Trusted Writing on History, Travel, and American Culture Since 1949
Puritans
Thomas Morton liked the lush country, the Indians liked Thomas—and the stern Puritans cared little for either
Mary Rowlandson, captured by Indians in 1676 and marched into the “vast and howling Wilderness”, survived to write the first and perhaps most powerful example of the captivity narrative
Lancaster, Massachusetts Bay Colony, February 10, 1676 Read more >>
A rare survivor of New England’s earliest days testifies to the strength that forged a nation
Up until the last century in some parts of the country, a murderer’s guilt could legally be determined by what happened when he or she touched the victim’s corpse
In 1646 in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Mary Martin was pregnant and unmarried. Her paramour was a married man, but it was her status as a single woman that determined the nature of her crime. Read more >>
“What a sacred office is that of the parent!” exclaimed an anonymous contributor to The Parent’s Magazine in December, 1840. Read more >>
Many a book, a magazine, a play, a movie, has been banned in Boston. But Christmas?
Many a book, a magazine, a play, a movie, has been banned in Boston. But Christmas? Read more >>
How far back in American history can we find the old shell game in operation? Alas, pretty far. It is as old as money, or the shortage thereof. Read more >>
Roger Williams liked Indians and almost everyone else, and he founded a colony that gave our freedom a broader horizon
There is a legend about Roger Williams that is exceedingly popular among Americans. There is also a truth which is slowly emerging from the welter of fancies. The truth is less simple than the legend, for most legends are oversimplifications. But it has some even more dramatic aspects than the beloved myth and it accords better, too, with the mental development of the normal human being. If it dims the halo of this pioneer of American liberty, it gives him a warmth, a nearness to ourselves that we could hardly feel while he stood on the pedestal.
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