Pilgrim Story

The Pilgrim Story

The 17th-century Pilgrims are known through the writings and artifacts they left behind. There is much more to their history, however, than the 17th-century facts. There is also the "Pilgrim Story." That "Story" is the celebration of a few selected moments which have fixed the Pilgrims firmly in America's collective memory.

This Pilgrim Story has grown and evolved over time. As each succeeding generation looked to the past for inspiration and guidance, certain key elements of the 17th-century Pilgrims were emphasized. The attention focused on these key elements has sometimes obscured other parts of the Pilgrim Story, changing the perception of the Pilgrim experience. Often, these later interpretations of the 17th-century Pilgrims tell us less about the Pilgrims than about the emotional and political needs of the era in which the interpretations were created.

As you scroll through the subject headings listed below, you will encounter key elements of the Pilgrim Story that have been celebrated in stories and in paintings : the Mayflower Compact, the Landing, the First Thanksgiving at Plymouth. Each of these elements of the Pilgrim Story are based on 17th-century facts. Each element has also received layers of interpretations and celebrations. These later interpretations are also history -- America's history of the 18th, 19th, 20th, and now 21st centuries.

We invite you to search through the layers of retelling to find the foundation of the 17th century. Where does it all begin? And where does it end? You might be surprised!

Welcome to Pilgrim Hall Museum!

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Subject headings:
Who were the Pilgrims?
Religion
     Pilgrims & Puritans?
Pilgrims in Holland
     The "Pilgrim press"
The Voyage of the Mayflower & Speedwell
     Passengers on the Mayflower, It came on the Mayflower?
The Mayflower Compact
     The Landing
Who were the Native People?
     The Wampanoag, Native People & European contact,
     Politics & coexistence
The "First Thanksgiving" at Plymouth
Financing the Colony
     Building a home, Pilgrim possessions
The Sparrow-Hawk
Leadership
     The Colony grows, Community life
Native People: Religion and Land
King Philip's War
     The causes, the war, the effects
     The continuous presence of Native People
Affluence & style
     The end of Plymouth Colony Religion
     Pilgrims & Puritans?
Pilgrims in Holland
     The "Pilgrim press"
The Voyage of the Mayflower & Speedwell
     Passengers on the Mayflower, It came on the Mayflower?
The Mayflower Compact
     The Landing
Who were the Native People?
     The Wampanoag, Native People & European contact,
     Politics & coexistence
The "First Thanksgiving" at Plymouth
Making a living
     Building a home, Pilgrim possessions
The Sparrow-Hawk
Leadership
     The Colony grows, Community life
Missionary efforts
Differences in land use
King Philip's War
     The causes, the war, the effects
     The continuous presence of Native People
Affluence & style
     The end of Plymouth Colony

What's been said about the Pilgrim story?
Click on the names below to find out!

John Quincy Adams, 1802
Felicia Dorothea Hemans, 1808 ("The breaking waves dash'd high")
Daniel Webster, 1820
Alexis deTocqueville, 1835
Samuel Eliot Morison, mid 20th century

Want to know even more? Click on

Beyond the Pilgrim Story for documents, wills and inventories, and a wealth of further information about the Pilgrims and Plymouth Colony, OR
Museum Shop to discover many excellent books available for further reading, OR
New Exhibits for visual presentations on topics as diverse as Arms & Armor of the Pilgrims and Plymouth in the Revolution, for visual presentations on topics as diverse as Arms & Armor of the Pilgrims and Plymouth in the Revolution, OR
Thanksgiving for information about our favorite holiday, OR
Links to visit other entertaining educational Web sites.

All material on this Website is copyrighted and may not be republished in either print or electronic format without the express written consent of the Pilgrim Society.

Make a difference!
Donations to the Pilgrim Society, to support the operations of Pilgrim Hall Museum,
can be made online through www.networkforgood.org or
by filling out a Donation Form and mailing it to Pilgrim Hall Museum.