Folklore of the United States memorialized on the shore of Plymouth Harbor in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The holiday of Thanksgiving is said to have begun with the Pilgrims in 1621. They had come to America to escape religious persecution, but then nearly starved to death. Some friendly Native Americans (including Squanto) helped the Pilgrims survive through the first winter. The perseverance of the Pilgrims is celebrated during the annual Thanksgiving festival. George Washington (February 22, 1732 – December 14, 1799), the country's first president, is often said to be the father of his country. Apocryphal stories about Washington's childhood include a claim that he skipped a
St. Augustine in the American Civil War sides in the Civil War. Many black Union soldiers either came from St. Augustine, or settled there after the war, providing a leadership cadre for the community known as Lincolnville that was established in 1866. Many of the city's old cemeteries feature the distinctive marble tombstones marked "USCT"--United States Colored Troops. Florida state militia took the fort at St. Augustine from a small U. S. Army garrison (one soldier) on January 7, 1861. Three days later the state of Florida seceded from the United States. Union troops reoccupied the city on March 11, 1862, putting St. Augustine under Union control.