Houston Chronicle by Gary Clark Nov. 20, 2019
Legend has it that in the autumn of 1598, Spanish explorers gathered with Manso Indians near present-day El Paso to enjoy a feast.
People ate turkey along with cultivated grains and vegetables while showing gratitude for the bountiful harvest. Their celebration occurred two decades before the pilgrims even landed on the continent.
True or not, the pilgrims at Plymouth, Mass., got the glory of holding the first Thanksgiving in 1621. The pilgrims also feasted with Indians whose expertise at hunting brought freshly killed ducks, fish and deer to the feast.
Food historians have long debated whether turkey was on the pilgrims’ table. Probably not because wild turkeys were notoriously difficult to hunt.
But Native Americans in what is now West Texas had domesticated wild turkeys for food long before Spaniards arrived on the scene.
More:
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/life/gardening/article/Texas-has-been-talking-turkey-for-centuries-14853591.php
