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The Pilgrim story

Chapter 59: Transcriber’s Notes
By William Franklin Atwood
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History - AmericanHistory - Religious

About This Book

Drawing on contemporaneous colonial accounts, the work traces a group's escape from religious persecution to refuge abroad, their transatlantic voyage and compact, and the founding of a small New England settlement. It chronicles the community's early struggles, severe winter losses, practical arrangements for governance, and encounters with neighboring Indigenous nations that lead to a fragile peace and a shared harvest celebration. Subsequent chapters record the arrival of additional vessels, legal and territorial organization, internal disputes, and political alliances that contribute to the colony's gradual consolidation.

[1]The religious wars involving England, Holland and Spain.
[2]From this expression, as well as from the whole passage, there can hardly be a doubt that Bradford himself was in the vessel. The description is that of an eye witness.—Young’s Chronicles, p. 29.
[3]“The printing house was searched; the type, books, and papers were seized and searched as well as sealed.”—Life and Time of William Brewster. Rev. Ashbed Steele, A.M. p. 178. J. B. Lippincott and Co. 1857.
[4]The age of but few is known. Carver was undoubtedly the oldest. In 1620 Elder Brewster was 56 years old, Robinson 45, Bradford 32, Edward Winslow 26, and John Howland 28.
[5]After the war had been raging for more than thirty years between Spain and the United Provinces, by the mediation of Henry IV of France and James I of England, a truce of twelve years was concluded on the 9th of April, 1609. This truce expired in 1621.
[6]It appears that at other times they were more fortunate, quote: “So we made there our rendezvous for that night under a few pine trees; and as it fell out, we got three fat geese, and six ducks to our supper, which we ate with soldiers’ stomachs, for we had eaten little all that day”—Bradford’s and Winslow’s Journal (Young’s Chronicles, p. 139).
[7]Clark’s Island, probably named after Mr. Clark of the Mayflower.
[8]Officially recognized as Forefather’s Day. The first permanent landing.
[9]This was Jones River, probably named after the Mayflower’s captain.
[10]Clark’s Island where they spent their first Sabbath.
[11]An apparent error in this count is due to the fact that in two years, or 1646 and 1649, no election was held; the governor simply carried on.
[12]This is the origin of our Thanksgiving Day. As it extended over a period of several days, it might well be termed a season of Thanksgiving.
[13]O. S.
[14]O. S.
[15]John Atwood was a trusted friend of James Sherley and represented him in the final adjustment. Sherley was one of the Merchant Adventurers and a friend and benefactor of the Plymouth colony.

See letters p’s 449, 454, 478, “Bradford’s History of Plimouth Plantation” Printed Boston 1898 from the original manuscript.

Transcriber’s Notes

  • Silently corrected a few typos.
  • Retained publication information from the printed edition: this eBook is public-domain in the country of publication.
  • Added captions to illustrations, based on the “Index to Illustrations”
  • In the text versions only, text in italics is delimited by _underscores_.