Forefathers Day, the day the Pilgrims stepped on Plymouth Rock, is an original American holiday. It predates the official celebration of Independence, Thanksgiving and Christmas as a part of American culture. The landing of the Pilgrims in Plymouth, however, was the culmination of a month of exploration on Cape Cod.
Though a few women had gone on previous explorations, the Plymouth Colony was unique in that the family was designed to be the foundation of the colony from the start. There were 24 family units on the Mayflower with 18 adult women (and 7 younger girls). Three of the women, Elizabeth Hopkins, Susanna White and…
“From my years in days of youth, God did make known to me his truth. And call’d me from my native place, for to enjoy the means of grace. In wilderness he did me guide, and in strange lands for me to provide.” So wrote William Bradford about his youth in one of his many…