Summary: "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever." Psalm 118:29 / In 1990 the Texas Governor and the full Texas Legislature declared the first Thanksgiving was on 30 April 1598, near what is now San Elizario, El Paso Co, Texas; that's twenty two years before the Pilgrims celebrated their first Thanksgiving at Plymouth Colony. No brag. Just facts.
Latest Update: reposted 27 November 2024; posted 20 November 2023
The First Thanksgiving Celebration was in Texas. Yep. The TX Legislature declared it. No brag. Just facts.
"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever."
Psalm 118:29
"On April 30, 1598 – 22 years before the Pilgrims celebrated their first Thanksgiving at Plymouth Colony – a Spanish expedition led by [an infamous] Don Juan de Oñate crossed El Paso del Norte (the northern pass–now El Paso, Texas) into Texas. Oñate ordered his party to rest and celebrate a mass of thanksgiving for their journey thus far before continuing north across Texas and into what is now New Mexico." *1
In 1990, Gov. Rick Perry and the full Texas Legislature recognized April 30, 1598 as the official day of the First Thanksgiving.*2
*2 The First Thanksgiving, Texas-Style, Legislative Reference Library of Texas, 21 November 2011
Was Texas the real site of the first Thanksgiving? According to many historians, the first Thanksgiving celebration in the United States took place in 1598 near El Paso. An expedition led by Spanish explorer Don Juan de Oñate journeyed from Mexico and, after months of arduous travel, arrived at the Rio Grande near what is now San Elizario. The exploration party and the indigenous people celebrated their accomplishment with a feast and Catholic ceremonies - 23 years before the Pilgrims held their famous dinner at Plymouth Rock.
The Texas House and Senate each commemorated this historical milestone in 1990, and Gov. Rick Perry has recognized April 30 as the official day of the First Thanksgiving. For 20 years, the El Paso Mission Trail Association has conducted an annual historical reenactment of the event, and their work was honoredby the Texas House in 2006.
• Texas Claims the First Thanksgiving Celebration in America, The Texan, 23 November 2023. A Spanish conquistador is attributed with holding the first Thanksgiving near El Paso. [Added Thursday, 23 November, 2023.]
*1 Did Texas host the first Thanksgiving? KUT, 23 November 2016
Did you know the very FIRST Thanksgiving on American soil was NOT at Plymouth Colony in 1620, but 22 years earlier in Texas?
On April 30, 1598–22 years before the Pilgrims celebrated their first Thanksgiving at Plymouth Colony – a Spanish expedition led by Don Juan de Oñate crossed El Paso del Norte (the northern pass–now El Paso, Texas) into Texas. Oñate ordered his party to rest and celebrate a mass of thanksgiving for their journey thus far before continuing north across Texas and into what is now New Mexico.
Like any good Thanksgiving discussion, there’s a thread of discord sown through that narrative. While everyone recognizes its importance in the history of North America, some argue that, unlike the feast at Plymouth, it’s not a harvest festival.
While the feast didn’t completely incorporate all the trappings of a traditional Anglo, harvest-centric Thanksgiving celebrations, some argue it qualifies as the first because it’s a celebration between both European colonists and natives of the New World. Whether it is the “real” first Thanksgiving is up for debate. Even those in San Elizario, which reenacts the festival every year, say the event has been overshadowed by its focus on Thanksgiving and hasn’t reconciled the importance of La Toma. Al Borrego, president of the San Elizario Genealogical and Historical Society, even referred to the event as “Thanks-taking” in an El Paso Times article last year.
• The First Thanksgiving? Texas Almanac, 2021
A new Thanksgiving tradition has taken root in Texas. El Paso residents now claim the first Thanksgiving in North America. The modern event, first observed in April 1989, commemorates a day of thanksgiving celebrated by Spanish explorer Juan de Oñate and his expedition on April 30, 1598.
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