Michelle Coughlin on Her Book, "Penelope Winslow, Plymouth Colony First Lady"

Dr. Donna Curtin, Executive Director of the Pilgrim Hall Museum, interviews Michelle Coughlin about her book, "Penelope Winslow, Plymouth Colony First Lady: Re-Imagining a Life." This expansive talk touches on women's history as a field, the challenges with researching women's writings, gender roles in colonial New England, and uncovering historical evidence through archeology, in addition to Penelope Winslow's fascinating biography. Michelle Marchetti Coughlin is an independent scholar and also the author of "One Colonial Woman’s World: The Life and Writings of Mehetabel Chandler Coit," which received an honorable mention for the Western Association of Women Historians' 2014 Kanner Prize. She serves on the Board of the Abigail Adams Birthplace and as Museum Administrator of Boston's Gibson House Museum. You can purchase Michelle Coughlin's book via her website: https://www.onecolonialwomansworld.com/ ------------------- CHAPTERS: 0:00 Welcome and Introductions 2:08 Q: What are some of the challenges of researching women's lives in early New England? 5:21 Q: What led you to study Penelope Winslow and to write this book? 7:10 Q: Can you talk about Penelope's elite family background? 9:48 Q: Can you tell us about Penelope's childhood? 15:02 Q: What different roles did Penelope fulfill in her life? 20:55 Q: What can we learn about Penelope from material artifacts? 24:58 Q: What evidence do we have about Penelope's literacy? 29:41 Q: What interactions and relationships did Penelope have with Indigenous groups? 39:21 Q: What project are you working on now? 41:18 Q: Where can people find out more about your work? ------------------- Connect with the Congregational Library & Archives Online: • Website: https://www.congregationallibrary.org • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CongregationalLibrary • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/congregationallibrary • Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/congrelib.bsky.social • X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/CongreLib • Threads: https://www.threads.net/@congregationallibrary • Linktree: https://linktr.ee/CongregationalLibrary