Plymouth Rock purportedly marks the spot where the Pilgrims first landed in North America after an arduous journey from England in search of religious freedom. Often described as underwhelming, that description gets no argument from us. It’s small, it’s been broken in pieces and cemented back together, and while the rock does have the date “1620” carved in it, it’s provenance is a bit more dubious than that would imply.

Plymouth Rock lies within a marble columned open building on the shore of Plymouth Harbor

Common oral history is that Plymouth marks the spot that the passengers and crew of the Mayflower first made landfall in North America. But that’s not actually true – the Mayflower first landed in Provincetown, at the tip of Cape Cod. And that’s where the Mayflower Compact was signed.

Mike gazing down at the rock, thinking “That’s it?”

After a month or so in Provincetown, the Pilgrims sailed onward to Plymouth. While Plymouth Rock ostensibly marks the 1620 landing spot, the first written record of the rock doesn’t occur until 1741, which of course is 121 years later. The “1620” date that appears on the rock wasn’t actually until 1880.

It was tough living in the new world- many of the Pilgrims died within the first year after arrival

Does the rock have any historical significance at all? It does, at least in legend….

Plymouth is also home of the Mayflower replica. Madrone looks way more seaworthy than the Mayflower