This book uncovers what might seem to be a dark side of the American dream: the New World from the viewpoint of those who decided not to stay. At the core of the volume are the life histories of people who left New England during the British Civil Wars and Interregnum, 1640–1660. More than a third of the ministers who had stirred up emigration from England deserted their flocks to return home. The colonists’ stories challenge our perceptions of early settlement and the religious ideal of New England as a "City on a Hill." America was a stage in their journey, not an end in itself. Susan Hardman Moore first explores the motives for migration to New England in the 1630s and the rhetoric that surrounded it. Then, drawing on extensive original research into the lives of hundreds of migrants, she outlines the complex reasons that spurred many to brave the Atlantic again, homeward bound. Her book ends with the fortunes of colonists back home and looks at the impact of their American experience. Of exceptional value to studies of the connections between the Old and New Worlds, Pilgrims contributes to debates about the nature of the New England experiment and its significance for the tumults of revolutionary England.

Now its my turn, Moe said. His index finger had the angry strength of steel even before he moved it onto the machine guns trigger. Heidis anxious hands became stronger as she clasped them together in prayer. When she opened her eyes, she stared briefly at the blood residue on Joes forearm. She then ran out of the store while yelling, You should catch me first. Im the one who gave those men their weapons. Heidi, a descendant of William Brewster and Gregory Dexter, is a new HIDE agent. When she becomes attached by a rope to a shooter, she sacrifices her own freedom in order to help others. During her journey, Heidi must sometimes run, hide, and fight. At other times, she stands her ground, becomes visible, and shares her faith and her love. Heidi occasionally remains quiet while sometimes speaking freely about her love for Kevin, her faith, and her ideas for dealing with shooters. Her hidden speech and free speech happen with words, body language, security glasses, and symbols. Unhidden Pilgrims connects free speech to religious freedom, dreams to reality, and the present to the past with action-filled scenes and pictures of historic items in Providence, Rhode Island, and Plymouth, Massachusetts.