Plimoth Patuxet Museums and the State Library of Massachusetts are delighted to share their joint publication of a new facsimile of the Bradford Manuscript, commonly known as Of Plimoth Plantation. For the first time in printed form since 1896, this volume presents the handwritten history of Plymouth Colony from William Bradford, Mayflower passenger and the Colony’s longest serving governor, in a format accessible to the general public.

We hope you'll join us Thursday, November 19 at 7:00pm for a virtual book launch hosted live and featuring messages from guests including Nathaniel Philbrick, bestselling author of Mayflower. The event is free, but we ask that you register via this Eventbrite page.

Be the first to know when the new Of Plimoth Plantation is ready for purchase!

In this new edition from Plimoth Patuxet and the State Library of Massachusetts, the complete collection of Bradford’s pages appears with greater clarity than ever before along with illuminating introductory materials and a detailed index to help the reader navigate this one-of-a-kind document. This new edition’s pages are cut to the same size as the original manuscript allowing the reader to imagine themselves holding the original as they examine Bradford’s own words.

This special new volume will be available exclusively through Plimoth Patuxet’s gift shops and at www.plimoth.com. Books will be available for purchase on November 19; however, those wishing to be notified are welcome to sign up for an email about the book's availability.

About the Bradford Manuscript

Of Plimoth Plantation is considered by many to be one of Massachusetts’ – and indeed the Nation’s – greatest treasures. Since its return to Massachusetts at the end of the 19th century the original has been carefully preserved by the State Library of Massachusetts. The book details the major events in the lives of a small group of religious Separatists, known as the Pilgrims, who set out from England to seek the religious freedom that was not available to them back home. Bradford presents in manuscript format the authoritative account of the Mayflower voyage, relationships with 17th-century Indigenous communities, and the settling of what would become the first permanent European colony in New England, using the Mayflower Compact as its governing document.

Learn more about the Bradford Manuscript and the new edition.