Following a multi-day coastal survey, the Pilgrims anchored in Plymouth Harbor in December 1620. The area had been home to the Wampanoag for thousands of years; without the guidance of local leaders like Massasoit, the colonists would not have survived their first brutal winter.
While Plymouth Rock became the legendary symbol of the New England landing, its fame is largely rooted in local lore passed down more than a century after the event. In 1774, an attempt to relocate the rock caused it to split in half.
In 1859, the Pilgrim Society began clearing wharves to protect the base of the rock, eventually erecting a granite canopy designed by Hammatt Billings in 1867. The detached upper half of the rock was reunited with the base in 1880, which is when the date "1620" was first carved into it.
In preparation for the 1920 Tercentenary (300th anniversary) of the landing, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts created Pilgrim Memorial State Park. Massive shoreline alterations and landfill were used to reshape the waterfront into the park visitors see today
The first church in Plymouth, Massachusetts, is the First Parish Church in Plymouth, located at 12 Church Street in the historic Town Square. Founded in 1620 by the original Mayflower Pilgrims, it is recognized as the oldest congregation in continuous operation in the United States
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