November 22, 2013 — Many people know the Thanksgiving legend of Squanto (Tisquantum), the Native American who taught Pilgrims how to plant crops and survive in New England. But not many know that Squanto’s legend is a fish story—in more ways than one.
Scientist and author John Waldman is the latest to take a deeper look into this part of the Thanksgiving story. His new book, Running Silver, has a fascinating chapter on how important river-running fish were for many American Indians. Waldman also reminds us how far from the facts our Thanksgiving legend of Squanto has drifted, becoming what he calls a “highly mythologized account.”
The actual historical record tells quite another story. Squanto didn’t just happen to take a liking to the pilgrims of Plymouth. Waldman says Tisquantum was a good English speaker and teacher “because he had been kidnapped from his village.”
An Englishman had attempted to sell Tisquantum into slavery in Spain where he was taken in by Spanish Friars, converted to Christianity, and later travelled to London. Tisquantum eventually returned to North America only to find, in horror, that:
Read the full story from the Herring Alliance