Cod & The Plague

As Thanksgiving is only a few weeks away, consider this: back in 1602, a ship anchored in Provincetown. The Pilgrims were not the first to land in P-town and New England; Europeans had been coming there for about a century before—for cod!

Europeans had been visiting the Grand Banks ever since the Vikings, when it is believed they had fishing villages in the area. So, if you were a European fisherman, would you: A: Sail back across the Atlantic for fresh water, or B: Go to P-town and stock up on fresh water?

Your choice: spend a year sailing home, or take a month to visit Cape Cod.

Beginning in the 1500s, European crews fished for cod around Newfoundland and the Grand Banks, while Basque crews also hunted whales. Some ships visited coastal areas to dry and process their catches, trade, and obtain supplies. After eating fish for months at a time, they came ashore asking, "Hey, I've got this nice little trinket—trade you for that deer?"

And then, a sneeze. "You got a cold?"

What we know is that just before the Pilgrims arrived, there was a devastating plague from 1616 to 1619 in New England. Was it the bubonic plague, smallpox, or something else? We will never know for sure, but we do know the results! While the precise chain of transmission remains uncertain, the timing raises a crucial question: did European contact help set the stage for the epidemic that preceded the Pilgrims?

The Pilgrims did not arrive in an untouched land. They arrived in a region whose Indigenous peoples had already endured a catastrophe. So, as we celebrate Thanksgiving this month, we must remember the "gifts" we brought to the Indigenous people here—and to Indigenous peoples all around the world.