In September 1620, a seedling of American history was planted when The Mayflower set sail from Plymouth, England to the New World. On Monday, June 6th – nearly 400 years later – The Mayflower II returned home to its destination (now Plymouth, MA) after undergoing restorative construction in Mystic, Connecticut. The replica ship was greeted by an excited crowd of Plymouth natives, tourists, and enthused history buffs.

The Mayflower II isn’t the real deal, but the accuracy of this replica is so exact that it might as well be. The ship was a gift from England, given as a sign of gratitude for US support in World War II. It has been a major attraction since it’s completion in 1957 – thousands of guests visited yearly to relive the Pilgrim voyage made years ago.

See the Mayflower II with your students on an EF Explore America tour of historic Boston!

For the past few years The Mayflower II has resided at the Henry B. DuPont Preservation Shipyard in Mystic, Connecticut where historians and constructionists have been hard at work restoring this piece of history. The Mayflower II is eligible to be a National Historic Landmark, meaning every detail of the replica ship has to align with the original. Even after years of tedious restoration there is still much to be done! The Plimouth Plantation (the museum associated with the ship) has a fundraising goal of $12 million to carry out the remaining updates. They hope to have the project completed by 2020 – just in time for the Mayflower’s 400th anniversary!