Tag: 1950s

This image shows two young children playing a string game with their hands as they sit on the bed laid out in the loft of the house, above the main living area. Access was by the crude ladder visible at the lower right.

The description states:
Children and Servants usually slept in The Loft. A favorite 17th Century game was Cat’s Cradle, at the Richard Warren House, Plimoth Plantation, Plymouth, Massachusetts.
—Cat’s cradle was a game of threads that were intricately looped around one person’s hand, moving them in the correct pattern to the other person and back again, generating new and different patterns.
This image likely dates from the 1950s.

This image shows a pair of re-enactors portraying a mother and child in a Pilgrim house as it might have looked in the 1620s.

The description states:
CRADLE SCENE
A Pilgrim mother pauses briefly to play with her child at the First House, a reproduction of an early Pilgrim dwelling of the period 1623, by Plimoth Plantation, a non-profit educational foundation, located near the national famous Plymouth Rock on the State Reservation, Plymouth, Massachusetts.
–Also visible in the photo are examples of utensils, tools and furniture, some of which would have been brought over from England and some fashioned on site.
This image likely dates from the 1950s.

This image shows a family of re-enactors dressed in 17th century clothes outside a house as the father returns from hunting birds.

The description states:
A Pilgrim father brings in a turkey as the family prepares to celebrate a bountiful harvest. The house represents that of John Howland and is part of the Pilgrim Village of 1627 being recreated at Plymouth, Mass., by Plimoth Plantation, a non-profit educational organization.
–Turkey is the most famous of the fowl typically hunted by 17th century settlers, but by no means the most common. Grouse, pheasant and other smaller birds were also commonly hunted as they existed in considerable abundance.
This image likely dates from the 1950s.

This image shows a typical harvest time view of the reconstructed village of Plimoth Plantation.

The description states:
AUTUMN HARVEST
Indian summer comes to Plimoth Plantation as a Pilgrim farmer shocks his corn and children play in the sun-warmed Village street. Scene at the replica Pilgrim Village of Plimoth Plantation, Plymouth, Mass.
–The corn harvested at that time would have been what is now called Indian corn, a much reduced version of the huge hybrid ears we see today. It is unlikely this was eaten directly off the cob. Instead, it would have been dried, ground into a meal and fried or baked.
This image likely dates from the 1950s.

This image shows the fortification building that overlooks the rest of the Pilgrim Village at Plimoth Plantation, Massachusetts.

The description states:
ON GUARD
In 1622 on a hill above their Village, the Pilgrims erected a heavily timbered structure to serve as a center of worship and defense. A replica of this first Fort-Meetinghouse overlooks the recreated Pilgrim Village of Plimoth Plantation, Plymouth, Mass.
–Given that is was impossible for the small group of settlers to defend the entire village, it would have been expected for the settlers to concentrate here where cannon and guns would be available to resist attacks by nearby natives. However, it was not intended for long duration occupation by large numbers of people.
This image likely dates from the 1950s.

This image shows a pair of woodcutters using an elevated platform to allow both of them to work on cutting planks from the log by use of a two-man saw.

The description states:
SAWING PLANKS
Early Pilgrim houses were of frame construction boarded with thick planks swan laboriously by hand from the forest timber. The operation of a 17th century pit saw is demonstrated daily at Plimoth Plantation, Plymouth, Mass.
–One can clearly see that sawing from above was fairly dangerous, should the saw bind and throw the sawyer off balance. From below, the sawdust made for dirty work at the very least.
This image likely dates from the 1950s.

This image is an artist’s rendition of the Plimoth Plantation reconstruction, showing the fort in the background and a road passing several representative houses.

The description states:
An artist’s conception of the replica Pilgrim Village, built at Plimouth Plantation, Massachusetts, by Plimoth Plantation, a non-profit, educational organization.
–This site is occupied by re-enactors in period dress who give a sense of life to the village with their dress and activities.
This image likely dates from the 1950s.

This card is an illustration of Cape Cod, the bay and eastern Massachusetts, prominently featuring the location of the Plimoth Plantation.

The description states:
FOR A VACATION TRIP INTO HISTORY
Plymouth, Massachusetts, centers in a history-rich vacationland spreading along the Bay State shores from Greater Boston to Provincetown. Make Plymouth your vacation headquarters. Motor along super highways and quiet by-ways for daily enjoyment of anything from ocean surf to Pilgrim history.
–This map calls out most of the interesting towns and cities along Cape Cod, many of which have a lengthy historical background. This card likely dates from the 1950s.

This image shows a diorama of the signing of the Mayflower Compact on board the Mayflower II. It resembles slightly the painting from 1899.

The description states:
On November 21, 1620, the Pilgrims signed the Mayflower Compact establishing for themselves a government by consent to be based on just and equal laws for all. The scene is commemorated in the Great Cabin of Mayflower II, an exhibit of Plimoth Plantation, Plymouth, Massachusetts.
–The document was drawn up as an agreement among the men present to provide for a consistent and fair government, as they believed themselves unable to continue to join the already existing colony in Virginia.
This card likely dates from the 1950s.

This image shows the replica ship Mayflower II during the trans-Atlantic crossing from Britain to the United States.

The description states:
MAYFLOWER II built at Brixham, England, by Project Mayflower; sailed from Plymouth England to Plymouth, Massachusetts by Captain Villiers in April 1957, as a gift of the people of Great Britain to the people of the United States as a gesture of Anglo-American friendship. Mayflower II will be berthed permanently at Plimouth Plantation Eel River Site in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
–The Mayflower II has been regularly restored to preserve its wooden construction.
This image likely dates from the 1950s.