LI town finds written record of New York's first Thanksgiving

Oyster Bay has something extra to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.

The recently discovered diary of the town's former schoolmaster references the earliest known mention of Thanksgiving in New York 259 years ago, according to Claire Bellerjeau, director of education at the Raynham Hall Museum in Oyster Bay, who found the unpublished writings.

"We are so excited to say that our museum and Oyster Bay can now call itself the home of New York's first Thanksgiving," Bellerjeau said at a news conference Wednesday at Raynham Hall. "It's really an honor and we're going to be celebrating it forever."

The handwritten journal entry by Zachariah Weekes, Oyster Bay's schoolmaster from the 1750s through the 1770s, is dated Sunday, Nov. 25, 1759, and reads " . . . Last Thursday being a day set apart by our Governor for publick Thanksgiving for the Success of his Majesties Forces in America . . . " 

At the time, New York, then a British colony, was led by Gov. James DeLancey.

Bellerjeau discovered the journal in the museum's archives — Weekes' family deeded his documents to the museum — while doing research for a project on slavery.

She later found corroboration in an article about a runaway slave in the now defunct New York Mercury newspaper. The story referenced Thursday, Nov. 22, 1759, as the date set aside in New York for a public Thanksgiving. 

Most scholars recognize the three-day feast, held by the Pilgrims in Plymouth, Massachusetts, in October 1621 as the first Thanksgiving.

Later historical references, in July 1630 and November 1775, each took place in Massachusetts while later known observances were for the colonies as a whole, Bellerjeau said. 

"This is a big historic find that will probably get more and more attention as time goes on because it's the first mention of Thanksgiving in New York State," said Rep. Thomas Suozzi (D-Glen Cove), who organized the news conference. "It's a really remarkable discovery."

Bellerjeau does not believe that 1759 was the first Thanksgiving in New York but her research is ongoing.

The journal will remain on display at the town-owned museum, which once served as the home of Robert Townsend, who was an intelligence operative for President George Washington, through the Thanksgiving weekend. 

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.