Spirit of Plymouth

06/23/2026

A salute to the dads today with a lookback at Mayflower passenger Richard Warren. Warren wisely decided to travel to America on his own, temporarily leaving his highly capable wife Elizabeth in England with their five daughters. When half of the fledging Plymouth Colony’s firstcomers perished during their first winter in New England, Richard Warren survived with what must have been the comforting knowledge that he had kept his family safe from the devastating mortality. Elizabeth and the girls rejoined him in Plymouth in 1623, arriving on the ship Anne. The Warren family soon increased with the birth of sons Nathaniel and Joseph. Sadly, Richard Warren did not live to see his children reach adulthood, dying in 1628 just a few years after their reunion. Nathaniel Morton later described the Colony’s loss in his later publication "New England's Memorial": "This year died Mr. Richard Warren….an useful Instrument, and during his life bare a deep share in the Difficulties and Troubles of the first Settlement of the Plantation of New Plimmouth." All of the Warren children went on to marry and have large families, with many thousands of Americans of today able to trace their descent from this early Plymouth father, Richard Warren. Photo: detail of the Warren Napkin, linen damask, made probably Haarlem, The Netherlands, 1600-1625, in the Collection of Pilgrim Hall Museum.

06/22/2026

06/20/2026

We have room for walk ups tonight! If you want to see some haunted history, meet us at the corner of North Street and Main Street at 7 PM.

06/20/2026

06/19/2026

For Juneteenth, I wanted to highlight this house at 21 Seventh Street in New Bedford, Massachusetts. During the 19th century it was the home of Nathan and Polly Johnson, a free black couple who were involved in the abolitionist movement and were active in the Underground Railroad.

Most famously, they gave shelter to Frederick Douglass, who lived in this house in 1838 after escaping from slavery in Maryland. And, it was here that he became Frederick Douglass. He had originally been named Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, and he was the son of an enslaved woman and a white man. Upon arriving in New Bedford he took on a new name, with Nathan Johnson suggesting the surname Douglass.

Frederick Douglass went on to become one of the leading voices of the abolitionist movement during the 1840s and 1850s. He wrote his memoir, “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass,” which was published in 1845, and he traveled throughout the northeast, miidwest, and internationally, giving speeches about slavery and his experiences.

The house shown in this photo has undergone changes since Douglass’s time here. In 1857 the Johnsons expanded the house with an Italianate-style section here at the front of the house. However, the back part of the house is the older section, and it dates back to the early 1800s. The Johnsons also owned the neighboring house at 17-19 Seventh Street, and both of these properties are now designated as National Historic Landmarks. The house here at 21 Seventh Street is owned by the New Bedford Historical Society, and it has been restored to its 1857 appearance.

06/19/2026

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/haunted-history-tickets-1990740034031?sg=ce54718247ca9b6ae552feee2bc7009cd40bf4b8054c5cb07fee9fd762fb11c9a7cff32dae737aeba67c80635ee4cb202a77de22f650b1a4024594a57310284813222c1c049e272ad788eba662&aff=ebdsshios

Dive into spooky tales and ghostly legends at our in-person Haunted History event!

06/19/2026

The weather is looking good for Saturday night! Come walk through time with us.

Walk through time with us. Our professional costumed guides lead you on a 90 minute stroll from the Pilgrims to the Revolution. We bring history to life.

06/15/2026