Memory's Nation

“[Seelye] says flatly that the Plymouth Rock legend was a myth, but charts how the myth evolved over the years — in paintings, literature and public speeches — and how various political and social movements (especially abolition) made use of it. The book is rich, even lavish, in its detail . . . on subjects that range from early New England patriotic iconography . . . to the rivalry between Plymouth and Provincetown over Pilgrim bragging rights, to how the Rock itself has been displayed over the centuries.” — Publishers Weekly

“An extensive and often entertaining study of the place of Plymouth Rock in the national memory.” — Boston Globe

“Seelye’s canvas is both sweeping and subtle. . . . Theoretically sophisticated and deeply researched, this splendid account is both unassuming and ambitious. It offers a gold mine of information for all students of American intellectual and social history.” — CHOICE

“Seelye’s survey of the multiple meanings of Plymouth Rock is stippled with keen insights and wry ironies that make for fascinating reading. Equally enlightening is his account of Plymouth Rock’s evolution as a shrine and tourist attraction.” — Christian Science Monitor

“Memory’s Nation by John Seelye is a rich and enormously detailed study of the idea of Plymouth Rock in American cultural and political life.” — AB Bookman’s Weekly

“The most powerful demonstration of the constructed character of American origins published in recent memory.” — Early American Literature

“An absorbing account of how a rock indistinguishable from numerous others along the New England shore came to embody a region’s ambitions and a nation’s identity. . . . A monumental work of scholarship on the multiple meanings of a single national icon.” — American Historical Review

“Seelye provides an occasion for the reader to share — indeed, indulge — in this type of investigation, rumination, and curiosity-sating that all scholars desire. Seelye’s is a meticulous and subtly witty style.” — Journal of the Early Republic

“This rich, nuanced, and often witty book will be a delight to anyone sharing a fascination for the new history of memory, and should be essential reading for administrators and staff of historic buildings, sites, and monuments. . . . For a work such as this, context is everything, and the reader’s patience will be rewarded by a deeper understanding of the ways in which public memories take shape.” — Public Historian

“Thoughtful, extremely well researched, and indeed definitive. . . . Seelye illuminates the changing nature and significance of Plymouth Rock, and in the process of so doing provides a distinctive perspective on larger trends in New England and American history.” — William and Mary Quarterly