Welcome to America's Hometown's Past at Plimouth Plantation, MA.- Plymouth, Massachusetts
Written: Jul 23 '02 (Updated Oct 15 '02)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Excellent recreation of the 17th century Pilgrims.
Cons: Some feel there is Native American exploitation.
The Bottom Line: Plimouth Plantation is a destination that shouldn't be missed for its historical importance. Skip Thanksgiving Dinner.
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| jo.com's Full Review: Plimoth Plantation |
On Thanksgiving Day we visited Plimouth Plantation several hours before we had dinner there. It wasn't our first trip to the Plantation but it was the first trip for our kids since they were very young. This review is a combination of our visit to the Plantation and Thanksgiving dinner.
Part 1
General Information
Plymouth, Massachusetts is a town of 45,000 situation on the water about 50 miles south of Boston, just north of Cape Cod. Its motto is “America’s Hometown” because this is where the Pilgrims made their home after departing from England. There are other towns across America that are known as "America's Hometown." This is Plymouth's official motto.
The Plantation is spelled Plimouth for 2 reasons:
1. In the 17th century, spelling hadn’t been standardized and the name was spelled many different ways.
2. The Plantation wants to differentiate themselves from other places called Plymouth, which is the more common way to spell it now.
What is Plimouth Plantation?
You will want to start with a 15-minute orientation movie in the Visitor Center, which will give you a good overall view of what you will be seeing.
It is a recreation of a Pilgrim Village in 1627. You will find people playing roles of the lives of the Pilgrims back then. I found it fascinating really because the knowledge that it takes to play this role is enormous. You will want to talk to the “characters” and you will find them speaking with English accents and truly “being in 1627.” I heard one girl ask a man where they went to the bathroom. That term was not used back then and he didn’t understand what she was asking. It was an interesting exchange to watch!
I commented to one man that he was wearing earrings. We couldn’t believe that was an oversight on the Plantation’s part and he said that he had “holes put in his ears to hold the rings.” When I looked suspicious he asked me if it was not a common practice where I came from and I was tongue tied, not sure if I should answer as if I were in the 17th century or tell him I was a space traveler! We had a lot of fun with them. I’m not much of a history buff, but when it can be made fun I enjoy it.
What will you see?
Plimouth Plantation is a recreation of 1627 as much as possible. You will see hens, goats and other livestock as well as houses, furniture and the cultures of the English and Wampanoag Indians who lived here.
The various houses belonged to some well-known people. You will see the “house” of John Alden who was the barrel-maker on the Mayflower. John Alden will, of course, be there as will William Bradford, governor of the colony.
You will see the Dutch Barn, which is where salt hay, would have been stored. There is an adjustable roof because it had to be raised and lowered to accommodate different sizes of hay that would be brought into the barn.
At Hobbamock’s Homesite, staff many of whom are descendants of the Wampanoag Tribe, will speak to you from a present day perspective. Although dressed in traditional clothing and doing traditional tasks (cooking venison stew, for example) they talk to you about their history and culture “back then” unlike the Pilgrims who are in the 17th century.
The presence of the Native Americans having to work on Thanksgiving day was particularly disturbing to my daughter and I will talk a bit about that in a moment.
You will want to stop in at the craft/gift shop where you will find books, pottery, baskets and other items, many of which are made at the Plantation by crafters. You will find out that this is a primary way that they fund their special programs such as lectures and workshops that are presented throughout the year.
Hours, Parking and Prices
The Plantation is open from April until December 9:00amס:00pm, 7 days per week.
The cost is $17 for adults; $9.50 for children 6㬈 and free for children under 6.
Parking is free at the Plantation and plentiful.
The admission price is good for 2 consecutive days. I would highly recommend going to see the Mayflower II, a replica of the original Mayflower. It sits in the water, on Plymouth’s waterfront, which is really beautiful. It is a great place to walk around on a nice day. If you think you will do both, buy a combination ticket which will get you into both the Plantation and the Mayflower II for $19.00 for adults, $11.00 for children 5-12 and $17.00 for seniors and college students. Children under 6 are free.
You can find both free parking and metered parking spots on the Waterfront. I am not reviewing the town of Plymouth per se, but as long as you are reading, I’ll tell you that you will walk by Plymouth Rock, so you may as well look at it. It is symbolic of the Pilgrims stepping onto the land. It isn’t “the rock” and you may be disappointed by it. Most people are!
Some of this information and more can be found at www.plimoth.org
Part 2 of this review:
We had heard that Thanksgiving dinner at Plimouth Plantation was wonderful. Friends told us either they had been there or knew people who had. The day before we went I spoke with a friend who had been to functions there and said it was great.
Plimoth Plantation doesn’t offer just Thanksgiving dinner. They have what they call “Out of the Ordinaire” which is a dining experience that is supposed to replicate 17th century dining. I haven’t experienced this so won’t comment on it. I will tell you that based on the menu (stew of wild fowl or stew of venison) I will pass. This is served May through November 19. The meal is served in their restaurant, which we passed and it looked very nice. I say that because our “dining room” was very different. More in a moment.
Another meal they offer is their 1629 Harvest Dinner on various days in October and November. Foods such as “a chine of pork” and “mussels “seeth’d with parsley and beer” are served. The menu looks fun since it is written in an English way (sops of spinach) but for $39.95 I will pass on this one.
Reservations are required for the above meals and, of course, for Thanksgiving dinner. All sales are final and the price includes admission to Plimouth Plantation, tax and tip.
The day reservations for Thanksgiving went on sale, I called. The line was busy for a long time, and then I left a message. I finally did talk with a person who told me that she had 60 messages and this was still in the morning. So if you are thinking of this you will have to call early and you will have to call to find out what day they go on sale. You can also find the information at their website: www.plimoth.org. The phone number is 1800-262-9356 ext. 8366. Reservations often go on sale August 1, but it does vary.
There are two types of Thanksgiving meals offered. One is a sit down dinner with 3 seatings offered. The menu is similar to the buffet except there are 3 dessert choices here rather than 2 at the buffet. Since I will tell you about the buffet menu in a moment I won’t bore you with a list of the sit down menu.
We chose the buffet for 2 reasons: the price and the fact one of our kids likes red meat and it was offered on the buffet but not on the sit down dinner. The price of the sit down dinner is $59.85 for adults and $41.95 for children under 12. The buffet is $39.95 for adults and $23.95 for children.
We were not impressed at all. We would not go back and I cannot recommend it. I will tell you that much of the food was good, but there were too many negatives about the experience.
1. We sat a table with another family. Before we went one of my kids asked me if we were at a table alone and I said “of course.” It never occurred to me that we would not be. I do not like sitting at a table with others for Thanksgiving. I want to be with my family alone. My daughter wanted to make a toast but felt funny doing so as did I. Unless we are on a cruise or a picnic, I like my own table!
2. There was no ambiance, no festive atmosphere of which to speak. One would expect the room to be decorated and it wasn’t. It had a cold feeling, like the function room it was but just functional.
3. The ladies’ room was not clean! I was shocked. Granted they were busy that day. There were 4 seatings but that is no excuse, in my opinion. Not only wasn’t it clean but it needed some repairs such as fixing a hole in the wall.
4. As I said some of the food was very good; but some not so good. The turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, squash and gravy were all delicious. The creamed onions and cranberry sauce were fine. The apple cider was very good. I thought the cream of broccoli soup was good and the salad was fine also.
5. They advertise “hot crusty rolls.” They may have been warm for a second but by the time I took them from the buffet table to my table they were cold. The “fresh baked cranberry and pumpkin breads” were nothing to write home about. Our coffee was cold and we had to ask for a fresh pot and our apple pie was very, very cold.
6. There was a nice fruit platter on the table with a few nuts. It would have been nicer if there were more than just a handful of nuts though!
7. The room we were in has large cement columns through out it. Between the columns and the fact the tables were fairly close together, getting by to get to the buffet table and back was a challenge. The soup, coffee and pie was served to us which was a good thing because spilling it on the person you had to squeeze by would have been an easy thing to do.
****A Commentary:
I told you in the first part of this review that my daughter and I had a hard time seeing Native Americans working on Thanksgiving when I think they would rather have been with their families protesting the day. Yes, for many Native Americans they observe this holiday as a National Day of Mourning. After years of protests in Plymouth often resulting in arrests, the town now allows a planned protest between the hours of 11:00 am and 3:00pm.
In addition, two years ago plaques were erected by the Town of Plymouth on behalf of the United American Indians of New England. I would like to share what it says because I think too many history books have left out the truth:
“Since 1970, Native Americans have gathered at noon on Cole’s Hill in Plymouth to commemorate a National Day of Mourning on the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday. Many Native Americans do not celebrate the arrival of the Pilgrims and other European settlers. To them, Thanksgiving Day is a reminder of the genocide of millions of their people, the theft of their lands, and the relentless assault on their culture. Participants in the National Day of Mourning honor Native ancestors and the struggles of Native peoples to survive today. It is a day of remembrance as well as a protest of the racism and oppression which Native Americans continue to experience.”
This is a combination of 2 reviews that were in generic categories and now have their own place.
Recommended:
Yes
Best Suited For: Families
Best Time to Travel Here: Jun - Aug
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