The Mayflower Harwich – A story at the roots of the foundation of America:
For some people, The Mayflower story in England starts in Harwich, a small town on the Essex coast. Harwich was the home of Christopher Jones, the Master of the Mayflower, the ship that sailed with the Mayflower Pilgrims or Pilgrim Fathers in 1620 to the New World, America. The Mayflower was moored in Harwich and may well have been built there, although there is no documentary proof of that.
I love a bit of romance and Harwich has a great ‘boy and girl next door’ story. Christopher Jones and his first wife, Sara Twit, were neighbours. Sara’s family home is now the Alma Pub where we stopped in for a great lobster lunch and a tour from the innkeeper, Nick May. Over the narrow street is Christopher Jones’ abode.
Up the road is St Nicholas Church where Christopher Jones and Sara Twit married. The original church was pulled down and a new one built in 1822, but on this site, their union was sealed in 1593 and their son, Thomas, baptised and buried in infancy. Sadly Sara died aged 27; Christopher remarried soon after, once again in St Nicholas. With his second wife, Josian he had 8 children, 4 of whom were baptised in the church. Although the family moved to Rotherhithe, it seems that Josian moved back to Harwich while Christopher Jones was abroad as their youngest child was baptised at St Nicholas.
One has to travel back in time to appreciate how Harwich came to play its part in the Mayflower story. Situated on the confluence of two rivers, Stour and Orwell, it has a safe natural harbour which has been used by warships over hundreds of years. During the Spanish Armada in 1588, Harwich saw 17 000 troops defend it from Spanish invasion and ships and mariners from the town were involved in the campaign. Not only an important naval town, it also has a long history of shipbuilding. So important was this industry here that Queen Elizabeth I visited in 1561 and inspected the shipyard.
Situated geographically on the east coast of England, it has long been considered ‘the Gateway to the Continent’ with its access across the North Sea to Holland and Scandinavia. During Tudor times in the 1500s, Harwich was used as a base for expeditions that set out to explore the world, supplying both ships and sailors. So it is in keeping with the town’s history that it was home to Christopher Newport who sailed to America in 1606 and helped set up the first permanent English settlement in Virginia named Jamestown. He was sent over by the Council of the London company and eventually joined the East India Company in 1612. By the time the Mayflower sailed for America in 1620, Harwich was already established as a town from where ships and sailors could be recruited for trans-Atlantic expeditions.
Christopher Jones came from a shipping family. His father bequeathed him a share in a ship called Mary Fortune while his wife, Sara, inherited a share in her late father’s ship, Apollo. Jones was also involved in trading between England and Europe. There are records showing that he travelled to Norway and France, exporting cloth and importing wine.
At the Harwich Guildhall, there are records that reveal that Christopher Jones was one of 77 men who, in 1601, took an oath and were elected freemen of the Borough of Harwich. On a walking tour with the Harwich Society, we were very fortunate to be shown the original copy of the 1604 Charter with Christopher Jones’ signature. This Charter was granted to the Borough by James I and lists 24 capital burgesses – freemen of the Borough. Copies of the Charter copies are on display for the Mayflower 400 celebrations.
Not only was Christopher Jones prospering from trade, he was also involved in shipbuilding. He named one ship Josian (his second wife’s name). It is thought that his association with the Mayflower as Master and part owner began in 1609. Records show that in January 1611 he was involved with a salvage claim where he is identified as Christopher Jones of Harwich, Master of the Mayflower of the same place. So there is no doubt that Christopher Jones not only lived in Harwich but that the Mayflower was there too. Soon after he and the ship moved to Rotherhithe on the Thames in London.
While in Harwich we had a fascinating – and highly recommended – walking tour with the Harwich Society. We discovered that the mayflower was considered to be a lucky symbol and that many shipbuilders put a mayflower on their ships. There may well have been dozens of ships called ‘the Mayflower. Luckily records in Harwich have confirmed that Christopher Jones was Master of a ship called Mayflower, that it was moored in Harwich and left from there for Rotherhithe. At 21 Kings Head Street, we found Christopher Jones’ house with a plaque informing visitors that he had lived there. From here there’s a lovely view of the Alma Inn at 25 Kings Head Street. I couldn’t help imagining Sara and Christopher standing at their windows, making eyes at one another.
Harwich may also have been home to at least three other members of the party on board the Mayflower when it sailed in 1620. The ship’s Pilot, Robert Coppin, might have been from the Coppin family of Harwich. Richard Gardener was a seaman and records suggest he hailed from Harwich and was a part owner of the ship, returning with it to England. John Alden was a cooper – looking after the barrels on board was a vital role as all the ship’s food and water was stored in these containers. I was fascinated to find that he features in a poem written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The Courtship of Miles Standish is a narrative poem, written in 1858, and describing the early days of Plymouth Colony – the settlement established by the Mayflower Pilgrims. Alden is a central figure in the poem (which is well worth a read to get a flavour of the challenges facing the Pilgrims). Miles Standish was an English soldier.
On reading the poem I was delighted to discover that not only is Alden part of the story but Christopher Jones, Master of the Mayflower, is referenced too. The poem movingly describes the day the Mayflower set sail to return to England, leaving the pilgrims in their new home. The Mayflower pilgrims spent the first winter living on the boat and half their number perished from cold, hunger and disease. So one can only imagine their feelings when the boat left them and turned for home. This is how Longfellow describes the scene:
‘Then from their houses in haste came forth the Pilgrims of
Plymouth,
Men and women and children, all hurrying down to the sea-shore,
Eager, with tearful eyes, to say farewell to the Mayflower,
Homeward bound o’er the sea, and leaving them here in the desert.
Foremost among them was Alden. ‘
And a few lines later:
‘There with his boat was the Master, already a little impatient
Lest he should lose the tide, or the wind might shift to the
Eastward,
Square-built, hearty and strong, with an odor of ocean about
Him,
Speaking with this one and that, and cramming letters and parcels
Into his pockets capacious, and messages mingled together
Into his narrow brain, till at last he was wholly bewildered.
Nearer the boat stood Alden, with one foot placed on the gunwhale,
One still firm on the rock, and talking at times with the sailors’
And now the boat leaves:
‘Meanwhile the Master alert, but with dignified air and
Important,
Scanning with watchful eye the tide and the wind and the weather,
Walked about on the sands, and the people crowded around him
Saying a few last words, and enforcing his careful remembrance.
Then, taking each by the hand, as if he were grasping a tiller,
Into the boat he sprang, and in haste shoved off to his vessel,
Glad in his heart to get rid of all this worry and flurry,
Glad to be gone from a land of sand and sickness and sorrow,
Short allowance of victual, and plenty of nothing but Gospel!
Lost in the sound of the oars was the last farewell of the
Pilgrims.
O strong hearts and true! Not one went back in the Mayflower!
No, not one looked back, who had set his hand to this ploughing!
Soon were heard on board the shouts and songs of the sailors
Heaving the windlass round, and hoisting the ponderous anchor.
Then the yards were braced, and all sails set to the west-wind,
Blowing steady and strong; and the Mayflower sailed from the
Harbour,
Rounded the point of the Gurnet, and leaving far to the southward
Island and cape of sand, and the Field of the First Encounter,
Took the wind on her quarter, and stood for the open Atlantic,
Borne on the send of the sea, and the swelling hearts of the
Pilgrims.
Long in silence they watched the receding sail of the vessel,
Much endeared to them all, as something living and human;
Then, as if filled with the spirit, and wrapt in a vision
Prophetic,
Baring his hoary head, the excellent Elder of Plymouth
Said, “Let us pray!” and they prayed, and thanked the Lord and
Took courage.’
Christopher Jones and his crew made it back to England on the Mayflower. Sadly he died the following year (1622) and is buried at St Mary’s Church in Rotherhithe, at that time a village outside London.
The Mayflower itself was broken up and the documents from 1624 record that Christopher Jones owned a quarter share of the boat. Whereas the Mayflower had, in 1609, been valued at £800, when it landed up in the breaker’s yard, its bits were sold off – from hull to masts, anchors, rigging and muskets included – for a mere £128.89.
While touring Harwich, I learned a great deal about the Mayflower, its captain and its place in the history of the Pilgrim Fathers. I had hoped to see a replica Mayflower being built; a local project to sail across the Atlantic in 2020 has sadly run aground. However, the area set aside for the project is enclosed by a wall on which a set of charming murals has been painted depicting the history of the Mayflower all the way from Harwich to America. As 2020 draws closer, the town will be humming with Mayflower400 projects, exhibitions and activities to celebrate its most famous ship and its captain who helped make history.
In writing this article I was assisted not only by the information gathered on a walking tour with the Harwich Society but also by the wealth of information in a booklet published in 1999 by the Harwich Society entitled Christopher Jones and the Mayflower Expedition 1620 -1621, compiled by David. A. Male. It is well worth reading.
For more information about the celebrations being planned for the 400 year anniversary of the Mayflower, do check the official website
We stayed at The Pier Hotel, Harwich, a charming boutique hotel in the heart of the town – for more about that, please check our review
Thinking of exploring the Mayflower connections in Harwich? Why not pin this post for later.
21 thoughts on “Harwich – Home of the Mayflower”
The Captain and quarter owner of the Mayflower is in my family history line. When the Pilgrim Fathers landed, only half of them survived. Had it not been for the local Wampanoag Indians, who taught the settlers in New Plymouth how to sow seeds etc, the rest would probably have perished too. Captain Jones’s son eventually married one of the daughters of Samoset, who was the Chief of the Wampanoags who welcomed the settlers to the ‘New World’.
As an American historian, I have conducted extensive research on the Pilgrims, tracing their origins from Babworth, Scrooby, Austerfield, and Gainsborough in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire through to the final two surviving Mayflower passengers, Richard More and Mary Allerton Cushman. In light of this research, I would like to offer several corrections. First, regarding Samoset: the name “Samoset” was likely a nickname given by English fishermen who frequented the North Atlantic fisheries. It has been suggested that they referred to him as “Somerset,” a name he may have rendered phonetically as “Samoset.” He learned English through contact with these fishermen and was indeed the first Indigenous individual to initiate direct contact with the Plymouth settlers. However, he was not a chief, or sachem, of the Wampanoag. Rather, he was a sagamore—a subordinate regional leader—associated with the Abenaki (or Wabanaki), the “People of the Dawn Land.” These Algonquian-speaking peoples historically inhabited areas corresponding to present-day Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and southern Quebec, rather than Massachusetts or Rhode Island. Ousamequin, commonly known as Massasoit, was sachem of the Pokanoket and Grand Sachem of the Wampanoag Confederacy. “Massasoit” was a title, and it is generally believed that the English mistook this designation for a personal name. He sent Samoset to meet the Plymouth settlers prior to his own visit on March 22, 1621 (Old Style), when he arrived accompanied by his interpreter, Tisquantum—known to the English as Squanto. Tisquantum was fluent in English after being abducted from his village of Patuxet (present-day Plymouth) in 1614. He was transported to Málaga, Spain, where he was sold into slavery, subsequently made his way to London, and resided there for approximately five years. Upon returning in 1619, he discovered that his village had been depopulated by disease during his absence. He then lived for a period with the Pokanoket before taking up residence with the Plymouth settlers, where he remained until his death in November 1622. Second, there is no credible evidence that any of Christopher Jones’s sons married Native American women. Documentary records indicate that his sons married English women in England. The individual frequently cited in support of this claim, Teague Jones, was most likely born in Ireland and appears to have been born approximately two years after Christopher Jones’s death.
Without wishing to be cynical the May-Flower’s connexion to Harwich is tenuous at the least. It was berthed there between 1608 and 1611 i.e. from the time Jones bought the ship to the time he moved to Rotherhithe. Prior to and post Jones’s purchase it was berthed “in London” and may have been built there.. There is an outside chance it might have been built in Aldeburgh but there is no known Harwich connexion. Alden, Coppin and Gardiner did not come from Harwich (from probably Southampton, Suffolk and unknown respectively). Longfellow could not possibly have had Jones in mind when he wrote his poem. It wasn’t until 1904 when it became known that Jones was the May-Flower’s master – long after Longfellow’s death and before that date there was no local or oral tradition that the May-flower had anything whatsoever to do with Harwich. Jones, though, did live in Harwich and was probably born there.. His house still stands and is well worth a visit. The rest though is all part of the 1620 tourist trap.
I’m trying to be kind in response to Mr. Whybra, he came across so cynical about the history of the Mayflower and Master Jones connection to Harwich Suffolk England Uk.
So many of the Surnames of the passengers of the three Ships that sailed to Plymouth USA are from East Anglia Suffolk areas including Harwich. No reason to embellish as Mr. Whybra suggested.
Interested history buffs will have sussed out what true facts are written about those brave and godly souls, that ventured across broiling seas for a better way of life for themselves and the families entrusted to them.
Obviously doubting Julian wouldn;t have made such a journey.
I used to work at the Harwich Mayflower project & learned all about the history of the Mayflower,her passengers & crew & its so very sad that such a wonderful project had to end because of no funding, such a pity but that said, I am excited for next year & the 400th anniversary celebrations.
I would love to visit Harwich, especially because of the important part it played in the journey of the Mayflower. I would definitely like to go on one of the walking tours with the Harwich Society as well.
I love places with romantic stories associated with them. Harwich sounds quite charming and St Nicolas Church looks interesting. The poem that references to this little town is one I have never read so thank you for sharing an excerpt from it 🙂
That was very interesting. I didn’t know Harwich had that much geographical and historical importance. That was a good story and you were walking us through your travel. It’s like time traveling. I love traveling and learning more about the place.
I am always fascinated by the Mayflower. One one hand, the Mayflower Compact represents the first form of consensual government in America and laid the foundation for the Constitution. On the other hand. The journey seemed to be incredibly mismanaged. The leaks in the Speedwell ultimately scrapped the vessel from the journey and delayed departure by nearly a month until the winter storm season was in high swing. The Mayflower was rather slow for ships of that era, taking over 60 days to complete the journey. Finally through storms (or navigational errors accounting for the Gulf Stream) they wind up significantly far north of their intended destination of the established Virginia Colony. They hang out a Plymouth Rock until a “consensus” is reached to uphold the original conditions of indentured servitude. Finally, the settlers are allowed to land and suffer a 50% mortality rate the first winter. (which is considerably higher than one would have expected for the Virginia Colony in 1620). The scrapping of the ship shortly after the voyage for 128 pounds is indicative of it being an obsolete sailing vessel for the time. It’s a fascinating piece of history and it’s fantastic that Harwich is doing their part for historical preservation.
Thanks to the Speedwell, the Mayflower actually set sail at the start of winter, which can’t have helped. It is a fascinating story. We are focussing on the UK and Holland to start but it will be interesting to find out more about the US side when we finally get through the considerable amount of local history which I suspect may answer some of the issues you raise.
I’ve never visited Harwich – and never knew that this was where the Mayflower sailed from! Such a wealth of information – thanks for sharing. Really interesting to find out so much history of this small town. I agree, a replica would be lovely to see.
How interesting that the same town was the launch point for so many early Transatlantic expeditions! Seems like you learned a lot from the walking tour. I love it when you can pick up so much of the local history.
THIS IS really cool! I like the depth to which you researched while there- and the addition of the poem. Researching History sometimes like such a rabbit hole- you can just keep going farther & farther but it’s fascinating to learn about those that cake before us:)
What an interesting story! The Mayflower certainly is quite a famous boat. I never knew half of the pilgrims perished during that famous voyage to America. Harwich is now on my list of towns to visit in England to discover more of the history of the Mayflower for myself.
A very interesting walk through history. Nice to see this story presented at its origin in England, as opposed to the history coming from the USA. It looks like a lovely town to visit, I would enjoy the walking tour.
We recently visited the Cutty Sark in London and found ourselves very interested to the big, old ships that made our history. I didn’t know ther was a romance story behind the Mayflower, and that you can still visit Sara’s family home (even if it’s a pub today!)! Me and hubby have just added it to our bucket list, what an interesting story!
Harwich sounds like a fascinating place, with an intriguing history. I’d surely love to visit this place some time. 🙂 Thank you for this detailed and very informative post!
I really enjoyed reading this post and I’ve pinned it for future reference. I love visiting places that have an interesting history behind them, and Harwich sounds well worth a visit – I’d love to find out more about The Mayflower and it sounds like you learnt a lot during your visit.
There’s a whole itinerary we are trying to complete – I have more to come that we’ve already done but there are so many places that were touched by the Mayflower
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The Captain and quarter owner of the Mayflower is in my family history line.
When the Pilgrim Fathers landed, only half of them survived.
Had it not been for the local Wampanoag Indians, who taught the settlers in New Plymouth how to sow seeds etc, the rest would probably have perished too.
Captain Jones’s son eventually married one of the daughters of Samoset, who was the Chief of the Wampanoags who welcomed the settlers to the ‘New World’.
That’s fabulous – what a wonderful bit of family history! Sad that so many of the Pilgrim fathers didn’t survive though!
As an American historian, I have conducted extensive research on the Pilgrims, tracing their origins from Babworth, Scrooby, Austerfield, and Gainsborough in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire through to the final two surviving Mayflower passengers, Richard More and Mary Allerton Cushman. In light of this research, I would like to offer several corrections.
First, regarding Samoset: the name “Samoset” was likely a nickname given by English fishermen who frequented the North Atlantic fisheries. It has been suggested that they referred to him as “Somerset,” a name he may have rendered phonetically as “Samoset.” He learned English through contact with these fishermen and was indeed the first Indigenous individual to initiate direct contact with the Plymouth settlers. However, he was not a chief, or sachem, of the Wampanoag. Rather, he was a sagamore—a subordinate regional leader—associated with the Abenaki (or Wabanaki), the “People of the Dawn Land.” These Algonquian-speaking peoples historically inhabited areas corresponding to present-day Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and southern Quebec, rather than Massachusetts or Rhode Island.
Ousamequin, commonly known as Massasoit, was sachem of the Pokanoket and Grand Sachem of the Wampanoag Confederacy. “Massasoit” was a title, and it is generally believed that the English mistook this designation for a personal name. He sent Samoset to meet the Plymouth settlers prior to his own visit on March 22, 1621 (Old Style), when he arrived accompanied by his interpreter, Tisquantum—known to the English as Squanto.
Tisquantum was fluent in English after being abducted from his village of Patuxet (present-day Plymouth) in 1614. He was transported to Málaga, Spain, where he was sold into slavery, subsequently made his way to London, and resided there for approximately five years. Upon returning in 1619, he discovered that his village had been depopulated by disease during his absence. He then lived for a period with the Pokanoket before taking up residence with the Plymouth settlers, where he remained until his death in November 1622.
Second, there is no credible evidence that any of Christopher Jones’s sons married Native American women. Documentary records indicate that his sons married English women in England. The individual frequently cited in support of this claim, Teague Jones, was most likely born in Ireland and appears to have been born approximately two years after Christopher Jones’s death.
Without wishing to be cynical the May-Flower’s connexion to Harwich is tenuous at the least. It was berthed there between 1608 and 1611 i.e. from the time Jones bought the ship to the time he moved to Rotherhithe. Prior to and post Jones’s purchase it was berthed “in London” and may have been built there.. There is an outside chance it might have been built in Aldeburgh but there is no known Harwich connexion. Alden, Coppin and Gardiner did not come from Harwich (from probably Southampton, Suffolk and unknown respectively). Longfellow could not possibly have had Jones in mind when he wrote his poem. It wasn’t until 1904 when it became known that Jones was the May-Flower’s master – long after Longfellow’s death and before that date there was no local or oral tradition that the May-flower had anything whatsoever to do with Harwich.
Jones, though, did live in Harwich and was probably born there.. His house still stands and is well worth a visit. The rest though is all part of the 1620 tourist trap.
I’m trying to be kind in response to Mr. Whybra, he came across so cynical about the history of the Mayflower and Master Jones connection to Harwich Suffolk England Uk.
So many of the Surnames of the passengers of the three Ships that sailed to Plymouth USA are from East Anglia Suffolk areas including Harwich. No reason to embellish as Mr. Whybra suggested.
Interested history buffs will have sussed out what true facts are written about those brave and godly souls, that ventured across broiling seas for a better way of life for themselves and the families entrusted to them.
Obviously doubting Julian wouldn;t have made such a journey.
Regards, San.
I used to work at the Harwich Mayflower project & learned all about the history of the Mayflower,her passengers & crew & its so very sad that such a wonderful project had to end because of no funding, such a pity but that said, I am excited for next year & the 400th anniversary celebrations.
I would love to visit Harwich, especially because of the important part it played in the journey of the Mayflower. I would definitely like to go on one of the walking tours with the Harwich Society as well.
I love places with romantic stories associated with them. Harwich sounds quite charming and St Nicolas Church looks interesting. The poem that references to this little town is one I have never read so thank you for sharing an excerpt from it 🙂
That was very interesting. I didn’t know Harwich had that much geographical and historical importance. That was a good story and you were walking us through your travel. It’s like time traveling. I love traveling and learning more about the place.
I am always fascinated by the Mayflower. One one hand, the Mayflower Compact represents the first form of consensual government in America and laid the foundation for the Constitution. On the other hand. The journey seemed to be incredibly mismanaged. The leaks in the Speedwell ultimately scrapped the vessel from the journey and delayed departure by nearly a month until the winter storm season was in high swing. The Mayflower was rather slow for ships of that era, taking over 60 days to complete the journey. Finally through storms (or navigational errors accounting for the Gulf Stream) they wind up significantly far north of their intended destination of the established Virginia Colony. They hang out a Plymouth Rock until a “consensus” is reached to uphold the original conditions of indentured servitude. Finally, the settlers are allowed to land and suffer a 50% mortality rate the first winter. (which is considerably higher than one would have expected for the Virginia Colony in 1620). The scrapping of the ship shortly after the voyage for 128 pounds is indicative of it being an obsolete sailing vessel for the time. It’s a fascinating piece of history and it’s fantastic that Harwich is doing their part for historical preservation.
Thanks to the Speedwell, the Mayflower actually set sail at the start of winter, which can’t have helped. It is a fascinating story. We are focussing on the UK and Holland to start but it will be interesting to find out more about the US side when we finally get through the considerable amount of local history which I suspect may answer some of the issues you raise.
I’ve never visited Harwich – and never knew that this was where the Mayflower sailed from! Such a wealth of information – thanks for sharing. Really interesting to find out so much history of this small town. I agree, a replica would be lovely to see.
How interesting that the same town was the launch point for so many early Transatlantic expeditions! Seems like you learned a lot from the walking tour. I love it when you can pick up so much of the local history.
THIS IS really cool! I like the depth to which you researched while there- and the addition of the poem. Researching History sometimes like such a rabbit hole- you can just keep going farther & farther but it’s fascinating to learn about those that cake before us:)
What an interesting story! The Mayflower certainly is quite a famous boat. I never knew half of the pilgrims perished during that famous voyage to America. Harwich is now on my list of towns to visit in England to discover more of the history of the Mayflower for myself.
A very interesting walk through history. Nice to see this story presented at its origin in England, as opposed to the history coming from the USA. It looks like a lovely town to visit, I would enjoy the walking tour.
We recently visited the Cutty Sark in London and found ourselves very interested to the big, old ships that made our history. I didn’t know ther was a romance story behind the Mayflower, and that you can still visit Sara’s family home (even if it’s a pub today!)! Me and hubby have just added it to our bucket list, what an interesting story!
What a cool place, and I love these types of discoveries – places with lots of history etc!
Harwich sounds like a fascinating place, with an intriguing history. I’d surely love to visit this place some time. 🙂 Thank you for this detailed and very informative post!
I really enjoyed reading this post and I’ve pinned it for future reference. I love visiting places that have an interesting history behind them, and Harwich sounds well worth a visit – I’d love to find out more about The Mayflower and it sounds like you learnt a lot during your visit.
There’s a whole itinerary we are trying to complete – I have more to come that we’ve already done but there are so many places that were touched by the Mayflower