Plymouth Rock: Facts, Discussion Forum, and Encyclopedia Article

All Topics

Plymouth Rock

	Email		Print
	Bookmark		Link

	Plymouth Rock
	Home Discussion Definition
	Topics Plymouth Rock Topic Home Plymouth Rock is the traditional site of disembarkation of William BradfordWilliam Bradford (1590-1657) William Bradford was a leader of the Pilgrim settlers of the Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts, and became Governor of the Pl... and the Mayflower PilgrimsPilgrims Pilgrims or Pilgrim Fathers is the name commonly applied to early settlers of the Plymouth Colony.... who founded Plymouth ColonyPlymouth Colony The Plymouth Colony was an English colonial venture in America from 1620 until 1691.... in 1620, in what would become the United StatesUnited States The United States of America, also known as the United States, the U.S., the U.S.A., and America, is... . There is no contemporary reference to it, and it is not referred to in Bradford's journal Of Plymouth PlantationOf Plymouth Plantation Written over a period of years by the leader of the Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts, William Bradford, Of Plymouth Plantatio... or in Mourt's RelationMourt's Relation Mourt's Relation was written primarily by Edward Winslow, although William Bradford appears to have written most of the firs... . The first reference to the Pilgrims landing on a rock is found 121 years after they landed. The rock is currently located on the shore of Plymouth HarborPlymouth Harbor Plymouth Harbor is the name of a harbor located in Plymouth, Massachusetts, a town in the South Shore region of the state.... in Plymouth, MassachusettsMassachusetts The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States.... . History The location of the Plymouth Rock (more specifically, Dedham granodioriteFacts About Granodiorite Granodiorite is an intrusive igneous rock similar to granite, but contains more plagioclase than potassium feldspar.... , a glacial erraticGlacial erratic A glacial erratic is a piece of rock carried by glacial ice some distance from the rock outcrop from which it came.... ), at the foot of Cole's Hill is said to have been passed from generation to generation. When plans were afoot to build a wharf at the Pilgrim's landing site in 1741, a 94 year old Elder of the church named Thomas Faunce (who was the town record keeper for most of his adult life), identified the precise rock his father had told him was the first solid land the Pilgrims set foot upon. (However, the Pilgrims first landed near the site of modern ProvincetownProvincetown, Massachusetts Provincetown is a town located at the extreme tip of Cape Cod in Barnstable County, Massachusetts.... on the tip of Cape CodCape Cod Cape Cod is an arm-shaped peninsula forming the Easternmost portion of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, in the Northeaster... in November 1620 before moving to Plymouth). The rock is located about 650 feet from where it is generally accepted that the initial settlement was built. When Col. Theophilus Cotton and the townspeople of Plymouth decided to move the rock in 1774, the rock was split into two halves, and it was decided to leave the bottom portion behind at the wharf and the top half was relocated to the town's meeting-house. Captain William Coit wrote in the Pennsylvania Journal of November 29 1775, of a story of how he brought captive British sailors ashore "upon the same rock our ancestors first trod." The upper portion of the rock was relocated from Plymouth's meeting-house to Pilgrim Hall in 1834. In 1859 the Pilgrim Society began building a Victorian canopy, designed by Hammatt BillingsFacts About Hammatt Billings Charles Howland Hammatt Billings was an artist and architect from Boston, Massachusetts.... , at the wharf over the lower portion of the rock. Following its completion in 1867, the top of the rock was moved from Pilgrim Hall back to its original wharf location in 1880. The date "1620" was carved into the rock. In 1920, the rock was relocated and the waterfront rebuilt to a design by noted landscape architect Arthur Shurcliff, with a waterfront promenade behind a low seawall, in such a way that when the rock was returned to its original site, it would be at water level. The care of the rock was turned over to the Commonwealth of MassachusettsMassachusetts The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States.... , and a new very sober Roman DoricDoric order The Doric order was one of the three orders or organizational systems of Ancient Greek or classical architecture; the... porticoPortico A portico is a porch or walkway with a roof supported by columns, often leading to the entrance of a building.... designed by McKim, Mead and White and Chesley BonestellChesley Bonestell Chesley Bonestell was a painter, designer, and illustrator.... was built for viewing the tide-washed rock protected by gratings beneath the platform. The funds for the building of the new portico were raised by the National Society of Colonial Dames of America. During the Rock's many journeys throughout the town of Plymouth numerous pieces of the Rock were taken, bought and sold. Today approximately 1/3 of the top portion remains. It is estimated that the original Rock weighed 20,000 lb. Although some documents indicate that tourists or souvenir hunters chipped it down, no pieces have been noticeably removed since 1880. Today there are pieces in Pilgrim Hall Museum as well as in the Patent Building in the Smithsonian. Alexis De TocquevilleAlexis de Tocqueville Alexis-Charles-Henri Clrel de Tocqueville was a French political thinker and historian.... wrote in 1835: "This Rock has become an object of veneration in the United StatesUnited States The United States of America, also known as the United States, the U.S., the U.S.A., and America, is... . I have seen bits of it carefully preserved in several towns in the Union. Does this sufficiently show that all human power and greatness is in the soul of man? Here is a stone which the feet of a few outcasts pressed for an instant; and the stone becomes famous; it is treasured by a great nation; its very dust is shared as a relic." Current status Today Plymouth Rock is managed by the Department of Conservation and Recreation for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as part of Pilgrim Memorial State ParkPilgrim Memorial State Park Pilgrim Memorial State Park comprises two monuments in Plymouth, Massachusetts: Plymouth Rock and the National Monument to t... . From the end of May to Thanksgiving Day, Pilgrim Memorial is staffed by Park Interpreters who inform visitors of the history of Plymouth Rock and answer questions. External links