Plimoth Plantation

Thanksgiving isn't all about eating too much turkey and pie, enduring family weirdness, and passing out while watching football. It's about the early settlers to America, and how they finally learned to get along with the people already living here. We all know the age-old story of how the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock, starry-eyed and optimistic, and how the Native Americans in the region saved their sorry butts from starvation. The whole ordeal ended with a big, post-harvest feast of turkey, cranberries, mashed potatos, pumpkin pie, and Aunt Bertha's weird green bean casserole. At least, that's what we're taught in grade school. Myths and legends aside, the Pilgrims and Native Americans actually existed, and you can learn all about them at Plimoth Plantation. It's dedicated to researching and preserving the ways of life and the cultues of both the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag tribe would have lived back then with a living history museum. Stop by the Wampanoag homesite, a recreated nush wetu longhouse, to learn about how these Native Americans were able to survive by farming, fishing,, hunting, gathering, and more. Ask the re-enactors, all of native heritage, any question you can think of, from technology and traditions to music, dancing and stories, and they'll have an answer. They'll even teach you how to play traditional Wampanoag games, like hubbub, or show you how to carve a canoe! From there head to the 17th-Century English Village, where you'll find many wooden houses and lots of colorful, costumed characters. The actors have all assumed the roles of people who lived in the village circa 1627. Ask them about their religious beliefs, their thoughts on education, or if you want an engaging conversation, ask them about their relationship with the nearby Natives. Explore the buildings, gardens and fields of the town, and feel free to strike up a conversation with anyone-- or to take part in any everyday activities going on. Plimoth Plantation also offers visitors a chance to see how many of the items used in the village were made. Since they strive to be as authentic as possible, many of the "props" were made the old-fashioned way at the Craft Center. Everything from cooking and baking to gunsmithing and cabinet-making is studied, practiced and taught here. It's a behind-the-scenes peek, in a way, and they offers tons of hands-on activities. They also offer a chance to meet rare, historic breeds of animals (goats, sheep, pigs, birds, and more) that would have lived in Plimoth at the time as well. They've even got a working 1640's-era grist mill and a full-scale replica of the Mayflower, called the Mayflower II. Climb aboard the ship and see just how cramped, dark and dingy the conditions on board were for the Pilgrims-- it'll give you an even better idea of just how thankful they were to reach the New World, and maybe convince you that Turkey Day with the family isn't so bad after all. -Roadtrippers Telling the iconic story of Plymouth Colony was the fulfillment of a young archaeologist’s boyhood dream. With help and support from friends, family and business associates, Henry Hornblower II started the Museum in 1947 as two English cottages and a fort on Plymouth’s historic waterfront. Since then the Museum has grown to include Mayflower II (1957), the English Village (1959), the Wampanoag Homesite (1973), the Hornblower Visitor Center (1987), the Craft Center (1992), the Maxwell and Nye Barns (1994) and the Plimoth Grist Mill (2013). Today, Plimoth Plantation provides an engaging and experiential outdoor and indoor learning environment on its main campus and at the State Pier on Plymouth’s waterfront. Our permanent exhibits tell the complex and interwoven stories of two distinct cultures - English and Native. The main exhibits are enhanced with an exciting menu of special events, public programs and workshops that offer a rich and diverse exploration of the 17th-century. Generations of families, millions of school children and countless people from all over the world have visited here and participated in Plimoth Plantation’s educational experiences that spark the imagination, delight the senses, touch the heart and enrich the mind.