1. Introduction
Pilgrim families arrived in Holland in the spring of 1608 and in Plymouth in December 1620. In May 1607, 105 men arrived in Jamestown to establish the first permanent English settlement in North America. While the individuals in both settlements were English, the they were different in many important ways. To fully appreciate our Pilgrim heritage, it is important to understand the differences between Plymouth and Jamestown. This essay identifies major differences and explains how these differences affected the settlements during the first few decades of their arrival.

The history of Pilgrims and Puritans in 17th century New England reflects events in the reformation of English politics and religion. Summarizing the time-line of the English Reformation is the easiest way to show how these groups evolved in both England and America.

The Algonquin Nation inhabited New England and the mid-Atlantic states. The Wampanoag federation at its peak contained 20,000 to 30,000 individuals in two dozen tribes who occupied southeastern Massachusetts and eastern Rhode Island. The Wampanoag was ruled by a Sachem, Massasoit, and a council of young men who had proven themselves in battle and older men chosen for their wisdom. Europeans explored, and in some cases planted settlements along the coast of New England since at least 1498.

What do Marilyn Monroe, George Bush and Dr. Spock have in common? Possibly you. Visit our distinguished descendants gallery to learn who your famous cousins are. You may be surprised to discover who you have common genes with.

The Ship Mayflower, with 102 Pilgrims aboard, plowed through the waves of the North Atlantic in the fall of 1620. On all sailing ships, the bow bangs against, and slices through, the large oncoming waves, as the sails driver her forward, The shape of her bow is like a plowshare tilling the earth except, instead of earth churning away, a bow spray develops and sprays up high and over the deck of the ship, even in sunny weather. This particular spray was chilled by the fall temperatures in the open ocean and as it fell on the huddled passengers, it felt like a constant rain. People traveling by sea in those days felt it was the very worst place on earth to be, for they became prisoners on the ship until it made landfall. To keep dry they huddled under oilcloths, which were cloth blankets mostly cut from old sails, coated with an oil or grease and draped over the body. Some slept in these.

Setting people straight about Thanksgiving myths has become as much a part of the annual holiday as turkey, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. But should historians bother? Jane Kamensky, a professor of history at Brandeis, thinks not. She asks on the website "Common-Place" (in 2001) whether it's worth while "to plumb the bottom of it all - to determine, for example, [...] whether Plymouth's 'Pilgrims' were indeed the grave-robbing hypocrites that UAINE describes [i.e. United American Indians of New England]. [...] Was the 'first Thanksgiving' merely a pretext for bloodshed, enslavement, and displacement that would follow in later decades? Combing period documents and archaeological evidence, we might peel away some of the myths [...]

That New England's Calvinist Puritans created theocratic governments is a stereotype that owes much to the nineteenth-century myth that Calvin established theocratic government in Geneva. In his Institutes, Calvin distinguishes between the jurisdiction of civil and ecclesiastical governments, stating that the magistrate in a Christian society has general authority over the entire society, including the obligation to protect and enforce religion and morality. Clergy have authority within the congregation only, including excommunication. While laws should conform with biblical precept, Calvin believes that many Old Testament regulations were abrogated by the New Testament.

From time to time, especially towards the Thanksgiving season, I am asked to comment on drafts of books or articles about the Pilgrims. Usually, when alerted to problems of fact or interpretation, authors or editors modify passages, but not always. Some interpretive habits must be well-loved even without any historical basis.

(For a guide book of Plymouth, see James Baker’s 2008 A Guide to Historic Plymouth.)

Town Center/Harbor

Water Street runs along the harbor from Sandwich Street north to Nelson Park.