When it comes to historical memory, the old saying that you can’t choose your relatives is just plain wrong. Americans have chosen the Pilgrims as honorary ancestors, and we tend to see their story as inseparable from the story of our nation. We have burdened them with values they wouldn’t have recognized and shrouded their story with myth. 1. The Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock. If you visit Plymouth, you’ll find a distinctive rock about the size of your living-room sofa embedded in the sandy beach, proclaiming, “Plymouth Rock: Landing Place of the Pilgrims.” Based on what? In 1741 — 121 years after the Pilgrims arrived — a young boy overheard 95-year-old Thomas Faunce relate that his...
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