John Alden's Choice, A Tale of Love, War and Friendship

Take a journey back in time to explore a tale of love, war and British-American relations during the 300th anniversary of the Mayflower journey in this virtual talk  with senior lecturer at Queen's University Belfast Dr. Tom Hulme.

Two years after the end of World War I, America and Britain marked the tricentennial of the Pilgrim journey  with religious services, parades, musical performances, and large-scale historical re-enactments.  Dr. Hulme's talk will highlight one of the most fascinating of these programs - the pageant "John Alden's Choice," performed in the quays of Southampton and a historic point of departure for the Mayflower in 1620.  This grand event told the story of not just Alden and his romance with Priscilla Mullins, but the history of America, from encounters with Native Americans to the joining of Britain and the United States in the Great War.  

Dr. Hulme is a Senior Lecturer in Modern British History at Queen's University Belfast and the director of "Voyaging through History:  the Mayflower and Britain, 1620-2020" a collaborative project with the University of Exeter and the British Library.

 Alden House Historic Site is owned and operated by the Alden Kindred of America.  Part of the property granted to Mayflower passengers John and Priscilla Mullins Alden and home to generations of their descendants, it is now a museum and designated a National Historic Landmark.  Alden House Historic Site is located at 105 Alden Street, Duxbury.