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Welcome
to the section about the Mayflower. We do hope you find these pages
useful. You'll find out about the Mayflower Compact (said to be the
foundation of the American Constitution), the journey of the Mayflower,
the ship, itself and what the Pilgrim Fathers achieved. There's also an
account of what thanksgiving is and how it came about.
Here's a
photo of a ferry as it awaits passengers at the Mayflower Steps. This
would be about the same spot that the Mayflower would have been tied up
alongside prior to its fêteful journey.
 ..and
here a close up view of Pilgrims Point, just behind the ferry, at the
top of the steps.
Meanwhile, the by-now famous "Barbican Prawn" keeps an eye on things,
looking in the direction that the Mayflowers embarked on her voyage.
 Pilgrims
Point has a horse-shoe shaped, tooled metal handrail that shows
vignettes of the key stages in the progress of the Pilgrim Fathers, the
voyage and final landing at Plymouth Rock. The first quarter of the
handrail is shown here (clicking gives a larger view).
The new Mayflower Centre is well
worth a visit for both static and interactive media displays.
If you want, read the definitive book by Rev. Dr
Harold Kirk-Smith, you can get it here: William
Brewster - the Father of New England: The Story of the Pilgrim Fathers
or this true narrative that recounts the lives and adventures of the
people who made the voyage: The
Voyage That Changed the World: The "Mayflower" and the United States of
America
Or if you're more interested in the religous
history behind the Pilgrim Fathers, the following book from Amazon will
prove useful The
Mayflower Pilgrims: Roots of Puritan, Presbyterian, Congregationalist,
and Baptist Heritage
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Lithographic Prints from
Mike Haywood's original
Mayflower Paintings
A Prosperous Wind
which portrays the start of
the voyage, as described by William Bradford
This painting by Mike Haywood
is filled with hope, as portrayed by the filled and billowing sails...
light caps - seahorses - on the tops of the waves promise a speedy but
safe journey... all the portents are good......
Signed limited edition
lithographic prints on card from the original painting by Mike Haywood
are available. email me, Mark,
if you're interested... ($60 each - includes delivery to USA)
Dawn of the 11th Nov 1690,
Mayflower at anchor off Provincetown
Signed limited edition
giclee prints on canvas from the original painting by Mike Haywood are
available. email me, Mark,
if you're interested... ($240 each - includes delivery to USA)
This is Mike Haywoood's latest
painting of the Mayflower at dawn on the 11th November 1620, as she is
about to anchor for the first time after her arduous voyage in what is
now called Provincetown harbor. All is peace and calm after the trials
of the voyage. The symbolism of the new dawn, giving fresh hope to the
exhausted passengers and crew is clear. The reflected path of the
sunlight falls upon the longboat, which is just about to be launched
for the first exploratory trip to the nearby land. Caleb Johnson is
writing a new book and he is using this picture for the front cover.
The Pilgrim Fathers' first
landing 13 Nov 1620
Signed limited edition
giclee prints on canvas from the original painting by Mike Haywood are
available. email me, Mark,
if you're interested... ($240 each - includes delivery to USA)
Mike Haywood wanted to capture
a joyous moment when a group of Mayflower passengers first sets foot on
land after having spent so many weeks cooped up on board a pitching
ship; the moment when American soil was touched for the first time. his
picture is not of the landing at Plimoth (which occurred about a month
later).
Mike relies on Caleb Johnson
to provide him with the historical facts. He tells Mike that the
Mayflower anchored off what is now called Provincetown at dawn on the
11th November.
Caleb continues...........
...........
They took a quick jaunt ashore on
November 11 (“15 or 16 men, well armed”) mostly to
gather juniper to be burned (to purify the air on the ship). On
November 13, they hauled their shallop ashore (which was in several
pieces) so it could be fixed up and re-assembled. The carpenter made
“slow work of it” (more than two weeks, actually)
and so the men set out on their first expedition by foot
“well armed … with every man his musket, sword and
corslet” and led by Myles Standish. That same day they also
brought many others ashore simply to “refresh
themselves”, and even the women and teenage girls came ashore
to do laundry: The Mayflower’s captain and some of the crew
and a dog were also apparently ashore, as the explorers accidentally
mistook two men and their dog for being the captain and some of his men
… but as they got closer they realized they were Indians,
who then took off into the forest whistling the dog after them.
The Mayflower is known to have
had an English mastiff and an English spaniel onboard...
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