Squanto: A Native Odyssey Book Launch with Author Andrew Lipman

In-person and Online.

About the Event:

Join Plimoth Patuxet Museums and author Andrew Lipman as he launches his new book Squanto: A Native Odyssey (release date September 17, 2024). In his new book, Lipman takes a fresh look at Squanto, the man famously associated with Plymouth Colony's early survival. Following the lecture, signed books will be available for purchase.

About the Book:

American schoolchildren have long learned about Squanto, the welcoming Native who made the First Thanksgiving possible, but his story goes deeper than the holiday legend. Born in the Wampanoag-speaking town of Patuxet in the late 1500s, Squanto was kidnapped in 1614 by an English captain, who took him to Spain. From there, Englishmen brought him to London and Newfoundland before sending him home in 1619, when Squanto discovered that most of Patuxet had died in an epidemic. A year later, the Mayflower colonists arrived at his home and renamed it Plymouth.

Prize-winning historian Andrew Lipman explores the mysteries that still surround Squanto: How did he escape bondage and return home? Why did he help the English after an Englishman enslaved him? Why did he threaten Plymouth’s fragile peace with its neighbors? Was it true that he converted to Christianity on his deathbed? Drawing from a wide range of evidence and newly uncovered sources, Lipman reconstructs Squanto’s upbringing, his transatlantic odyssey, his career as an interpreter, his surprising downfall, and his enigmatic death. The result is a fresh look at an epic life that ended right when many Americans think their story begins.

About the Author:

Andrew Lipman is a historian of Early America who joined the Barnard faculty in 2015 after five years teaching at Syracuse University. His research interests include the Atlantic World, early America, Native Americans, violence, technology, and the environment. His first book, The Saltwater Frontier: Indians and the Contest for the American Coast, won the Bancroft Prize in American History. He is presently completing a book manuscript titled The Life and Times of Squanto.

Lipman’s work has appeared in Common-place, Early American Studies, Reviews in American History, and The William and Mary Quarterly and he’s contributed pieces to Slate and TIME. His research has been supported by the American Philosophical Society, The Huntington Library, The International Seminar in the History of the Atlantic World at Harvard, John Carter Brown Library, Mystic Seaport Museum, and the New-York Historical Society. He has also consulted exhibits and programs at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian in New York, the Museum of the City of New York, and N-YHS, and served as a consultant for television series including Finding Your Roots (PBS), Who Do You Think You Are? (TLC), and Frontiersmen (History Channel). He is an elected fellow of the Colonial Society of Massachusetts and the Massachusetts Historical Society.

This program is free to members and included with daily admission.

Following the lecture, books will be available for purchase.

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FAQs

What can I bring into the event?

You may bring a bagged lunch or snack to enjoy while you experience the lecture series. Our Plentiful Café is open from March 23-December 1. Lunch is not included in the ticket price.

How can I contact the organizer with any questions?

Please contact Christina Coleman, Director of Education and Group Programs, at (508) 746-1622 ext. 8107 or by emailing [email protected], with any questions or if you would like to purchase tickets over the phone.

Do I have to bring my printed ticket to the event?

You do not have to bring your printed ticket to the event. You may give your name to the Event Facilitator at check-in.

Host or Publisher Plimoth Patuxet: Commemorating 400 Years 1620-2020