Thanksgiving Past

Since, Thursday is thanksgiving I decided to do a newspaper search using the keywords “Thanksgiving dinner” with the only other search criteria being Iowa newspapers. Each newspaper quoted was chosen at random. If you want to learn a little about what your family may have done at Thanksgiving try the search and include a name of a family member. You may find a married daughter’s name or just who attended the meal and what they ate. Either way you have learned a little bit about your family outside the dates. Or if you are like me you used your own name and found a lost memory of family holiday.

Thanksgiving, Alton [Iowa] Review, 5 October 1883, p. 4, col. 6; digital image, NewspaperArchive.com (https://newspaperarchive.com : accessed 20 November 2018), Alton Review.

1885 advertisement

Thanksgiving Proclamation!, Cedar Rapids [Iowa] Evening Gazette, 23 November 1885, p. 1, col. 7-8; digital image, NewspaperArchive.com (https://newspaperarchive.com : accessed 21 November 2018), Cedar Rapids Evening Gazette.

Mr. and Mrs. S. Campbell, The Bode [Iowa] Bugle, 27 November 1908, p. 5, col. 5; digital image, NewspaperArchive.com (https://newspaperarchive.com : accessed 20 November 2018), The Bode Bugle.

If this is any of your family names and they lived near Havelock or in Pocahontas county. You may have several generations listed here.

Henry Fitzgerald, The Havelock [Iowa] Herald, 4 December 1913, p. 1, col. 2; digital image, NewspaperArchive.com (https://newspaperarchive.com : accessed 20 November 2018), The Havelock Herald.

Note: Thanksgiving is on the last Tuesday in November 1845 when Territory of Iowa.

“A Proclamation by the Governor.,” Burlington [Iowa] Hawk-eye, 6 November 1845, p. 7, col. 1; digital image, NewspaperArchive.com (https://newspaperarchive.com : accessed 20 November 2018), Burlington Hawk-eye.

Interesting facts found while reading Thanksgiving stories.

“Notice.,” Burlington [Iowa] Hawk-eye, 6 November 1845, p. 7, col. 1; digital image, NewspaperArchive.com (https://newspaperarchive.com : accessed 20 November 2018), Burlington Hawk-eye.

The statement “burned to a crisp” caught my eye. Spotted in the Havelock paper not the Centerville paper in different parts of Iowa. Perfect reason why you search broad and narrow search. If you had only searched in Centerville this story would have missed.

“Iowan is Burned,” The Havelock [Iowa] Herald, 4 December 1913, p. 2, col. 5; digital image, NewspaperArchive.com (https://newspaperarchive.com : accessed 20 November 2018), The Havelock Herald.