The Pilgrim Society, founded in 1820, built Pilgrim Hall Museum in 1824. It is the oldest continuously operating public museum in the country and America’s museum of Pilgrim possessions. Pilgrim Hall’s extraordinary collection of 17th century artifacts, some of which indeed came on the Mayflower, illuminates the story of the founding of Plymouth Colony. It is a story of struggle, sacrifice, courage and perseverance. In many ways, it is the story of the founding of America.