Leaving the hill at the southeast slope and following down the terraced
brick and granite walk, we step into Town Square. This is the logical
center of the town and it may well be said, for generations the seat of
government with the Town House on the south side, bearing its
descriptive tablet. Just ahead is the first street leading to the water
and reaching to the north is Main Street.
Let us here face about. As we look up the square we face the First
Church (Unitarian), so called by virtue of its succession of unbroken
records, the oldest volume of which may be seen in Pilgrim Hall. This
church was dedicated on Dec. 21, 1899. Its arched portal is an elaborate
copy of the portal of the church at Austerfield, England, in which Gov.
Bradford was christened. A tablet near the entrance bears the following
inscription:
The Church of Scrooby, Leyden, and the Mayflower gathered on this
hillside in 1620, has ever since preserved unbroken records and
maintained a continuous ministry, its first covenant being still the
basis of its fellowship. In reverent memory of its Pilgrim founders
this fifth meeting house was erected A. D. MDCCCXCVII.
At the east end of the church is a memorial window representing John
Robinson delivering his farewell address to the Pilgrims. This window is
an artistic masterpiece. It was designed by Edward P. Sperry and since
its installation it has been an object of much interest to visitors to
Plymouth. Numerous other windows are commemorative of historic events.
The wood church of Gothic design occupying this site previous to
erection of the present edifice, was built in 1830 and was destroyed by
fire on Nov. 22, 1892.
On the right of the square is the Congregational Church, or Church of
the Pilgrimage, erected in 1840, on which is a tablet with the following
inscription:
This tablet is inscribed in grateful memory of the Pilgrims and of
their successors who, at the time of the Unitarian controversy in
1801, adhered to the belief of the Fathers, and on the basis of the
original creed and covenant perpetuated, at great sacrifice, in the
Church of the Pilgrimage, the evangelical faith and fellowship of the
Church of Scrooby, Leyden, and the “Mayflower” organized in England in
1606.
The first meeting house was erected in 1637 near the Gov. Bradford
House. This building contained a bell, as did the more pretentious
building erected in 1683 with its diamond leaded windows, Gothic roof,
etc. In 1744 still another place of worship was erected nearer the site
of the present First Church, and this remained until 1830, when the
church that preceded the present church was built.
Considering Town Square as a focal point, there are several divergent
routes one may take, each contributing its legacy of historical
interest.
[Illustration: TOWN SQUARE—Old view. Looking down Church Lane.
Leyden Street (first street) and ocean in distance.]