1
Dec
1774
Plymouth Rock Invoked as Symbol of Liberty
Plymouth, MA· year date
The Story
During the political crisis of 1774, Plymouth Rock gained new significance as a symbol of self-governance. Patriots drew a direct line from the Mayflower Compact — the Pilgrims' agreement to govern themselves — to the colonial resistance against Parliament. An attempt to move the rock reportedly split it in two, which some colonists interpreted as a symbol of the divide between Britain and America.
Sources for Plymouth
History of Scituate, Massachusetts, from Its First Settlement to 1831
James Loring (Samuel Deane)National Park Service
Massachusetts State Archives
Plymouth County Registry of Deeds and Massachusetts State Archives
The Works of John Adams, Vol. II: Diary and Autobiography
Little, Brown and Company (Charles Francis Adams, ed.)History of the Colony of New Plymouth in Massachusetts (2 vols.)
Houghton Mifflin (George D. Langdon Jr.)History of the Town of Plymouth, from Its First Settlement in 1620, to the Present Time
Marsh, Capen and Lyon (James Thacher)founders.archives.gov
founders.archives.gov
ofgraveyardsandthings.com
www.gilderlehrman.org
www.masshist.org
www.pilgrimhall.org
Pilgrim Hall Museum
Records of the Colony of New Plymouth in New England (12 vols.)
William White (Nathaniel Shurtleff, ed.)The Siege of Boston
Macmillan (Allen French)Destination Plymouth