History of Thanksgiving, Part 2

In the midst of the great Civil War, President Lincoln thought it proper to give thanks. Said he in his proclamation of October 3, 1863:

"The year that is drawing toward its close has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To those bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added which are of so extraordinary a nature that they can not fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever-watchful providence of Almighty God."
"In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign states to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere, except in the theater of military conflict, while that theater has been greatly contracted by advancing armies and navies of the Union."
"Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defense have not arrested the plow, the shuttle, or the ship; the ax has enlarged the borders or our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege, and the battlefield, and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom."
"No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy."
"It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice, by the whole American people. I do therefore invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens."

Thanksgiving became a national holiday in 1939 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Whatever you religious persuasion, it seems fitting and proper to be grateful for whatever we have. We do live in a great nation blessed with liberties that others can only dream of.

History of Thanksgiving

In 1620, Separatists from the Church of England, better known as the Pilgrams, came to America and settled in Massasschuetts. After a hard winter, by the fall of 1621 they had several days of feasting with the local Indians that has come to be known as the First Thanksgiving. This is what History.com has to say about Thanksgiving:
"In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast which is acknowledged today as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. This harvest meal has become a symbol of cooperation and interaction between English colonists and Native Americans. Although this feast is considered by many to the very first Thanksgiving celebration, it was actually in keeping with a long tradition of celebrating the harvest and giving thanks for a successful bounty of crops. Native American groups throughout the Americas, including the Pueblo, Cherokee, Creek and many others organized harvest festivals, ceremonial dances, and other celebrations of thanks for centuries before the arrival of Europeans in North America."

Here is more information taken from History.com about the first thanksgiving feast:

"What Was Actually on the Menu? What foods topped the table at the first harvest feast? Historians aren't completely certain about the full bounty, but it's safe to say the pilgrims weren't gobbling up pumpkin pie or playing with their mashed potatoes. Following is a list of the foods that were available to the colonists at the time of the 1621 feast. However, the only two items that historians know for sure were on the menu are venison and wild fowl, which are mentioned in primary sources. The most detailed description of the "First Thanksgiving" comes from Edward Winslow from A Journal of the Pilgrims at Plymouth, in 1621:
"Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together after we had gathered the fruit of our labors. They four in one day killed as much fowl as, with a little help beside, served the company almost a week. At which time, among other recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest king Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted, and they went out and killed five deer, which they brought to the plantation and bestowed upon our governor, and upon the captain, and others. And although it be not always so plentiful as it was at this time with us, yet by the goodness of God, we are so far from want that we often wish you partakers of our plenty.""

See the Library Blog tommorrow and read about President Lincoln's Thanksgiving proclamation of 1863.

That event in Dallas forty-five years ago

The early afternoon sun shone on the city as the procession of cars went through the downtown streets of Dallas. The procession of cars turned unto Elm Street, on the north side of Dealey Plaza on the western side of the downtown area. On the north sat the Texas School Book Depository building. In one of the cars of the Motorcade sat the President of the United States, John Fitzgearald Kennedy. Beside him sat his wife, Jacqueline. In front of the Kennedys sat Texas Governor Connally and is wife. Outside of the car police on motorcycles guarded the President. Suddenly several shots rang out, the President slumped over, and the History of the United States changed forever. Tomorrow, November 22, 2008 marks the 45th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Those over 45 years old may be able to remember what they were doing when word was broadcast over television or radio about the shooting. However, there is now a raising generation who have no memory of this tragic event. Today, over 60% of the people of the United States were not alive when shocking event happened.


The Warren Commission decided that one man was responsible for this action, Lee Harvey Oswald, who was killed by Jack Ruby two days after the assassination of President Kennedy. Whether Oswald acted alone, or in conspiracy with others remained a heated debate for years afterwards.

The Library has many books on the assassination:

• Kallen, Stuart A. Are Conspiracy Theories Valid? Greenhaven PRess, 2006


• Johnson, Lyndon Baines The Kennedy Assassination Tapes. Alfred A. Knopf, 2004


• Semple, Robert D., Ed. Four Days in November: The Original Coverage of the John F. Kennedy Assassination by the Staff of the New York Times St. Martin's Press, 2003.


• Posner, Gerald L. Case closed : Lee Harvey Oswald and the assassination of JFK Random House, 1993.


• Scheim, David E. Contract on America : the Mafia murder of President John F. Kennedy Shapolsky Publishers, 1988


• Epstein, Edward Jay. Legend : the secret world of Lee Harvey Oswald Readers Digest Press, 1978.


• Belin, David W. November 22, 1963; you are the jury Quadrangle, 1973.


• Bishop, Jim. The day Kennedy was shot Funk & Wagnalls, 1968.


• Manchester, William Raymond. The death of a President, November 20-November 25, 1963 Harper & Row, 1967.



• United States. Warren Commission. Investigation of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy; hearings before the President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy U.S. Government Printing Office, 1964.

New! Salem Press Medical Guide

The Library has purchased a four volume set, called the Magill's Medical Guide, published by Salem Press. This set, in the words of the publisher's note at the begining of volume 1, "describe[s] major diseases and disorders of the human body, the basics of human anatomy and physiology, specializations in medical practice, and common surgical and nonsurgical procedures...In addition, other areas of medical practice are represented: alternative medicine, ethical issues, genetics, organizations, procedures in the field of psychiatry, testing and examinations, and various types of transplantation."

One of the benefits of the purchase of the print edition, which is housed in the Library's reference section, is access to the online version of this set. Access is done via the library's home page, at: http://www.se.edu/lib/
Then you click on Find, then articles. After clicking on Articles, scroll down the page until you get to Medical/Nursing, and the only link under that heading is the Salem Press Medical Guide. Once you click on the link, you are taken directly to the Guide. Access is done remotely via the proxy server.

Announcement of new web content at the SE Library

Salem Press has published several reference sets that deal with American History:

• Milestone Documents in American History


• The Fifties in America


• The Sixties in America


• The Seventies in America


• The Eighties in America

Our Library has the paper copy of all of these sets. Salem press has granted access to the online version of these reference sets. Access can be gained by:

1. Going to the Library Webpage at: http://www.se.edu/lib/
2. Click on Find
3. Click on Articles
4. Scroll down to History Resources
5. Click on Salem Press History

Now you are ready to start searching. On this website, a search preformed automatically searches all the reference sets listed above. If you want to limit your search to one of the reference sets, then you will need to go into advanced. Search and click on the set that you want to search.

I hope that you enjoy having this online resource, and that it will meet your information needs.

Dennis Miles
Systems Librarian
Henry G. Bennett Memorial Library
Southeastern Oklahoma State University
Durant, OK 74701

dmiles@se.edu

Thanksgiving

A week from Thursday we will all be celebrating Thanksgiving, a day set aside to be thankful for our blessings, and yes, of course, to eat turkey and be with friends and family. There is so much to be thankful for. We live in a wonderful land, were we can enjoy freedoms that many in other nations cannot enjoy. We live in a nation where power is transferred from one person to another peacefully and always has been so. We have had not kings nor dictators in this nation's history. We can be thankful that we are not starving. We can be thankful that the nation's common people, for the most part, are basically good people. We can be thankful for the right to vote, to speak, to assemble peacefully, and the freedom of the press and religion, to worship how we choose or not to worship at all. At this time of national financial crisis, we need to reflect on these and other blessings that we have.
I will touch on the history of Thanksgiving at a later time.

Tim Tingle, Choctaw Storyteller, Visits Southeastern

Tim Tingle, Choctaw storyteller and author, came to Southeastern Oklahoma State University on Wednesday, November 12, 2008, to speak at the Native American Symposium Insights 2008 event. He spoke in the Fine Arts building at 9 AM and then a "meet the author" session was held in the Library afterwards. The Library has several of his books:

• When Turtle grew feathers : a folktale from the Choctaw nation. 2007


• Crossing Bok Chitto : a Choctaw tale of friendship & freedom. 2006


• Walking the Choctaw road

Veterans Day

Today is Veterans Day, a day now for all Veterans or any war, but before World War II it was called Armistice Day, the day when all fighting stopped in World War One.
Here are some links about Veterans Day:

• United States Department of Veterans Affairs: Veterans Day--November 11/


• Veterans Day: infoplease.com


• Today in History: Veterans Day--November 11


• The History of Veterans Day