Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation Quotes

“The Puritans didn’t have anything in their worship service that wasn’t mentioned in the Bible. So there weren’t any prayer books or hymns. There wasn’t an altar with candles. There wasn’t any heat, either, so some people brought little foot warmers filled with burning coals. We kids sat with the women and were expected to keep quiet. The only time we got to open our mouths was to sing psalms and say “Amen.”

“This doesn’t look like a church--it looks more like a storeroom.”
“It is a storeroom. But the building isn’t important. It is the people who are the church.”
“Children--hush!”
― Diane Stanley, Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation

“On Sunday we didn’t work at all. That was the Lord’s Day. As soon as we heard the drum beating, we knew it was time for church. We met at the house of Captain Myles Standish, the military leader of the colony. Then we lined up by threes and marched to church. Everybody in town was expected to go (even if they weren’t church members), and the service lasted all morning. Then after lunch (which they called dinner) we went back for three more hours!”
― Diane Stanley, Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation

“Which one’s the minister?”
“We don’t have one yet. Until we do, Master Brewster acts as our religious leader. He’s our ruling elder, you see.”
“You know who he is, dear--he’s Love and Wrestling Brewster’s father.”
“Yeah, I was wondering about them. I mean, Love is a pretty weird name, especially for a boy, but at least it’s kind of nice. But why would anyone name their kid Wrestling?”
“I believe it’s short for Wrestling-with-the-Devil.”
“I take it back. That definitely beats Sparkplug.”
― Diane Stanley, Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation

“It seemed like everything we did had to do with food. As soon as breakfast was over, the women got busy cooking the mail meal of the day, which was served at noon. The rest of us went out to collect food. In the fields we gathered corn, then brought it back to the house, where we hung it up until it was needed to grind into cornmeal.

“Yow! That’s a lot of salt! Why are you doing that?”
“Salt dries out the fish and preserves it--so it will last through the winter.”

“This is weird-looking corn--it’s all different colors!”
“It’s Indian corn, child. It grows much better here than our English grains. And it will feed us through the winter.”
― Diane Stanley, Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation

“It’s a pity we have no beer for you. We ran out nearly a year ago. But you need not fear the water. It is very wholesome here.”
“Pilgrim kids drank beer for breakfast?”
“Back in England their water was very polluted and wasn’t safe to drink. Beer was actually healthier.”
― Diane Stanley, Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation

“The house was just one big room with a fireplace at one end. That’s where they did their cooking. It was dark inside because the windows were small. And they didn’t even have glass in them--just paper soaked in linseed oil. The floor was made of packed-down dirt. There weren’t enough chairs for everybody, so we sat down on whatever was handy.

“Yikes, it’s cold in here. And--ouch!--something just bit me!”
“Sorry, dear. Could be fleas. Could be lice.”
“You’ve got to be kidding!”
― Diane Stanley, Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation

“As soon as we were dressed, Grandma put on her magic hat and we all held hands and closed our eyes.
She told us to take a deep breath--then, all of a sudden, everything felt different. There was a cool breeze and the air smelled woodsy.

“Plymouth Plantation, here we come!”
“Where we get to meet our forefathers!”
“And our foremothers.”
“And our foredogs.”

“So we’re in Massachusetts, right?”
“Northern Virginia, actually.”
“Virginia? You’re kidding!”
“No, dear. See this big area--from modern North Carolina all the way up to Maine? Well, back in 1621, the English called all of it Virginia. But the northern part of Virginia they called New England.”
― Diane Stanley, Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation

“Mom and Dad decided to drive out into the country
to get some apple cider at Whipple’s Orchard.
They asked if we wanted to come along.
We said we’d rather stay home with Grandma.
Then, as soon as they pulled out of the driveway,
we begged Grandma to take us somewhere.

“My turn! My turn! I want to visit her!”
“Why, Liz, what a great choice! That’s Remember Allerton. She was your grandpa’s great-great-great-great-well, I forget exactly how many greats it was--aunt. She was one of the Pilgrims who came over on the Mayflower.”
“Remember? What a weird name!”
“That’s nothing! I know a dog named Sparkplug.”

When you travel back in time, you have to put on the kind of clothes that people wore back then. If you don’t, they’ll think you’re really strange.

“I have to wear three layers? I’ll bake!”
“Trust me, Lenny. You’ll be happy to have them. No central heating, you know.”
“Hey, I thought Pilgrims always wore black suits and big hats with buckles on them.”
“Nope. They dressed like ordinary working people of their time--and they liked to wear colors, same as anybody else. Of course, on Sundays they put on their best suits and fancy collars.”
― Diane Stanley, Thanksgiving on Plymouth Plantation