In a different world this would be a more elaborate post - or, since we're making believe, a whole series of posts - on Thanksgiving in nineteenth century literature, with an emphasis on sentimental and local-color writing and, in particular, the work of Rose Terry Cooke, who seems to have had a particular fondness for the holiday. But hey, time flies! So instead, for your enjoyment, and without further comment, here's a triptych of Thanksgiving stories by prominent Gilded Age women writers that fit that description:
- Louisa May Alcott, "An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving", from Aunt Jo's Scrap-Bag, Volume 6 (1882).
- Harriet Prescott Spofford, "A Thanksgiving Breakfast", Harper's New Monthly Magazine (December 1895).
- Rose Terry Cooke, "How Celia Changed Her Mind", from Huckleberries Gathered from New England Hills (1891) (and make sure to check out the table of contents - two other stories with Thanksgiving in the title!).
If you're after some more context for these nineteenth-century Thanksgiving stories,
this History Kitchen post comes recommended.
