Pilgrims Surviving in the New World
Three hundred years earlier, in 1620, a group of Pilgrims left England in search of religious freedom. Their ship, the Mayflower, aimed for Jamestown, Virginia, but landfall came farther north. The settlers founded Plymouth Colony and signed the Mayflower Compact, a civil agreement that promised just laws and affirmed loyalty to King James I.
The Wampanoag had lived in what is now southeastern Massachusetts for thousands of years. In 1614, an English expedition seized twenty men from Patuxet and seven from Nauset, selling them into slavery in Spain. Only one, Tisquantum, later called Squanto, made it home.
When the Mayflower anchored in Cape Cod Bay in 1620, Tisquantum helped mediate between the newcomers and the Pokanoket people. Speaking English, Tisquantum guided the Pilgrims through their first months and lived with them for about twenty months as interpreter and advisor. Assistance from Indigenous allies allowed the settlement to survive and expand.
Marking 300 Years After the Mayflower Landing
Massachusetts Congressman Joseph Walsh felt that a commemorative half-dollar to mark the 300th anniversary of the Pilgrims’ landing at Plymouth was an event worth commemorating. With the approval of the coin legislation, the Pilgrim Tercentenary Commission chose Boston sculptor Cyrus Dallin, noted for his portrayals of Native Americans, to prepare design sketches.
Design Details
Cyrus E. Dallin created the obverse and reverse of this coin. The obverse of the coin featured a bust of Governor William Bradford, wearing a high Pilgrim hat with a copy of his “Plymouth Plantations” under his arm. The design features William Bradford, Mayflower passenger and second governor of Plymouth Colony, who served for 30 years.
Surmounting him are the words, “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA” above and “PILGRIM HALF DOLLAR” below. The legend “IN GOD WE TRUST” is behind him. A recessed “D” for Dallin is struck next to the “D” in “DOLLAR.” This is often confused for a mintmark, but all coins were struck at the Philadelphia Mint.
The reverse depicts the Mayflower in full sail in the ocean, heading left. Surrounding the coin at the periphery is “PILGRIM TERCENTENARY CELEBRATION” with the dates “1620 – 1920” below. The coin was often struck weakly and is plagued by both die cracks and die breaks in the lettering and in the sails. Critics point out that the coin’s reverse shows the Mayflower carrying a “flying jib,” a triangular sail not yet adopted when the Pilgrims arrived in 1620.
In 1921, the celebrations continued, and a companion coin was struck. The difference between the 1921 issue and the 1920 issue was that the date “1921” was added and placed to the left of Bradford’s face.
The coins were struck only at the Philadelphia Mint. For the 1920 issue, 152,112 coins were struck and distributed, while in 1921, only 20,053 were struck and distributed. Expand your collection today with this coin and shop other U.S. classic silver commemorative coins.
