Lord of Misrule: Thomas Morton's Battle with Puritan New England

Independent plantations in New England – such as Plimoth Plantation - often had investors back in England who hoped to make quick money through various colonial schemes. One such settlement – Merry Mount, at what is now Mount Wollaston in Quincy, Massachusetts – severed ties with all but one of its investors, and went feral.

The result: maypoles, dancing, mayhem – and a series of ongoing conflicts between Merry Mount’s renegade proprietor, Thomas Morton, and the upright Puritan and Pilgrim colonies at Plimoth and Massachusetts Bay. So heated were these conflicts that at its first recorded meeting on September 7, 1630, the Massachusetts Bay Colony already was singling out Morton as a troublemaker to be brought in for questioning. Plimoth's Governor William Bradford recorded that Morton called himself Merry Mount’s "Lord of Misrule,” a traditional term for the leader of extravagant revels such as May Day or Christmas.

All are welcome to participate in a discussion of Thomas Morton and his conflicts with his Puritan and Pilgrim neighbors. The discussion will be led by E.J. Barnes, writer and illustrator of the comics story “Thomas Morton, Merry Mount’s Lord of Misrule,” published in the award-winning Colonial Comics: New England, 1620-1750 – described as “smart, surprising, fun, and educational.” We will discuss E.J. Barnes’ story as well as Morton’s own notorious, but witty and perceptive, New English Canaan.

Newcomers please note: this is a discussion of readings, as well as a presentation; you'll be happier if you do the reading!

About E.J. Barnes

E.J. Barnes is a writer and illustrator of comics, working in a variety of artistic media. Her historical comics include her self-published comics Caroline’s Catalog about astronomer Caroline Herschel, and the comical pastiche Me & Doctor Dee. She is currently working on a historical graphic novel, Spirits and Seekers: Cagliostro in Courland. She researched and wrote the script for "Bring Me The Head of Phineas Gage," for the science comics anthology Boundless (2016). Her self-published comic books, historical and otherwise, can be found at www.drownedtownpress.com. She lives and works in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Reading

E.J. Barnes, “Thomas Morton, Merry Mount’s Lord of Misrule,” in Colonial Comics: New England 1620-1750, Jason Rodriquez, ed. (Fulcrum Publishing, 2014)

Widely available in libraries and direct from the publisher. Copies are also available on Amazon.

Thomas Morton, New English Canaan: Text and Notes, Jack Dempsey, ed. (Digital Scanning, 2000)

This superior edition of New English Canaan is hard to find in libraries, but readily available – including secondhand copies – through Amazon.

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