Back William Bradford

William Bradford

1590–1657
Statue of William Bradford at the Pilgrim Hall Museum, Plymouth, MA. (Flickr/Licensed under Creative Commons)

Major works:
Of Plymouth Plantation, 1620–1647

“Bradford’s Of Plimmoth Plantation records the performing of the great work from the landing in 1620 to 1647. The theme is intricate, moving, and at times majestic, and Bradford rises to it in all respects; his book, unique in the ranks of Puritan historiography, is an authentic masterpiece. Its limitations are the limitations of Puritan culture, its merits are its own.”—Peter Gay, A Loss of Mastery: Puritan Historians in Colonial America

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