A Mayflower Story
This coming November marks the 400th anniversary of the voyage of the Mayflower ship. There are many
noteworthy stories of Mayflower passengers and history; a notable recounting is on the Mayflower Story website. I have several friends who are direct descendants of William Brewster, a passenger who became the leader of the Plymouth Colony. However, my Mayflower ancestors, John Howland and Elizabeth Tilley, had a rather unusual story.
noteworthy stories of Mayflower passengers and history; a notable recounting is on the Mayflower Story website. I have several friends who are direct descendants of William Brewster, a passenger who became the leader of the Plymouth Colony. However, my Mayflower ancestors, John Howland and Elizabeth Tilley, had a rather unusual story.Recently, FamilySearch published a blog article about John and Elizabeth. Spoiler alert: John was one of the two indentured servants on the ship, and he actually fell overboard on the voyage but was rescued. The article gives some interesting insights into the voyage, the arrival, the excruciating first winter, and how the lives of John and Elizabeth might have become intertwined in America. But no more spoilers; you can discover the details in the article. Enjoy!
If you want to look them up on FamilySearch, John Howland’s ID is LZK8-1X7, and Elizabeth Tilley’s is LZ8B-H42. They also have biographies on Wikipedia:
