by Randy Willis

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours, and a little history, too.

The First Thanksgiving is an oil painting by Jean Leon Gerome Ferris. It is located in the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.

The Native Americans were not invited beforehand.

The Pilgrims “exercised their arms” as part of their festivities. The Indians heard the gunfire. They rushed to aid their new friends, as promised in their treaty with the Pilgrims.

Once they arrived, Bradford invited them to join the celebration. A few returned to get the rest of the tribe, and soon, more than 90 Indians joined the celebration. They stayed for three days.

“Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together, after we had gathered the fruits of our labors…At which time amongst other recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest their greatest king Massasoit, with some ninety men, whom for three days we entertained and feasted…” –Edward Winslow (Mourt’s Relation: A Journal of the Pilgrims at Plymouth)

“Thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings.” —Governor William Bradford

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In 1623, Governor William Bradford proclaimed November 29 as a time for pilgrims to gather. They came together with their Native American friends to give thanks.

“Thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings.” —William Bradford the first Thanksgiving

His proclamation contained these words: “Thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings.”

It would later be known as Thanksgiving. John Willis (a.k.a. Deacon John Willis) was the first deacon in Plymouth Church.

A century later, John Willis’s direct descendant, Joseph Willis, would marry a direct descendant of William Bradford, Rachel Bradford.

“I’m the 4th great-grandson of Joseph Willis and Rachel Bradford Willis.” —Randy Willis

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In 1620, a small group of Separatists fled England using Plymouth Sound. It is located between the mouth of the River Plym to the east and the mouth of the River Tamar to the west. This is in the county of Devonshire. Besides fleeing religious persecution and searching for a place to worship, they wanted greater opportunities. The Mayflower was the aging ship that transported them.

Pilgrim Fathers boarding the Mayflower, painting by Bernard Gribble.

They sailed from Plymouth, on the southern coast of England, bound for the New World, seeking their new Plymouth. There were only 102 passengers and a crew of about 30 aboard the tiny 110’ ship. They found their new home and named it Plymouth Colony. They became known as the Pilgrims. Five died during the voyage, and another forty-five of the 102 immigrants died the first winter. There, they signed the Mayflower Compact, establishing a rudimentary form of democracy.

“Mayflower in Plymouth,” by William Halsall, 1882 at Pilgrim Hall Museum, Plymouth, Massachusetts

The Mayflower landed in what is now Plymouth Bay, Massachusetts, on December 26, 1620.  The ship’s voyage from Plymouth, England, had taken 66 days and was marked by winter storms and seasickness.

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John Willis (a.k.a. Deacon John Willis) was the first deacon in Plymouth Church. Reverend James Keith was the first settled minister in the area. The church parsonage, sometimes called the Keith House, was built for James Keith. It is preserved and maintained by the Old Bridgewater Historical Society (OBHS) in West Bridgewater, Massachusetts. It is the oldest parsonage in America.

The population was about 400 in the 1630s. John Willis would have known everyone in the Plymouth Colony area. He was familiar with its Governor, William Bradford. William was the English Separatist leader of the settlers. William Bradford was Governor of Plymouth Colony when John Willis arrived in 1635. John Willis held offices in Duxbury in 1637 and at Bridgewater in the 1650s. Bridgewater was created on June 3, 1656, from Duxbury, in Plymouth Colony. In 1648, John was a juror at the murder trial of Alice Bishope. She was hanged for the murder of her four-year-old daughter, Martha Clarke. She was the first woman to be convicted of and hanged for murder in America.

In 1623, Governor William Bradford proclaimed November 29 as a time for pilgrims to gather and give thanks. They celebrated with their Native American friends. His proclamation contained these words: “Thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings.” It would later be known as Thanksgiving.

The story of William Bradford’s first-hand account of the Mayflower voyage and the settling of Plymouth

The first use of the word pilgrims for the Mayflower passengers appeared in William Bradford’s 1651 Of Plymouth Plantation.

The signing the Compact in the Cabin of the Mayflower by George E. Perine. One major idea from the Mayflower Compact influenced the Declaration of Independence: that the government should serve the common good and benefit all people, not just selected elites.

A century later, Deacon John Willis’s direct descendant, Joseph Willis, married Rachel Bradford, a direct descendant of William Bradford. I’m the fourth great-grandson of Joseph Willis and Rachel Bradford Willis.

“Agerton Willis legitimate son of Joseph Willis and Rachel Bradford…”—Opelousas Parish Courthouse April 18, 1811

April 18, 1811. Agerton Willis, the eldest son of Rev. Joseph Willis (1758-1854), marriage license to Sophie Story. The Opelousas Parish Courthouse. He was named after his grandfather. He was a neighbor to Jim Bowie’s brother, Rezin Bowie, for four years (1824-1827) in the village of Bayou Boeuf. The name changed to Holmesville in 1834 and is now near present-day Eola. Agerton married Sophie Story, an Irish orphan brought from Tennessee by Mr. Park, who lived near Holmesville. Randy Willis’s 3rd great-grandfather.

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Excerpted from The Apostle to the Opelousas: The Story of Joseph Willis by Randy Willis

Joseph Willis crossed the mighty Mississippi River at Natchez in 1798. He faced great peril by swimming the Mississippi on a mule.

✯ Joseph Willis was born into slavery. His mother is Cherokee, and his father was a wealthy English plantation owner.

✯ His family took him to court to deprive him of his inheritance. This inheritance would have made him the wealthiest plantation owner in Bladen County, North Carolina, in 1776.

✯ He fought as a Patriot in the Revolutionary War. He served under the most colorful American general, Francis Marion, the Swamp Fox.

✯ His first wife died in childbirth. His second wife, an Irish orphan named Sarah, died only six years later. She left him with five small children.

✯ He crossed the mighty Mississippi River at Natchez in 1798. He faced peril by swimming the Mississippi on a mule.

✯ He entered hostile Spanish-controlled Louisiana Territory when the dreaded Code Noir (Black Code) was in effect. It forbade any Protestant ministers who came into the territory from preaching.

✯ His life was threatened because of the message he brought to Spanish-controlled Louisiana!

✯ His denomination refused to ordain him because of his race.

✯ Joseph Willis preached (1798) the first Gospel sermon by an Evangelical or non-Catholic west of the Mississippi River.

✯ On November 13, 1812, Joseph Willis constituted Calvary Baptist Church at Bayou Chicot, Louisiana. He went on to plant over twenty churches in Louisiana.

✯ On October 31, 1818, Joseph Willis founded the Louisiana Baptist Association. He had followers who came from the Carolinas with him. They established it at Beulah Baptist in Cheneyville. Joseph had also founded all five charter member churches.

✯ After overcoming insurmountable obstacles, he blazed a trail for others for another half-century that changed American history.

The most famous 25 words ever written: “For God so loved the world. He gave His only begotten Son. Whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

You, too, can accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior:

“Heavenly Father,

I pray to You, asking for the forgiveness of my sins.

I confess with my mouth. I believe with my heart that Jesus is Your Son. He died on the cross at Calvary, so I might be forgiven.

Father, I believe that Jesus rose from the dead. I ask Jesus to come into my life as my personal Lord and Savior.

I turn from my sins and will surrender to your will throughout my life.

Your word is truth. I confess with my mouth that I am born again. I am cleansed by the blood of Jesus!

In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen!”

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Randy Willis Operation Warm Heart

My six Grandchildren are Presley, Baylee, Violet, Corbin, Olivia, and Juliette. I’d had them first if II would have had them first if I had’d known how much fun grandchildren were. 2023

Olivia, Violet, and Juliette Willis 2024

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours!

Vaya con Dios —Randy Willis, 2024

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