[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2007, Book II)]
[November 19, 2007]
[Pages 1485-1488]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks at Berkeley Plantation in Charles City, Virginia
November 19, 2007

    Thank you all. Thanks very much. Thanks for the warm welcome. I am 
proud to be back in the great State of Virginia. I particularly 
appreciate the chance to visit Berkeley Plantation. I thank the good 
people who care for this historic treasure. Over the years, Presidents 
have visited Berkeley. President William Henry Harrison called it home. 
As a matter of fact, it was here where he composed the longest 
inauguration speech in history. [Laughter] He went on for nearly 2 
hours. You don't need to worry; I'm not going to try to one up him 
today. [Laughter]
    Berkeley also claims to be the site of America's first official 
Thanksgiving. The good folks here say that the founders of Berkeley held 
their celebration before the pilgrims had even left port. As you can 
imagine, this version of events is not very popular up North. [Laughter] 
But even the administration of President Kennedy--a son of 
Massachusetts--recognized Berkeley's role in this important holiday. And 
so this afternoon I've come to honor Berkeley's history and to continue 
the great American tradition of giving thanks.
    Laura sends her best. Now, most people say, 
``I wish she'd have come and not you.'' [Laughter] She's doing just 
fine, and I know she is going to be envious when I describe how 
beautiful this part of the country is. And I thank you for giving me a 
chance to come.
    I want to thank my friend Tom Saunders, who is the founder of the Saunders Trust for American 
History at the New York Historical Society. That means he and his wife 
Jordan are raising money to make sure this 
site is as beautiful as it is and stays an important part of our history 
and legacy.
    I thank Judy and Jamie Jamieson, who happen to be the owners of this 
beautiful site, and I appreciate your hospitality. I can't help but 
recognize my daughter's future father-in-
law. [Laughter] I appreciate you coming. A lot 
of people think she's showed some pretty good common sense to marry 
somebody from Virginia. He's doing all right 
himself. [Laughter]
    I appreciate the fact that the Congressman from this district, 
Congressman Bobby Scott, is with us. 
Thanks for coming, Bobby. Congressman Eric Cantor from Richmond is with us. And Congressman Randy Forbes, appreciate you coming, Randy.
    I want to thank the Lieutenant Governor, Bill Bolling, for joining us. Thank you for coming, Governor. Bob 
McDonnell, the Attorney General--General, I 
appreciate you being here. I had the honor of meeting the high sheriff. 
Sheriff, thank you and your law enforcement officials. I'm proud to be 
with you. I want to thank all the local officeholders and State 
officeholders. And most of all, thank you for letting me come by, and I 
appreciate you coming.

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    Every November, we celebrate the traditions of Thanksgiving; we're 
fixing to do so again. We remember that the pilgrims great--gave thanks 
after their first harvest in New England. We remember that George 
Washington led his men in Thanksgiving during the American Revolution. 
And we remember that Abraham Lincoln revived the Thanksgiving tradition 
in the midst of a bloody civil war.
    Yet few Americans remember much about Berkeley. They don't know the 
story of the Berkeley Thanksgiving. This story has its beginnings in the 
founding of the colony of Virginia four centuries ago. As the colony 
grew, settlers ventured beyond the walls of Jamestown and into the 
surrounding countryside. The Berkeley Company of England acquired 8,000 
acres of nearby land and commissioned an expedition to settle it.
    In 1619, a band of 38 settlers departed Bristol, England, for 
Berkeley aboard a ship like the one behind me. At the end of their long 
voyage, the men reviewed their orders from home. And here's what the 
orders said: ``The day of our ship's arrival . . . shall be yearly and 
perpetually kept holy as a day of Thanksgiving to Almighty God.'' Upon 
hearing those orders, the men fell to their knees in prayer. And with 
this humble act of faith, the settlers celebrated their first 
Thanksgiving in the New World.
    In the years that followed, the settlers at Berkeley faced many 
hardships. And in 1622, the settlement was destroyed. Berkeley became a 
successful plantation after it was rebuilt, when people returned to this 
site. And it is an important part of our history. And as we look back on 
the story of Berkeley, we remember that we live in a land of many 
blessings.
    The story of Berkeley reminds us that we live in a land of 
opportunity. We remember that the settlers at Berkeley came to America 
with the hope of building a better life. And we remember that immigrants 
in every generation have followedin their footsteps. Their dreams have 
helped transform 13 small Colonies into a large and growing nation of 
more than 300 million people.
    Today, we're blessed with great prosperity. We're blessed with 
farmers and ranchers who provide us with abundant food. We're blessed 
with the world's finest workers, with entrepreneurs who create new jobs. 
We're blessed with devoted teachers who prepare our children for the 
opportunities of tomorrow. We're blessed with a system of free 
enterprise that makes it possible for people of all backgrounds to rise 
in society and realize their dreams. These blessings have helped us 
build a strong and growing economy, and these blessings have filled our 
lives full of hope.
    The story of Berkeley reminds us that we live in a nation dedicated 
to liberty. In 1776, Berkeley's owner, Benjamin Harrison, became one of 
the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence. In the Declaration, 
we see the Founders' great hope for our country, their conviction that 
we're all created equal, with the God-given right to life, liberty, and 
the pursuit of happiness.
    At times, America has fallen short of these ideals. We remember that 
the expansion of our country came at a terrible cost to Native American 
tribes. We remember that many people came to the New World in chains 
rather than by choice. For many years, slaves were held against their 
will here at Berkeley and other plantations, and their bondage is a 
shameful chapter in our Nation's history.
    Today, we're grateful to live in a more perfect Union. Yet our 
society still faces divisions that hold us back. These divisions have 
roots in the bitter experiences of our past and have no place in 
America's future. The work of realizing the ideals of our founding 
continues, and we must not rest until the promise of America is real for 
all our citizens.

[[Page 1487]]

    We're also grateful to live in a time when freedom is taking hold in 
places where liberty was once unimaginable. Since the beginning of the 
1980s, the number of democracies in the world has more than doubled. 
From our own history, we know these young democracies will face 
challenges and setbacks in the journey ahead. Yet as they travel the 
road to freedom, they must know that they will have a constant and 
reliable friend in the United States of America.
    The story of Berkeley reminds us to honor those who have sacrificed 
in the cause of freedom. During the Civil War, Union forces at Berkeley 
adopted a nightly bugle call that has echoed throughout the ages. The 
bugle call has become known as ``Taps.'' And when we hear it play, we 
remember that the freedoms we enjoyed have come at a heavy price.
    Today, the men and women of the United States Armed Forces are 
taking risks for our freedom. They're fighting on the frontlines of the 
war on terror, the war against extremists and radicals who would do us 
more harm. Many of them will spend Thanksgiving far from the comforts of 
home. And so we thank them for their service and sacrifice. We keep 
their families and loved ones in our prayers. We pray for the families 
who lost a loved one in this fight against the extremists and radicals, 
and we vow that their sacrifice will not be in vain.
    This Thanksgiving, we pay tribute to all Americans who serve a cause 
larger than themselves. We are thankful for the police officers who 
patrol our streets. We're thankful for the firefighters who protect our 
homes and property. We're thankful for the leaders of our churches and 
synagogues and all faith-based organizations that call us to live lives 
of charity. We're thankful of the ordinary citizens who become good 
Samaritans in times of distress.
    This Thanksgiving, we remember the many examples of the good heart 
of the American people that we have seen this past year. We remember the 
Virginia Tech professor who died blocking a gunman from entering his 
classroom. As a survivor of the Holocaust, Professor Liviu Librescu had 
seen the worst of humanity, yet through his sacrifice, he showed us the 
best.
    We remember the Minneapolis man who was 
escorting a busload of children when the bridge underneath them 
collapsed. Jeremy Hernandez responded to this emergency with courage. He 
broke open the back door of the bus, and he helped lead every child on 
board to safety.
    We remember the people in New Orleans who are rebuilding a great 
American city. One of them is Principal Doris Hicks. After Katrina, many said that her school could never 
return to its building in the Lower Ninth Ward. But Principal Hicks had 
a different point of view; she had a different attitude. As a matter of 
fact, she had a uniquely American attitude. She had a vision for a 
resurgent community with a vibrant school at its heart. This summer, the 
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Charter School for Science and Technology 
became the first public school to reopen in the Lower Ninth Ward.
    These stories remind us that our Nation's greatest strength is the 
decency and compassion of our people. As we count our many blessings, I 
encourage all Americans to show their thanks by giving back. You know, I 
just visited the Central Virginia Foodbank. If you're living in Richmond 
and you want to give back, help the Central Virginia Foodbank. The 
volunteers there help prepare thousands of meals for the poor each day. 
And in so doing, they make the Richmond community and our Nation a more 
hopeful place. And there are many ways to spread hope this holiday: 
volunteer in a shelter, mentor a child, help an elderly neighbor, say 
thanks to one who wears our Nation's uniform.
    In the four centuries since the founders of Berkeley first knelt on 
these grounds, our Nation has changed in many ways. Our people have 
prospered; our Nation has

[[Page 1488]]

grown; our Thanksgiving traditions have evolved--after all, they didn't 
have football back then. [Laughter] Yet the source of all our blessings 
remains the same. We give thanks to the Author of Life who granted our 
forefathers safe passage to this land, who gives every man, woman, and 
child on the face of the Earth the gift of freedom, and who watches over 
our Nation every day.
    I wish you all a safe and happy Thanksgiving. I offer Thanksgiving 
greetings to every American citizen. May God bless you, and may God 
continue to bless the United States of America.

Note: The President spoke at 12:24 p.m. In his remarks, he referred to 
John H. Hager, chairman, Republican Party of Virginia; and Beverly A. 
Washington, sheriff, Charles City County, Virginia. The related 
Thanksgiving Day proclamation of November 15 is listed in Appendix D at 
the end of this volume.