As posted here in the September 7th Saturday Serendipity, under the Old Style Julian calendar, September 6th is the date that the Mayflower finally sailed from England bound for North America; however, when the Calendar (new Style ) Act of 1750 was passed, the Gregorian calendar replaced the Julian calendar in 1752. As a result, the start of the calendar year moved from March 25th under the Old Style calendar to January 1 under the New Style calendar. This means that while contemporary Englishman (if they noticed) would have said the Mayflower finally set sail for America on September 6th, we count today, September 16th as the day of the sailing and thus today is celebrated as "Mayflower Day." Today marks the 393rd anniversary of that event.
The actual destination of the Mayflower and its 102 passengers was supposed to be a location near the mouth of the Hudson River, but they lost their course and landed instead near Cape Cod in what is Massachusetts. The Mayflower got a late start due to the leaking problems of its companion ship, the inappropriately named Speedwell . Both ships had started to cross the Atlantic, but the Speedwell began to leak and the ships returned for repairs. When the Speedwell could not be sufficiently repaired, the Mayflower set off alone on this date (New Style calendar). The late start resulted in less favorable winds, an average speed of two miles an hour, a 66-day journey, and a missed destination.
The actual destination of the Mayflower and its 102 passengers was supposed to be a location near the mouth of the Hudson River, but they lost their course and landed instead near Cape Cod in what is Massachusetts. The Mayflower got a late start due to the leaking problems of its companion ship, the inappropriately named Speedwell . Both ships had started to cross the Atlantic, but the Speedwell began to leak and the ships returned for repairs. When the Speedwell could not be sufficiently repaired, the Mayflower set off alone on this date (New Style calendar). The late start resulted in less favorable winds, an average speed of two miles an hour, a 66-day journey, and a missed destination.
After landing first out on the arm of Cape Cod in November, the Mayflower passengers spent weeks scouting out a suitable location to establish a settlement. It was on December 21, 1620 that they finally landed at the location that became Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts. Only half the passengers survived the first winter, but it is estimated that today some 35 million people can claim direct descent from the Mayflower passengers.
My double Mayflower descent is as follows:
Richard Warren m. Elizabeth Walker
Elizabeth Warren m. Richard Church Anna Warren m. Thomas Little
Joseph Church m. Mary Tucker Ephraim Little m. Mary Sturtevant
Joseph Church m. Grace Shaw Mercy Little m. Job Otis, Sr.
Caleb Church m. Deborah Woodworth Job Otis, Jr. m. Thankful Otis
(1st cousins)
Ebenezer Church m. Hannah Wood David Otis, Sr. m. Mary Vinal
Abigail Church m. Benjamin Cook David Otis, Jr. m. Ruthy Otis
(1st cousins)
Russell Cook m. Mary Vinal Otis Mary Vinal Otis m. Russell Cook
George H. Cooke m. Susannah C. Appell George H. Cooke m. Susannah C. Appell
Walter W. Cooke m. Florence L. Flagg Walter W. Cooke m. Florence L. Flagg
Ruth E. Cooke m. Everett S. Carpenter Ruth E. Cooke m. Everett S. Carpenter
(my maternal grandparents) (my maternal grandparents)
HAPPY MAYFLOWER DAY 2013!!
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Image of the Mayflower from my certificate of membership in The General Society of Mayflower Descendants.
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Copyright 2013, John D. Tew
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