| Pleasant History: Primary Sources |
Pleasant History: Secondary Sources |
Pleasant History: For The Young |
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PLYMOUTH COLONY : ITS HISTORY & PEOPLE, by Eugene A. Stratton. Ancestry. Recent and readable, this study integrates a variety of primary sources. Period documents and extensive biographical data on the early settlers are included. |
NAVIGATION IN THE AGE OF DISCOVERY : AN INTRODUCTION, by Duane A. Cline. Montfleury. Precise drawings and little known details of early voyaging add interest and understanding to the Mayflower adventure.
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THE WAMPANOAG, by Laurie Weinstein-Farson. Indians of North America series. Chelsea. The long history of the rich cultures of the Plymouth-area Native Americans is well presented. Picture material is clear and striking. |
WAMPANOAG COOKERY, by various contributors from New England tribes. American Science and Engineering. In this small booklet, readers can hear authentic recipes, food customs and the seasonal calendar told as handed down the generations and celebrated as part of the bounty of the land.
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A LITTLE COMMONWEALTH : FAMILY LIFE IN PLYMOUTH COLONY, by John Demos. Oxford. Although sometimes superseded by more recent research, this durable and delightful classic reveals the human complexities of the first settlers. |
ARMS & ARMOR OF THE PILGRIMS, by Harold L. Peterson. Reprinted by the Pilgrim Society. A succinct text and early prints illustrate Pilgrim-era weapons and their use.
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INDIAN NEW ENGLAND BEFORE THE MAYFLOWER, by Howard S. Russell. University Press of New England. A rich and detailed study of the regional native people both before and after contact with Europeans, this provides many insights and a balanced understanding of our early history. |
COMING OVER : MIGRATION & COMMUNICATION BETWEEN ENGLAND & NEW ENGLAND IN THE 17TH CENTURY, by David Cressy. Cambridge University Press. Why did a great wave of English people brave a "vast and furious ocean" and settle in an unknown wilderness? An enormous variety of primary source material skillfully collated reveals motives and much else about the Great Migration. Recommended for high school and college students.
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THE NEW ENGLAND INDIANS, by C. Keith Wilbur. Globe/Pequot. Bold line drawings and an informative text make this volume an invaluable source of Native American life and lore. Another book, The Woodland Indians, by C. Keith Wilbur, is also available. |
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THE NAME OF WAR : KING PHILIP'S WAR & THE
ORIGINS OF AMERICAN IDENTITY, by Jill Lepore. Knopf. Scarcely more than a footnote in traditional history text books, the 17th century conflict known as King Philip's War (1675-1676) devastated more lives and property than any other in our history. Speculating from contemporary accounts, the author of this thought-provoking volume reinterprets the issues with modern sensibility. Perhaps most intriguing is a coda on the Native American warrior as he was played in the 19th century theater. |
DEBTS HOPEFUL AND DESPERATE, by Ruth McIntyre. Plimoth Plantation. Bradford's history is fraught with his anxiety over the Pilgrims' precarious entangled finances. This slim volume recreates the economic climate and the long struggle for the settlement of the Colony's debt.
These recommended books should be available through your school library or public library. Many (although not all) are still in print and available for purchase. Many of these books, along with other reference materials, are available from the Pilgrim Hall Museum Shop.
Updated 14 July, 1998