The Mayflower

Profile managers: Bobbie Hall [send private message], Anne B [send private message], and Mayflower Project WikiTree [send private message]

A band of English Calvinists fled when persecuted in their homeland. In 1609, after a brief stay in Amsterdam, about 100 of them settled in Leiden. A decade or so later, as Leiden’s political and economic climate changed, the refugees moved again. They boarded a ship called the Mayflower, sailed across the Atlantic; and in 1620, put down roots in what is now Plymouth, Massachusetts. Today we call them the Pilgrims. Read more at [1]

The Mayflower was a now famous ship that carried the Pilgrims, English separatists looking for freedom from religious prosecution, from Southampton, England to Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1620.

The ship departed England on September 6 and would sail for 66 days. The journey was hampered by disease, which would claim two lives, before dropping anchor inside the hooked tip of Cape Cod on November 11. The ship was originally set to make landfall at the mouth of the Hudson River, but had sailed off course as winter approached. The passengers all went ashore on March 21. The Mayflower, a privately commissioned vessel, left for a return trip to England on April 5. The Mayflower was likely dismantled for scrap lumber after the death of her captain, Christopher Jones, in 1622.

History of the ship

The Mayflower served as a cargo ship in Europe. From 1609 to 1622 the ship was captained by Christopher Jones, who would lead the ship on its famous journey to the New World.

While the exact size of The Mayflower is unknown, it is believed it was a standard 180-ton merchant ship. It would have been between 90 and 110 feet with a width of about 25 feet. A typical crew would have been roughly 25 or 30 men.

The voyage to the New World

The original plans for the voyage were to include two ships. The Mayflower as well as the Speedwell, a ship which had been previously hired to transport Pilgrims from Delfshaven in the Netherlands to the final departure point, Southampton. However, the Speedwell developed a leak and had to dock at Dartmouth to be refitted on August 17.

With the leak repaired, the two ships departed with their Pilgrims on board. However, the leak would again spring on the Speedwell, forcing the ships to return to dock. It was later revealed that there had not been a leak on the Speedwell. It was believed by the Pilgrims on board that the disaster was fabricated by the crew of the Speedwell so they could escape their contract.

The Pilgrims reorganized their plan and finally made their departure on the Mayflower alone on September 6. The ship was crammed full and space was limited and confined.

While the original destination, near what is present-day New York city, was the mouth of the Hudson River, the Mayflower was blown off-course by the onset of winter weather. The settlers intended to travel to their Virginia destination where they had received permission from the London Company to settle. But due to their setback, their untimely landing occurred in the middle of the harsh New England winter.

The settlers were experiencing strife and disenchantment within their ranks. In order to quell a potential uprising, they all wrote and signed the Mayflower Compact on November 11.

Upon their arrival, the winter snows had already settled in. The settlers discovered what they believed was an empty Native American village. Assuming the natives gone, they dug up many areas of the village. They discovered stores of food alongside burial mounds. The settlers stole the food and looted the graves, infuriating the Native Americans. The settlers continued down the coast and explored the Cape Cod area. They continued to raid the empty villages and desecrate the graves as they went. They had difficult confrontation with the angry Native Americans in December 1620 on the later aptly-named First Encounter Beach.

The passengers remained on board the Mayflower during the winter. There was an outbreak of a severe disease that, when all was said and done, left only 53 of the original 100 surviving passengers alive. In the spring, the passengers built houses on shore and on March 21, 1621, the surviving passengers all departed the Mayflower.

The Mayflower left the New World for England on April 5 and arrived back on on May 6.

There were 102 passengers on the Mayflower: 74 men and 28 women. Here is a complete list:

Pilgrim Families

• Allerton, Isaac
  • Mary (Norris) Allerton, wife (Newbury, Berkshire)
  • Bartholomew Allerton, son (Leiden, Netherlands)
  • Remember Allerton, daughter (Leiden, Netherlands)
  • Mary Allerton, daughter (Leiden, Netherlands), the last survivor of the Mayflower company[2]
• Bradford, William (Austerfield, Yorkshire)
  • Dorothy (May) Bradford, wife (Wisbech, Cambridgeshire)
• Brewster, William. (Doncaster, Yorkshire)
  • Mary Brewster, wife
  • Love Brewster, son (Leiden, Netherlands)
  • Wrestling Brewster, son (Leiden, Netherlands)
• Carver, John
  • Katherine (White) Carver wife (probably Sturton-le-Steeple, Nottinghamshire)
• Chilton, James (Canterbury)
  • Mrs. Susanna Chilton, wife
  • Mary Chilton, daughter (Sandwich, Kent)
• Cooke, Francis
  • John Cook, son (Leiden, Netherlands)
• Cooper, Humility - (probably Leiden, Netherlands) baby daughter of Robert Cooper, traveling with Ann Cooper Tilley, wife of Edward Tilley
• Crackstone, John (Stratford St. Mary, Suffolk)
  • John Crackstone, son
• Fletcher, Moses (probably Canterbury, Kent)
• Fuller, Edward (Redenhall, Norfolk, England)
  • Mrs. Edward Fuller, wife
  • Samuel Fuller, son
• Fuller, Samuel (Redenhall, Norfolk), (brother to Edward)
• Goodman, John
• Minter, Desire (Norwich, Norfolk)
• Priest, Degory born in England, hatter in Holland
• Rogers, Thomas (Watford, Northamptonshire)
  • Joseph Rogers, son (Watford, Northamptonshire)
• Samson, Henry (Henlow, Bedfordshire) child in company of his uncle and aunt Edward and Ann Tilley)
• Tilley, Edward (Henlow, Bedfordshire)
  • Ann (Cooper) Tilley (Henlow, Bedfordshire) wife of Edward and aunt of Humilty Cooper and Henry Sampson
• Tilley, John (Henlow, Bedfordshire)
  • Joan (Hurst) (Rogers) Tilley, wife (Henlow, Bedfordshire)
  • Elizabeth Tilley, daughter (Henlow, Bedfordshire)
• Tinker, Thomas
  • Mrs. Thomas Tinker, wife
  • boy Tinker, son
• Turner, John
  • boy Turner, son
  • boy Turner, younger son
• White, William
  • Susanna (Jackson) White, wife
  • Resolved White, son
  • Peregrine White, son (born in Provincetown Harbor)
• Williams, Thomas, (Great Yarmouth, Norfolk)
• Winslow, Edward (Droitwich, Worcestershire)
  • Elizabeth (Barker) Winslow, wife

Planters recruited by London merchants

• Billington, John (possibly Spalding, Lincolnshire)
  • Eleanor Billington, wife
  • John Billington, son
  • Francis Billington, son
• Britteridge, Richard
• Browne, Peter (Dorking, Surrey)
• Clarke, Richard
• Eaton, Francis (Bristol, Avon (historic: Somerset))
  • Sarah Eaton, wife
  • Samuel Eaton, son
• Gardiner, Richard (Harwich, Essex)
• Hopkins, Stephen (Upper Clatford, Hampshire)
  • Elizabeth (Fisher) Hopkins, wife
  • Giles Hopkins, son by first marriage (Hursley, Hampshire)
  • Constance Hopkins, daughter by first marriage (Hursley, Hampshire)
  • Damaris Hopkins, daughter
  • Oceanus Hopkins, born en route
• Margesson, Edmund
• Martin, Christopher (Billericay, Essex)
  • Mary (Prower) Martin, wife
• Mullins, William (Dorking, Surrey)
  • Alice Mullins, wife
  • Priscilla Mullins, daughter
  • Joseph Mullins, son
• Prower, Solomon (Billericay, Essex)
• Rigsdale, John
  • Alice Rigsdale, wife
• Standish, Myles (Chorley, Lancashire)
  • Rose Standish, wife
• Warren, Richard (Hertford, England)
• Winslow, Gilbert (Droitwich, Worcestershire), brother to "Pilgrim" Edward Winslow but not known to have lived in Leiden

Men hired to stay one year

• Alden, John (Harwich, Essex) - considered a ship's crewman (he was the ship's cooper) but joined settlers
• Allerton, John, was to return to England to help the rest of the group immigrate but died in the winter.
• Ely, Mr., hired as seaman, returned to England after term was up.
• English, Thomas, hired to master a shallop but died in the winter
• Trevore, William, hired as seaman, returned to England after term was up

Family servants

Thirteen of the 18 people in this category were attached to Pilgrim families, the other five were attached to Non-Pilgrim families.

• Butten, William, age "a youth", servant of Samuel Fuller, only person who died during the voyage
• Carter, Robert, age unknown, servant or apprentice to William Mullins, shoemaker.
• (?), Dorothy, maidservant of John Carver.
• Doty, Edward, (possibly Lincolnshire) age probably about 21, servant to Stephen Hopkins
• Holbeck, William, age likely under 21, servant to William White
• Hooke, John, (probably Norwich, Norfolk) age 13, apprenticed to Isaac Allerton
• Howland, John (probably Fenstanton, Huntingdonshire), age about 21, manservant for Governor John Carver
• Lancemore, John (probably Shropshire or Worcestershire), age under 21, servant to the Christopher Martin
• Latham, William, age 11, servant/apprentice to the John Carver family
• Leister, Edward (Kensington), aged over 21, servant to Stephen Hopkins
• More, Ellen, (Shipton, Shropshire), age 8, indentured to Edward Winslow
  • Jasper More, (Shipton, Shropshire), brother, age 7, indentured to John Carver
  • Richard, (Shipton, Shropshire), brother, age 6, indentured to William Brewster
  • Mary, (Shipton, Shropshire), sister, age 4, indentured to William Brewster
• Soule, George, teacher of Edward Winslow's children
• Story, Elias, age under 21, in the care of Edward Winslow
• Thompson, Edward, age under 21, in the care of the William White family, first passenger to die after the Mayflower reached Cape Cod.
• Wilder, Roger, age under 21, servant in the John Carver family