I’ve been offering blog readers tours of places that played a role in the Mayflower story. You can visit Scrooby, York, and Boston in England at your leisure. Before we emigrate with the Pilgrims to Holland, I want you to meet a few Pilgrim Authors – that is authors who have researched and written about the Mayflower story. These people have devoted years to researching and writing about the fascinating stories behind the Mayflower story. Much of what we learned in history classes is either inaccurate or woefully incomplete. If you believe, as I do, that history and facts matter, I think you’ll find reading what these folks have written worth your time.
Sue Allan – English Historian & Genealogist
Author Sue Allan
I first discovered this remarkable Englishwoman when I came upon her infinitely helpful biography of William Brewster: The Making of a Pilgrim. I relied on her research extensively to fill in gaps in my knowledge about the Separatist spiritual leader before he showed up aboard the Mayflower. Sue recently published a new biography of Willian Bradford. For nearly 30 years he served as Governor of the fledgling Plymouth Plantation. But first he grew up not far from William Brewster and the two were close friends before they left England. In 2012 Sue was appointed the Official Historian at Scrooby Manor. She’s published a New World historical fiction trilogy and is quite knowledgeable about the people and events connected to the Mayflower story. You can meet her in this Sue Allan interview. Her books are available through her publisher Dom Tom in England. Fortunately for those of us on this side of the Atlantic, many are also available at the Pilgrim Hall Shop in Plymouth, MA.
Caleb Johnson – Historian Author and Web History Manager
Author Sue Allan, Historians Simon Neal and Caleb Johnson.
Caleb Johnson researches and writes from his home in the USA. He maintains an excellent website with all kinds of interesting details about Mayflower history. He’s published several books on the topic, including The Brewster Book Manuscript, Here Shall I Die Ashore, about passenger Stephen Hopkins available in print and audio format, and The Mayflower and her Passengers.
His website contains a convenient collection of both fiction and non-fiction books related to the Pilgrims, making it easy to peruse titles and determine which books from other authors might best suit your personal interests. Check out his Mayflower History Bookstore.
Dr. Jeremy D. Bangs – Historian and Author
Dr. Jeremy Dupertius Bangs
Anyone who dives very deep into the Pilgrim story pond will soon encounter books by Dr. Bangs. He is considered by many historians to be the go-to scholar for information about the Pilgrims’ years in Leiden and the crucial role those years played in shaping how they governed themselves once they arrived in the New World. At one time he was the Chief Curator at the Plimoth Plantation. Probably his best-known work is Strangers and Pilgrims: Travellers and Sojourners. Some of his other books include Pilgrim Edward Winslow, Indian Deeds: Land Transactions in Plymouth Colony and New Light on the Old Colony, which includes a list of publications the Pilgrims used and took with them to the Plymouth Colony, published by Brill Publishing. Though Brill books are expensive, they are offering a 20% discount valid through the end of the year, code 75000. He founded the Leiden American Pilgrim Museum, located in a small 14th Century home in the heart of Old Leiden. The recent Pilgrim Heritage tour of Leiden included a stop at the museum. If you don’t want to spend four hours watching Leiden tour, I invite you to watch for my upcoming blogs where I’ll cover some of the highlights for you.
How fun that you are developing a network of fellow writers and experts in this field!
Not only are these folks knowledgeable, they are also generous in sharing what they’ve learned.