Get Connected

Two of our board members, Roger Burke and Jim Crawford, along with Dr. David Goss of Gordon College, are leading a two-week tour of historically significant sites from the Puritan tradition. During their journey, they'll be sending us pictures of some of the highlights, which we'll gather here once each week.

Day 1 -- Monday, June 18th

The trip began in Salem, Mass., with a visit to Pioneer Village, a reproduction of an early 17th-century Puritan town, and an introductory lecture on Puritan New England.

Day 2 -- Tuesday, June 19th

The second day brought the group into Boston. They visited a number of historic sites and historical archives (including a stop here at the Congregational Library) to look at Puritan landmarks, documents, and artifacts.

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At the Old South Church, Boston, where Jim Crawford talked about some of
the difficult issues the first- and second-generation churches faced.

Once the local portion of the tour was done, the travelers were off to the airport for their overnight flight to London.

Day 3 -- Wendnesday, June 20th

After checking into their London hotel, the tour members were given the option of taking a boat ride down the Thames or exploring on their own.

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The group on the Westminster Bridge with Big Ben in the background.

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"We took a trip down the Thames to Greenwich
where, amongst other things, we saw the Cutty Sark."

Day 4 -- Thursday, June 21st

The second day in London included visits to Parliament, Westminster Abbey, and the British Museum. Although the focus of the museum tour was, of course, the Puritans and Oliver Cromwell, our travellers couldn't resist the draw of popping over to see the Classical sculptures, as well.

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"With our guide at the British Museum discussing the original friezes of the Parthenon. This tour has been fabulous for everyone. We have bonded well, have learned much and are looking forward to being in East Anglia today where our Puritan forebearers lived and eventually left."

Many thanks to Roger Burke for sending back such lovely images, and to Olde Ipswich Tours for arranging this pilgrimage for our friends. We look forward to seeing what they get up to in the coming week.

UPDATE: Read about the group's continuing adventures in part two!