Today, as families of all kinds gather to give thanks, you have an excellent opportunity to begin your genealogy journey!
Thanksgiving dishes are a delicious way to connect with family history, as recipes often carry the flavors of cultural traditions. Grandma’s famous pie or the secret to Uncle Joe’s stuffing may trace back generations. Exploring the origins of these recipes opens a window into the past, blending history and heritage with every bite.
Thanksgiving isn’t just about sharing a meal—it’s about savoring the stories behind it.
The NYS Library’s local history and genealogy collections can help you with your family research. Read on for more Thanksgiving history, as well as ideas for sharing your own stories. Click on any image below to enlarge it.
What’s Cooking in the Collections?
Need some recipe inspiration? Look at these interesting recipes from our collections! And don’t forget to check out our Tasting History series for more recipe ideas and reviews from our wonderful Taste Testers!
Plain and Easy
Here’s Hannah Glasse’s instructions on how to roast a turkey taken from the 1765 edition of her cookbook, The Art of Cookery:
Don't Mock It Until You've Tried It
Perhaps you’re looking to try something really new this Thanksgiving? How about some mock recipes from Helen Watkeys Moore’s 1918 cookbook Camouflage Cookery. From the foreword of the book:
Its [the cookbook’s] object is to bring together palatable and economical recipes, by the best known American cooks, for those who wish to prepare wholesome and appetizing dishes.
Undeniable Star Power
Or, maybe, this year you want to go with a theme? What better theme could there be than bacon? In this 1920’s cookbook, Armour’s Star Bacon Recipes, bacon is the central ingredient for every recipe!
Celebrations Past and Present
What was Thanksgiving like in the past? Here’s an entry from the 1870 diary of Emma Waite, a young black woman who lived in Saratoga Springs, New York.
Extract from Emma Waite’s Diary (BD18715):
November, Thursday 24. 1870.
quite plesant for thanksgiving.
I had a very nice time
today we had a nice dinner
and beer and burbun to
wash it down and then I took
tea with Mrs Jackson, and
afterwards attended the Opera
House to see Les Brigands.
Silly took the principal part
Share Your Story
Do you have a Thanksgiving story, tradition, or recipe to share? You can contribute to the historical record by adding your own objects to the NYS Personal History Initiative! The NYS Library’s Personal History Initiative collects and preserves stories from individual New Yorkers and New York communities. The NYS Personal History Initiative accepts submissions directly through the New York Experience prompts. Everyone has a story. Share yours today!
However you choose to celebrate, we hope you have a safe and joyful Thanksgiving!