rail against it.

It appears that nobody is listening, but perhaps it is simply that nobody knows quite how to respond.

How do we adjust the auto pilot, and reinstate the less romantic parts of the whole “all-American” story? Slavery is still a taboo topic in many circles.

For starters it would help if more Americans understood the dog-eat-dog nature of the 1621 slave trade. In those days not only were Europeans preying on Africans and Native Americans, but Africans were preying on Africans, and North Africans were preying on Europeans.

What went around, came around.

But regardless of how it all went down, it remains that we are in need of creative ways to remove our holiday blinders, and face the real history. Being slow to do so has been like telling any trauma survivor that their story isn’t important.

Which only wounds the trauma survivor all over again.

Which brings us to the reasons why our family believes so strongly in the “new “ old-world way to celebrate this cultural holiday. Along with the obvious charms of this alternative, there are also fresh, realistic ways to approach the difficulties of our interracial beginnings.

For example, one tradition that we are adding this year is the placement of leg irons in the center of our Thanksgiving dinner table. For us it is definitely not about shame, but about love; this is an expression of our love toward our interracial and multi-cultural American family.

We are responding to those who have asked for historical reinstatement.

May there be peace in our expression: “We hear you, we love you, and we will never forget.”

And we hope that more American families will join with us and begin the Thanksgiving time travel journey in pursuit of reconnecting with our true “all-American” history. It turns out to be an amazing boon to holiday entertainment, and a powerful heritage trip very much worth taking.

The heart tells us so.

By Carrie Franzwa, LetsPlayHistory.org, Nov. 2008

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Carrie Franzwa, America’s “Angel of Thanksgiving,” is an advocate for restoring American history to the Thanksgiving holiday, and is the author of America’s first Thanksgiving living-history how-to book, “The American Patriot’s Treasury of Historical Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas: Old World Table Settings, Recipes, Games, Hand Crafts, and Party Ideas for Cultural Enrichment and Pleasure.” She and her husband, David Franzwa, are also the co-founders of LetsPlayHistory.org, an online community for history enthusiasts, reenactors, and educators in America.

]]> http://www.letsplayhistory.org/3squaresaday/press-room/leg-irons/feed/ 0 http://www.letsplayhistory.org/3squaresaday/press-room/america%e2%80%99s-angel-of-thanksgiving-sings-%e2%80%9ctake-up-thy-time-travel-wings%e2%80%9d/ http://www.letsplayhistory.org/3squaresaday/press-room/america%e2%80%99s-angel-of-thanksgiving-sings-%e2%80%9ctake-up-thy-time-travel-wings%e2%80%9d/#comments Thu, 06 Nov 2008 19:51:36 +0000 admin http://www.letsplayhistory.org/3squaresaday/press-room/america%e2%80%99s-angel-of-thanksgiving-sings-%e2%80%9ctake-up-thy-time-travel-wings%e2%80%9d/ Thursday November 6, 2008 – Lebanon, Oregon – America’s newly awakened Angel of Thanksgiving, Carrie Franzwa, is heralding holiday reform, calling on Americans and retailers across the nation to change their holiday tune. Having kept watch over observances past, the Thanksgiving Angel is proclaiming it time to experience the real 1621 event, and to cease believing in the “Sunday best” dinner misnomer.

With a sparkle in her eye, Carrie the Thanksgiving Angel insists that very few Americans actually dress up and sit down to a perfectly appointed formal table. “It’s a boring notion,” says The Angel. “It’s also historically inaccurate, and very unobtainable for the average family that does not have a big home and a Team Martha to serve.”

The Angel tells her own wistful story. “I finally died of Thanksgiving boredom in 2006, after twenty-plus years of grinning and bearing it. In 2007 I arose with history in my wings, and decided to take my family on a time travel adventure instead. It was so much more fun, I knew this would be our holiday hobby for keeps.”

Now Carrie, The Angel of Thanksgiving, is calling all Angels – her fellow Americans – to join her in the new time travel alternative, and is offering fr*ee help online.

“I can’t wait for more families to experience the sights, sounds, culture and charms of re-creating 1621 life for Thanksgiving,” says The Angel. “They’ll get to experience things like the stirring music of the Wampanoag people; the vision of a table set in old-English style; the fun of period sports and table games; the recounting of Squanto’s journey to Europe as a slave; and the ever-present reality of the Barbary Pirates. All these things are part of revisiting early Plymouth.”

The Thanksgiving Angel has posted a fr*ee heavenly how-to article, 7 Quick-Tips for Thanksgiving Time Travel, which will get American families up and started in short order. The article is available at www.letsplayhistory.org/3squaresaday/carries-chat/7-tips-tg/ . Carrie is also working to make her new 1621 living-history how-to book, The American Patriot’s Treasury of Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas, permanently available in its entirety online through Books.Google.com, ISBN 1-4392-0586-8. The book is also available in digital format with lifetime updates for $7.95 through LetsPlayHistory.org, or in paperback format for $19.95 through Amazon.com.

Hark! The Angel of Thanksgiving sings, “Glory to Time Travel Wings!”

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2008 (we have costumes!):

Carrie drains grape juice while Elena rests.  September family get-together.  New England history and instructions for grape stomping are provided in the guide.  Costumes are period authentic, but not class authentic.  The Mayflower women were all middle class citizens and would not have been caught dead showing their undergarment sleeves!  There is an excellent period costume overview in the guide, covering both English and Native Wampanoag attire.

Elena stomps grapes for us at our September family get-together.

Carrie explains the Maize offering, tells story of 50 year alliance and downfall between the English and the Native Wampanoag.  September family get-together.

Here we are roasting rabbit (a first time experience for most of us), and boiling hickory nuts for “powcohiccora” in one of the Native-style pots Carrie made.  We had a bet going as to whether or not the Indian corn would pop, but you’ll have to give a corn offering of your own to find out the answer!

This year we are looking more true to 1621!  Here is a very near authentic interpretation of an English place setting.  The salt dip is fun and interesting to use.

Here is an interpretation of an early New England Wampanoag place setting – very fun!  We do not recommend using real turtle shells, however, for sanitation and environmental reasons.  We are inviting the public to join our LPH co-op for the manufacture of immitation turtle shells (see guide or Co-op page for details).  Purchasing information for the flint knife is provided in the guide.

Here I am with a display of some of the items I have collected or made for Thanksgiving.

2007:

Here I used the Dutch oven on Thanksgiving day to pan fry “venison” steaks for lunch.  We have since discovered it is more fun to give everyone a stick and have them roast their own over open flame.

Hustin chops butternut squash to make Indian Pudding in the Dutch oven.  September test run.

Our first attempt at grape stomping, Sept 2007.  I forgot to warm the grapes to room temp for Hustin, so I had to provide her with the heater to try and make it up to her!

October 28, 2008 – Lebanon, Oregon – Homemaker and veteran home educator Carrie Franzwa and family are showing others how to relieve social stress this year through at-home time travel for Thanksgiving. By re-creating authentic era games, music, decor and table settings, the Franzwa family claims the holiday tradition can rescue weary minds through play.

“This all started for us because Thanksgiving was feeling like a burden,” says Franzwa. “Last year I decided it would be so much more fun and less stressful if I could skip the formalities and make the day feel more like a trip back to 1621.”

Even with her modest start Franzwa reports that it worked, and that the adults in the family were hooked.

At first the Franzwa children, then ages 17-22, weren’t sure what to make of the sudden change of Thanksgiving heart, thinking it was somewhat like school. “History never was my favorite subject,” says Daniel Franzwa, now 18. “But now I really like playing King James’ favorite card game, Mawe. I also got excited when I learned that pirates were part of the Plymouth story. I never knew that before.”

Franzwa admits that when she first came up with the living-history idea she knew very little about the actual event. She has since gained a deep appreciation for Native American history and culture, and even regards slavery as an integral part the Thanksgiving story. “Bringing our true ‘all-American’ history alive for the holiday offers our family a mini get-away that is good for the human soul on many levels.”

The Franzwa family will be teaching the public free of charge how to play Mawe on Saturday November 8^th, from 2:00 PM until 4:00 PM, at Cascades Elementary School, 2163 7th Street in Lebanon. Carrie Franzwa has also published a living-history how-to manual for Thanksgiving titled, The American Patriot’s Treasury of Thanksgiving Dinner Ideas, which she is working to provide free public access to in its entirety through Books.Google.com. The 150-page paperback is also available for purchase through Amazon.com and LetsPlayHistory.org for $19.95, or it can be special-ordered through bookstores, ISBN 1-4392-0586-8.

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Update September 28, 2009 – Expanded second edition, ISBN 978-0-557-08714-3  is now available through Amazon.com, $21.95.  Also available in PDF format for $7.99 through Lulu.com/TeachFromTheHeart Available wholesale through Bowker Books (Bowker.com).   Companion website:  IdeasThanksgiving.com

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