![[Thanksgiving dinner tables], ca. 1910, v1981.284.53; Emmanuel House lantern slide collection, v1981.284; Brooklyn Historical Society.](https://static.bklynlibrary.org/prod/public/images/blog-bkology/cbh/bhs_v1981.284.53_a1.jpg)
[Thanksgiving dinner tables], ca. 1910, v1981.284.53; Emmanuel House lantern slide collection, v1981.284; Brooklyn Historical Society.The tables are set for the Mother's Club Thanksgiving luncheon in the banquet hall of Emmanuel House, a community church organization associated with the nearby Emmanuel Baptist Church. Soon the mothers of girls in the Young Ladies Club and boys on the bowling team will sit postured and bequipped over plates of turkey, gravy, stuffing, and of course the mashed potatoes...
Located on old Steuben Street in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn, Emmanuel House offered local boys and girls a slew of activities including Bible school, kindergarten, the Girls Church Attendance Club, a basketball squad, and sewing classes. “Fathers and mothers social outings” were organized along with a member Supper Club. Emmanuel House staff conducted "noon shop meetings” for unemployed men, and made house calls on sick and needy families.
“Nothing is more becoming than gratitude,” orated Henry Ward Beecher at Plymouth Church on Thanksgiving Day in 1847, “or more salutary than the expression of it…”
The library stacks at Brooklyn Historical Society include numerous copies of mid-nineteenth century sermons delivered by Brooklyn pastors on Thanksgiving Day. The traditions and folk tales of the last Thursday in November were well-steeped in the national consciousness, though the occasion would not become officially recognized until an 1863 proclamation by President Lincoln. The Pilgrims-and-Wampanoags Holiday is the same age as the Brooklyn Historical Society, which also turns 150 this year…
Interested in seeing more photos from BHS’s collection? Visit our online image gallery, which includes a selection of our images. Interested in seeing even more historic Brooklyn images? Visit our new website here. To search BHS’s entire collection of images, archives, maps, and special collections visit the BHS Othmer Library Wed-Fri, 1:00-5:00 p.m.
Sources:
(1915, May 9th). Emmanuel House Has Big Year’s Work. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Retrieved from http://fultonhistory.com/Fulton.html
(1848). Henry Ward Beecher, “A Discourse delivered at the Plymouth Church, Brooklyn, NY, upon Thanksgiving Day, November 25th, 1847.” NY: Cady & Burgess, 1848. Othmer Library collection.
This blog post reflects the opinions of the author and does not necessarily represent the views of Brooklyn Public Library.
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