Item List (150)

Mementoes of the Mayflower were popular around the time of the tercentenary in 1920, but the silver model of the ship that went on display in the aptly named “Pilgrims’ Room” of London’s Hotel Victoria was unique. Far from being just a decorative…

Lowestoft’s celebration for the Mayflower anniversary in 1920 was held under the auspices of the Lowestoft Free Church Council. In a highly unusual move, it was a female preacher who gave the service. The Rev. M. Marie Varney came from America and…

In the 1930s, the Essex County Hall was greatly expanded from one red brick building (built in 1909) through a Portland stone extension (designed by J Stuart). For the Council Chamber, four large panels were painted to adorn the east wall. Each…

The Fairhaven Congregational Church was opened in 1912, perhaps the peak period for Congregationalism in Britain. Known locally as ‘the White Church’ for good reason, its tall tower and three domes are built in a striking Byzantine style. But, as the…

In the summer of 1920, events celebrating the Pilgrim Fathers were happening all across Britain. On occasion, reference was made to the ‘Pilgrim Mothers’ too – but, in the main, women were not lauded as highly as the men. One exception to this was…

Historical pageants, a sort of amateur re-enactment, were incredibly popular forms of engagement with the past in the early to mid 20th century. They usually took the form of a series of chronological episodes, often starting as far back as the…

Harwich has a claim to fame in the story of the Pilgrim Fathers; the captain of the ship, Christopher Jones, at one time lived and married in the town, and the ship itself – according to the best guesses of some historians - was possibly even built…

In 1999, the Harwich Society opened this small museum on the Pier, which includes a section on the Mayflower, helped in part by a $500 donation from the General Society of Mayflower Descendants. The Cultural Attaché at the US Embassy (London), T.J.…

William Mullins was a Mayflower passenger who died in the first harsh winter in the new colony; his daughter, Priscilla, went on to marry John Alden (now immortalised in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s fantastically popular poem The Courtship of Miles…

After the Palace of Westminster was destroyed by fire in 1834, a Royal Commission was set up in 1841 to deal with the question of how to decorate the new palace (by then already under construction). A series of competitions and exhibitions of…