When November arrives, many Americans turn their thoughts to Thanksgiving—a holiday deeply rooted in the story of the Pilgrims who sailed from the UK to North America aboard the Mayflower in 1620. After enduring a brutal first winter in new, unfamiliar territory, the surviving Pilgrims formed an alliance with the Wampanoag people, who shared with them their knowledge of the land.

The harvest feast that the two groups held in the autumn of 1621 later became the inspiration for today’s Thanksgiving tradition. Now, families and friends across the United States mark the holiday together, giving thanks and preparing feasts that echo that early celebration. The tale of the Pilgrims—often centered around the symbolic Plymouth Rock, the supposed landing place of the Pilgrims —remains a staple o

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