A Kansas City Thanksgiving: History and Traditions

On Oct. 3, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday, writing, “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.”

The First Thanksgiving

The Pilgrims arrived at Plymouth in 1620. History tells us that they learned to survive in their new settlement with the aid of Squanto, a member of the Wampanoag tribe, who taught them how to farm the land and live off the soil. In 1621, Chief Massasoit visited the Pilgrim settlement, and they signed a pledge to treat one another peaceably. To celebrate the harvest and their new friendship, they celebrated the first Thanksgiving with a feast of deer, corn, shellfish and roasted meat and three days of ballgames, singing and dancing.

Sightseeing: Kansas City displays a bronze statue by Cyrus Dallin in memory of Massasoit at 47^th & Main. You can visit the statue on Thanksgiving Day when you head to the Plaza for the annual lighting ceremony. Also, visit the Nelson-Atkins Museum (4525 Oak, Kansas City, MO, nc.Nelson-Atkins.org/collections/collection-history-AmericanIndian.cfm), where you can explore a 6,100-square-foot American Indian Art collection.

The First Thanksgiving in Kansas City

In 1920, The Evening Public Ledger published an article written by Mrs. M.A. Wilson about the food served at the first Thanksgiving in Kansas City in 1856. The holiday was celebrated throughout the United States from the earliest days, even before President Lincoln made it a national holiday. She wrote, “A recent visit to Kansas City, Mo., while looking for good things for this corner, led me out to the Shawnee missions, in the beautiful misty mission hills of Kansas, which are in a spur of the Ozarks. High upon the summit of the hills stands the council grove, or as it is now called, Shawnee Park.” She then tells of her interview with an early pioneer: “Mrs. Belle Robinson, now about 85 years of age, though she is as straight as a sapling and has a very merry twinkle in her eyes, recalls the early pioneer days about the Shawnee missions. These missions are so called because a group of Indian missions were located close together in these hills, where one may stand today, shading the eyes with the hand, and watch the sun sink amid the splendor of a riotous color into the west. The country in those days contained wild game, fish from the nearby waters, moose, buffalo, and, as Mrs. Robinson said, it came back to her, just as if it were yesterday, the most troublesome period, when Governor Geary appointed November 20, 1856, as a day of Thanksgiving for the advent of peace. She was a young woman of 16 in those days and, as she remembers it, the celebration was done in a right hearty manner. As you will imagine, the greatest attraction of the day was the dinner.” Of the meal, she says, “A combination of French, Spanish and New England cooking prevailed. Here is an old 1856 Kansas City Thanksgiving dinner: onion soup, barbecue of beef, homemade relishes, yams, succotash, homemade relish and pickles, roast duck, pepper cabbage, wapsie pudding, tea and coffee.” (Source: OCBarbecue.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-first-thanksgiving-dinner-in-kansas.html)

Sightseeing: The Shawnee Indian Mission (3403 W. 53rd St., Fairway, KS) still stands on the site of this meal. The museum is open to the public April through October (KSHS.org/p/shawnee-indian-mission-plan-your-visit/15901).

Kansas City’s Thanksgiving Tradition

Kansas City’s Thanksgiving tradition since 1930 is the lighting of the Country Club Plaza Christmas lights. In 1925, Charles Pitrat, head of the Nichols Company maintenance operation, placed a single 6-foot strand of 16 colored lightbulbs across the doorway of the Suydam Building, the Plaza’s first building. Five years later, the first lighting ceremony took place. The only holiday the Plaza lights did not operate was in 1973, when President Nixon called upon all Americans to curtail the use of Christmas lights to reduce dependence on foreign oil imports. Now, the entire Country Club Plaza is decked in holiday splendor every year, maintaining its role as a “nighttime fairyland.” The annual ceremony includes live music, fireworks and the celebrity “switch flipping” that bedazzles the Country Club Plaza in Christmas style with 80 miles of colorful lights! (Source: CountryClubPlaza.com/event/plaza-lighting-ceremony/plaza-lights-fun-facts/)

Sightseeing: Visit the Country Club Plaza to see the lights Thanksgiving through mid-January (CountryClubPlaza.com). Tip: A lights test occurs Wednesday before Thanksgiving, from 2:00 to 6:00 in the morning. Sneaking a peek at the Plaza Lights has become a popular tradition for families in the metro.

Giving Thanks and Giving Back

As we reflect on the history of Thanksgiving, we recognize it’s a time both of giving thanks and also reaching out and giving to others. For local families, here are a few ideas to show appreciation to others and help those in need.

• Our service men and women overseas are often unable to call their own families over the holidays because of the high cost of international phone calls. Cell Phones for Soldiers (CellPhonesForSoldiers.com) is a non-profit organization that provides free calling cards and cell phones to active duty military members and veterans. The organization was founded in 2004 and since that time has provided 213 million minutes of free talk time and an average of 12,000 calling cards each week. Last year, the organization expanded its outreach by launching Helping Heroes Home, to provide emergency funds for returning veterans to alleviate communication challenges, as well as physical, emotional and assimilation hardships. You can say thanks to our military by giving back in a tangible way, bringing joy to families this holiday season.
• Share with your neighbors. In your own neighborhood, do you have friends who are unable to visit family over the holidays? Invite them to join your celebration. Perhaps you know of a shut-in in your neighborhood without family nearby. Delivering a hot meal and taking time for a visit can brighten that person’s day.
• Help feed the hungry. An estimated 1 in 6 Americans suffers hunger every day. You can donate or volunteer with organizations to help the cause. Harvesters (Harvesters.org), Kansas City’s local food network, accepts donations and volunteer assistance. Families can work together at local food banks, soup kitchens and mobile pantries (volunteers must be at least 6 years old), or you may donate at a local collection site.
• Brainstorm. Ask your children at your own dinner table if they can think of someone they would like to help. Do you have a friend or loved one you would like to bless this Thanksgiving? Perhaps you know of someone you can show friendship to this holiday season with a little bit of extra time and love.

Kristina Light looks forward to watching the Plaza lighting ceremony with her family every Thanksgiving. She is thankful to call KC home.