Today in History: Plymouth Colony
Today in History–October 4–the Library of Congress features Plymouth Colony. On October 4, 1636, the General Court of Plymouth Colony instituted a legal code that guaranteed citizens a trial by jury and laws made with the consent of freemen. Discover more by reviewing the Today in History section, then click the links below to access stories and primary sources.
The Murder of Penowanyanquis and the Trial of Arthur Peach, Plymouth, 1638
The Book of the General Laws of the Inhabitants of the Jurisdiction of New-Plimouth 1685 (curator note)
Books and other texts related to Plymouth Colony
Plymouth 400th Commemoration Commission Act
Plymouth 400th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act
The Treaty That Saved Plymouth Colony In Custodia Legis March 22, 2017
A Civil Body Politic: The Mayflower Compact and 17th-Century Corporations In Custodia Legis November 24, 2021
Teaching resources
- Primary Source Learning: The Wampanoag, the Plimoth Colonists & the First Thanksgiving
- Teaching Now: Separating Myths from History
Related resources
- Pilgrims primary source set
- Pictorial Americana: Settlement & Colonial Life
- Settlement primary source set
- Colonial time period primary source sets
- Stories About Colonial America from America’s Library
- American Treasures of the Library of Congress
- Words & Deeds in American History
- Religion and the Founding of the American Republic