When I was 11 years old, my family hosted a teenage boy from Greece. Of course he and my older brother hung out with friends and did teenage things; like putting on too much cologne and wearing denim jackets to look cool for the girls, but my parents also toured him around museums and historical places. I remember my family bringing Christos to Plymouth Rock. His response.... "We have Alexander, and you have a ROCK!" I think of Christos from Thessaloniki, every time I walk by the Plymouth Rock Portico as I watch tourists look for the place they believe the Pilgrims actually landed. They run up to this beautiful portico, walk inside, and exclaim, "is this it!!!???" There is a usual disappointment in their voices. To further the disappointment, there is in fact no evidence that the Pilgrims took their first steps here.
However, the rock has become somewhat of a symbol of courage, freedom, faith, and new beginnings. A story of people going on an extraordinary adventure, losing many to death on the seas, to stand for their beliefs. Yet there is another symbol that the rock represents to the natives of the land. A symbol that is quite the opposite of what has been taught, because what one group gained, another lost. Regardless of how one feels about the historical facts about Plymouth Rock... The portico it finds itself home in, is quite beautiful. The rock, settled in sand, half the size that it once was, and even cemented back together and stamped with 1620, is littered with coins of ones who have cast wishes. The rock sits like royalty with the best view of Plymouth Harbor watching the tides come and go and the seasons change with the influx of boats and then the empty quiet harbor that reclaims its peace in winter.
The portico was built in 1921 and designed by McKim, Mead, and White. It is a beautiful example of Neo Classical Revival Architecture. It looks like a Roman temple built on Plymouth Harbor. In recent years, Bargmann, Hendrie, and Archetype, Inc ran renovations, reconstruction, and cleaning of the portico. It really is a beautiful architectural structure and I cannot picture Plymouth waterfront without it.
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