{"id":5411,"date":"2013-11-25T16:57:08","date_gmt":"2013-11-25T16:57:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/?p=5411"},"modified":"2021-10-21T12:48:22","modified_gmt":"2021-10-21T16:48:22","slug":"researching-your-pilgrim-ancestry-from-mayflower-ship-passengersintroduction-mary-harrell-sesniak-is-a-genealogist-author-and-editor-with-a-strong-technology-background-in-this-guest-blog-post","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/researching-your-pilgrim-ancestry-from-mayflower-ship-passengersintroduction-mary-harrell-sesniak-is-a-genealogist-author-and-editor-with-a-strong-technology-background-in-this-guest-blog-post.html","title":{"rendered":"Researching Your Pilgrim Ancestry from Mayflower Ship Passengers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction<\/em><\/strong>: In this article\u2014just in time for Thanksgiving\u2014Mary Harrell-Sesniak searches old newspapers to trace ancestry all the way back to the Pilgrims, who crossed the Atlantic Ocean on board the Mayflower in 1620 for a fresh start in the New World. Mary is a genealogist, author and editor with a strong technology background.
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

Although endlessly rewarding, it is true that tracing ancestry is a time-consuming process requiring much patience\u2014especially if one wishes to connect to the Mayflower<\/em> passengers, those 102 Pilgrims who sailed from Leiden, Holland, in September 1620 bound for the New World\u2014anchoring off Cape Cod, Massachusetts, in November 1620.<\/p>\n

\"Painting:<\/a>
Painting: Mayflower in Plymouth Harbor, William Halsall, 1882. Credit: Pilgrim Hall Museum & Wikipedia.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Tragically, only half the Plymouth Rock settlers survived their first winter in the New World\u2014and if any are your progenitors, you could conceivably be required to compile from 12-18 generations of documentary evidence to trace your Pilgrim ancestry and prove you are a descendant. Fortunately, there are many ways to research the Mayflower<\/em> voyage and the Pilgrims, even if you can\u2019t visit Leiden or Plimoth Plantation<\/a> in Plymouth, Massachusetts (although please put these stops on your genealogical travel shortlist).<\/p>\n

I traveled to Leiden, Holland, several years ago to conduct first-hand research on my Mayflower<\/em> Pilgrim ancestry, and found this Dutch marriage record for future Mayflower<\/em> ship passengers Isaac Allerton and Mary Norris from 1611.<\/p>\n

\"marriage<\/a>
Marriage certificate for future Mayflower passengers Isaac Allerton and Mary Norris, 1611, from the collection of Mary Harrell-Sesniak<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

However, as I say, you don\u2019t need to travel to research your Mayflower<\/em> Pilgrim ancestry\u2014you can do it from the comfort of your own home, relying on your computer and the Internet, using several helpful websites and having access to online historical newspapers<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Common genealogical advice suggests that you start your family history research with yourself and work backwards to prove ancestry. However, with Mayflower<\/em> genealogy research, you might want to work \u201cdown the research ladder,\u201d instead of up, as it could very well save you a few steps.<\/p>\n

Approved List of Mayflower<\/em>\u00a0Passengers<\/strong><\/p>\n

Start at the top of your family tree by looking for surnames matching the list of passengers on the\u00a0Mayflower<\/em><\/a>, shown on the accepted list of eligible ancestors compiled by Pilgrim lineage societies, most notably the General Society of Mayflower Descendants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
John Alden<\/td>\nBartholomew Allerton<\/td>\nIsaac Allerton<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mary (Norris) Allerton<\/td>\nMary Allerton<\/td>\nRemember Allerton<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Elinor Billington<\/td>\nFrancis Billington<\/td>\nJohn Billington<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
William Bradford<\/td>\nLove Brewster<\/td>\nMary Brewster<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
William Brewster<\/td>\nPeter Browne<\/td>\nJames Chilton<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mrs. James Chilton<\/td>\nMary Chilton<\/td>\nFrancis Cooke<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
John Cooke<\/td>\nEdward Doty<\/td>\nFrancis Eaton<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Samuel Eaton<\/td>\nSarah Eaton<\/td>\nMoses Fletcher<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Edward Fuller<\/td>\nMrs. Edward Fuller<\/td>\nSamuel Fuller<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Samuel Fuller (son of Edward)<\/td>\nConstance Hopkins<\/td>\nElizabeth (Fisher) Hopkins<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Giles Hopkins<\/td>\nStephen Hopkins<\/td>\nJohn Howland<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Richard More<\/td>\nPriscilla Mullins<\/td>\nWilliam Mullins<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Degory Priest<\/td>\nJoseph Rogers<\/td>\nThomas Rogers<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Henry Samson<\/td>\nGeorge Soule<\/td>\nMyles Standish<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Elizabeth Tilley<\/td>\nJohn Tilley<\/td>\nJoan (Hurst) Tilley<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Richard Warren<\/td>\nPeregrine White<\/td>\nResolved White<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Susanna White<\/td>\nWilliam White<\/td>\nEdward Winslow<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Publications by the General Society of Mayflower Descendants<\/strong><\/p>\n

And if that surname research strategy fails, research Mayflower<\/em> descendants to the fifth generation to try and find a match to your family. Many publications exist, including the famous pink or gray Pilgrim lineage books published by the General Society of Mayflower Descendants\u2014many of which are available at libraries. As accepted references, these Society publications allow you to bypass submitting proofs for any Mayflower<\/em> descendant they\u2019ve already established.<\/p>\n

\"photo<\/a>
Credit: from the library of Mary Harrell-Sesniak<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The silver books trace the first five generations of Mayflower<\/em> descendants.<\/p>\n

The smaller pink books are Mayflower Families in Progress<\/em> (MFIP), and are produced as new information becomes available.<\/p>\n

Newspaper Evidence for Peregrine (or Peregrin) White and His Descendants<\/strong><\/p>\n

An extraordinary amount of newspaper articles and obituaries mentioning Mayflower<\/em> ancestry exist in GenealogyBank\u2019s historical newspaper archives<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Although not my Mayflower<\/em> ancestor, I\u2019m fascinated by Peregrine White<\/a>. He was the son of William and Susanna White, who crossed the ocean on the Mayflower<\/em> with his older brother Resolved. Susanna was pregnant with Peregrine during the Atlantic crossing, and he became the first Plymouth Colony baby of English ancestry when he was born on 20 November 1620 on board the Mayflower<\/em> in Provincetown Harbor. (See http:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Peregrine_White<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

After William White died\u2014as so many did, during the Colony\u2019s first winter\u2014Susanna married widower Edward Winslow, of whom much is written. After reaching manhood, Peregrine married Sarah Bassett, and if you are one of their descendants, you have a multitude of cousins.<\/p>\n

One of your relatives is their grandson George Young (1689-1771), son of their daughter Sarah White (1663-1755) and Thomas Young (1663-1732).<\/p>\n

George Young\u2019s lineage was noted in this 1771 obituary.<\/p>\n

\"death<\/a>
Boston Post-Boy (Boston, Massachusetts), 13 May 1771, page 3<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Being such a small colony of settlers, the Mayflower<\/em> Pilgrim\u2019s children intermarried. As reported in this 1821 newspaper article, John Alden was a descendant of his grandfather by the same name\u2014and also of Peregrine White, via his grandmother. He is thought to have married twice, first to Lydia Lazell and later to Rebecca Weston, although neither of his wives are mentioned in this obituary. Note how many of John Alden\u2019s descendants<\/a> were living when he died at the ripe old age of 103.<\/p>\n

\"obituary<\/a>
Daily National Intelligencer (Washington, D.C.), 12 April 1821, page 3<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Elder James White, who founded the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Battle Creek, Michigan, was another direct descendant of the Mayflower<\/em> Pilgrims. His religious affiliation and his Mayflower<\/em> ancestry were reported in this 1881 newspaper obituary.<\/p>\n

\"obituary<\/a>
Kalamazoo Gazette (Kalamazoo, Michigan), 9 August 1881, page 1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Reporting Trend in Pilgrim Descendants\u2019 Obituaries<\/strong><\/p>\n

Do you notice a trend in these obituaries? The importance of being a descendant of a Mayflower<\/em> passenger tends to overshadow all other aspects of an individual\u2019s life!<\/p>\n

For example, Ellen Gould Harmon was the spouse of Elder James White\u2014and her obituary from 1915 makes more notice of his roots than her own.<\/p>\n

\"obituary<\/a>
Jackson Citizen Patriot (Jackson, Michigan), 17 July 1915, page 1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Are You My Mayflower<\/em> Cousin?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although I have not located Peregrine White ancestry in my own family tree, if you trace to any of the following Mayflower <\/em>passengers, then you and I are cousins:<\/p>\n