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What would you say if I told you the first Thanksgiving wasn’t in Plymouth? I bet you’d ask me how many glasses of holiday wine I’d had! But I promise you, it’s true.

Long before the Pilgrims even set foot on Plymouth Rock the Spanish had settled parts of Florida. 55 years before the Mayflower the costal town of St. Augustine was established and the settlers came together to share a feast with the native Timucuans.

Now you may not want to let the children read the rest of this post. Because I’m going to tell you something else about Thanksgiving.

Back up north the Pilgrims were starving, that’s true, until they learned to cultivate the rocky soil and hunt the native game. Legend says that it was the Native Americans that helped them survive and that in gratitude the Pilgrims invited the Wampanoag to celebrate the harvest.

Once again, not quite true. The Wampanoag were actually invited to that Thanksgiving feast for the purpose of negotiating a treaty that would secure the lands of the Plymouth Plantation for the Pilgrims. It should also be noted that the INDIANS, possibly out of a sense of charity toward their hosts, ended up bringing the majority of the food for the feast.

But even that story is disputed in some corners. Some say the Pilgrims weren’t expecting any Indians that day. If that’s true then the Wampanoag that came down the trail that morning were some of the first gate crashers!

The history of the White Puritan Settlers and the native tribes of America is complicated and punctuated with many wars and bloodshed. We were no kinder to the local population in the east than we were years later when we expanded to the West.

It’s a long, sad story but if you want to know about what really happened, here is a good resource for further reading. http://www.manataka.org/page269.html

Something to think about as Thanksgiving nears.

Oklahoma, where the wind comes sweepin’ down the plain
And the wavin’ wheat can sure smell sweet
When the wind comes right behind the rain…

Oklahoma is closely tied to the relocation of Native Americans to “Indian Country”. Tribes like the Cherokee and Choctaw were forcibly moved from their traditional homes to new lands in the Oklahoma territory so naturally any visit to Oklahoma would involve an exploration of Native American History.

From early history, the fates of the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations have been closely bound. The Chickasaw homelands in western Tennessee, Kentucky and northern Mississippi brought them into close contact with the Choctaw in central Mississippi.
With removal to new homes in Indian Territory, the nations remained neighbors sharing the struggles of rebuilding their lives in present-day Oklahoma.

Take a road trip through southeastern Oklahoma and trace the Choctaw and Chickasaw Heritage Corridor as you stop at points of interest that were significant to the tribes’ history along the way.

Head to Oklahoma for an authentic look into the Old West. If Oklahoma had “Indians” it also had cowboys. From nationally acclaimed Western Heritage museums to relaxing guest ranches, the Sooner State has a rich history for you to explore. Whether you’re looking for an action-packed getaway complete with mock shootouts or want to mosey through a frontier prairie town on the hunt for some ice cold sarsaparilla, you’re sure to find your Western adventure here.

Cheer on skilled cowboys and cowgirls at an exciting Oklahoma rodeo like the Will Rogers Memorial Rodeo or the Freedom Rodeo and Old Cowhand Reunion, or learn about the American cowboy experience during cattle drive events at the Chisholm Trail Heritage Center in Duncan. After a full day of riding and roping, savor a tasty meal cooked over the campfire at one of Oklahoma’s guest ranches, where you’ll be treated to the ultimate Western experience complete with horseback rides and chuckwagon dinners.

Learn how the West was won with a trip to the Fort Washita Historic Site or Historic Fort Reno where living history events are held throughout the year.

Visit the the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, where you’ll see vast displays of internationally renowned Western art by masters like Remington, Russell and Bierstadt and browse top notch exhibits on everything from life as a ranch hand to singing cowboys of the silver screen. Come celebrate Oklahoma’s Western heritage and unleash your inner cowboy.