In the Path THE MAYFLOWER COMPACT !e Pilgrims’ journey had taken much A LITTLE MORE HISTORY: THE SECOND DISCOVERY T M C longer then expected and they were far from Virginia A : T S D of the where they had planned to settle. !e Pilgrims THE FIRST DISCOVERY of the In the name of God, Amen. We whose names are T F D When the shallop was ready, a large group in sailed into Provincetown Harbor on Saturday. !at underwritten, the loyal subjects of our dread sovereign all about thirty-four men, set out again. !ey sailed Pilgrims same day, a%er drawing up and signing the Lord, King James by the grace of God, of Great Britain, the shallop to the river where the corn was found on May#ower compact, "%een or sixteen men went on Cape Cod France and Ireland King, Defender of the Faith, etc., the "rst discovery trip. It is recorded in Mourt’s ashore to gather wood and look around. Sunday !e Pilgrims spent about "ve Having undertaken, for the glory of God, Relation, “!is done, we marched to the place where they prayed and discussed what to do next. On weeks on the Lower Cape, and advancement of the Christian faith and honor of we had the corn formerly, which place we called Monday the men unloaded the shallop, a longboat exploring in what are now the our King and Country, a voyage to plant the "rst Cornhill, and digged and found the rest, of which we that they had brought with them on the May#ower towns of Provincetown, Truro, colony in the northern parts of Virginia, do by these were very glad.” (Mourt’s Relation, p. 34) !ey also which could be rowed or "tted with a mast and sail. and Eastham. !ey "rst saw presents solemnly and mutually in the presence of dug in another place nearby and found baskets of !ey intended to use the shallop to explore the area the shoreline of Cape Cod on God, and one of another, covenant and combine wheat and beans. In all the Pilgrims took about ten and see if it was "t for settlement. It had been While waiting for the carpenter to repair the November 9, and dropped ourselves together into a civil body politic, for our bushels of corn, an amount they felt would be dismanteled to stow on-board the May#ower. Now shallop, some of the men became impatient. !ey anchor in Provincetown better ordering and preservation and furtherance of su$cient for seed the next spring. Master Jones, the LOWER CAPE the carpenter needed to put it back together and decided to explore on land, carrying with them what Harbor on November 11. L C the ends aforesaid: and by virtue hereof to enact, captain of the May#ower, was anxious to return to repair the damage that had been done during the supplies they could, muskets and swords to defend !ey weighed anchor for PILGRIM HISTORY constitute and frame such just and equal laws, the ship. !ey sent him back with the corn and the P H journey. A%er sixty days at sea their clothes were in themselves, and wearing corslets. Miles Standish was Plymouth Harbor "ve weeks ordinances, acts, constitutions and o$ces, from time weakest members of the exploring party. Eighteen desparate need of care. !e woman went on shore to the leader. William Bradford, Stephen Hopkins and later on December 15. During !e Pilgrims "rst landfall in the New World to time, as shall be thought most meet and men remained behind. !ey discovered the grave of do the laundry, starting the tradition of Monday as Edward Tilley were also members of the exploring their time on the Lower Cape, was at Provincetown. !ey set sail from Plymouth, convenient for the general good of the colony: unto a man with yellow hair and a child buried with him. wash day. party. !e party set out in single "le and marched all they made three exploring England for the New World on Wednesday the sixth which we promise all due submission and obedience. !ere was much discussion about the identity of this It was November in New England. !e day. !ey camped for the night and the next trips or“discoveries” as they of September 1620. On the ninth of November they In witness whereof we have hereunder man. !ey also discovered a village that had been weather was cold and the land was desolate, a terrible morning set out again. !ey were hungry and thirsty called them. Historians have were greatly relieved to once again see land. !at subscribed our names at Cape Cod the *11th of recently inhabited. In the village they found baskets, time of year to begin a new settlement. !ey would as they had only brought biscuits, some Holland been able to conjecture from land was Cape Cod. !e Pilgrims had a charter to November, in the year of the reign of our sovereign woven mats, roasted acorns, meat and grasses for need to build homes, and would not be able to farm cheese and a small bottle of aquavitae with them. their letters and journals the settle in Virginia, so they set their course south- Lord, Kings James of England, France and Ireland mats. At the end of this exploring trip the Pilgrims until spring, many months away. About ten o’clock in the morning they found a spring path the Pilgrims followed south-west towards the Hudson River where the New the eighteenth, and of Scotland the "%y-fourth. discussed whether or not to settle on Cape Cod. of fresh water and recorded that they “drunk our while staying on Cape Cod. Netherlands Company had invited them to settle. Ano. Dom. 1620. Some reasons they listed in favor of settling here "rst New England water with as much delight as Several of these spots are A storm came up that night and the wind turned John Carver • Richard Warren • John Turner • were the convenient harbor, good ground for Edmon Margeson • William Bradford • John ever we drunk drink in all our lives.” marked with memorial stones. against them forcing them to change course and sail growing corn as indicated by the amount of corn Howland • Francis Eaton • Peter Brown • Edward (Mourt’s Relation p.20-21) A list of Pilgrim sites follows this account of the towards the bay of Cape Cod. Upon the eleventh of they had found and the great quantity of "sh in the Winslow • Stephen Hopkins • James Chilton • Next the party headed for the opposite shore. history of the Pilgrims’ stay on Cape Cod. It is based November, the May#ower anchored in Provincetown waters. But the last and most important reason to Richard Britteridge • William Brewster • Edward Along the way they found a pond of clear, fresh, on Mourt’s Relation, A Journal of the Pilgrims at Harbor. !is was outside the jurisdiction of their settle where they were anchored was the lateness of Tilly • John Crackston • George Soule • Isaac water and nearby some ground that had been cleared Plymouth. No one knows who wrote this book. It is charter so an agreement was needed to bond the the year. It was now winter and they could not Allerton • John Tilly • John Billington • Richard for farming by the Native Americans living in the in all probability the work of several authors. !e May#ower passengers together if they were to continue searching the coast for much longer. Most Clarke • Myles Standish • Francis Cooke • Moses area. Here they found a cache of corn and a large book contains several chapters. Not much is known survive in this new land. !e leaders of the group Fletcher • Richard Gardiner • John Alden • !omas of the party were weak and sick. Some members of metal kettle of European design. !ey took as much about the man named Mourt. A thorough gathered together in the cabin of the May#ower and Rogers • John Goodman • John Allerton the group felt that it would be a hindrance to settle corn as they could carry and continued exploring. discussion of the authorship of Mourt’s Relation wrote an agreement for the men in the company to • Samuel Fuller • !omas Tinker • Degory Priest and then "nd a better site nearby and have to move. !ey had been commanded to be out only two days. appears in the introduction by Dwight B. Heath. sign, even before they went ashore. !at agreement • !omas English • Christopher Martin • John Others felt they should not settle here, because they In the morning they buried the kettle of corn, Another wonderful "rst hand source of Pilgrim has come to be known as the May#ower Compact. It Rigdale • !omas Williams • Edward Doty had only found water in ponds and these might dry intending to return for it later with the shallop, and history is William Bradford’s account of life at the established the principles that would govern the new • William Mullins • Edward Fuller • Gilbert up in the summer. headed along the the shore toward the May#ower. plantation in Plymouth, Of Plymouth Plantation colony. Here is what it said. Winslow • Edward Leister • William White 1620-1647. * Old Calendar PILGRIM SITES TO VISIT trail called the Pilgrim Spring Trail. It leads to the THE THE THIRD DISCOVERY spring where some historians believe the Pilgrims ON THE OWER APE In the ON THE LOWER CAPE found their "rst drink of fresh water in New PILGRIMS On Wednesday, the 6th of December the group L C PILGRIMS England. Others feel that although Pilgrim Spring is decided to make one more trip, or “discovery,” as they LANDING in the general vicinity of the spring the Pilgrims called it, to look for a sight to settle. Robert Coppin, IN PROVINCETOWN Path drank from more than 375 yers ago, there is no the pilot, had knowledge of a good harbor across the First Landing Site: conclusive evidence that this is the same spring. bay. A company was chosen and instructed not to go It is believed that the beyond the place Robert Coppin remembered. !at Pilgrims anchored Pilgrim Pond: In what is now called Pilgrim Village place was Plymouth. Ten members of the party set o& shore near the on Pond Road o& Route 6A in North Truro is a small out on their third “discovery” on the 6th of December present sight of the Bas Relief depicting the Signing of the May!ower pond where the Pilgrim’s sunk a kettle of corn they in the shallop. On their "rst day out they came upon rotary at the extreme Compact: Located on Bradford Street at the foot of had taken from an Indian cache. !ere is a marker ten or twelve Native Americans bent over something west end of Ryder Street directly across from Town Hall, this on the edge of the pond and a small park. black on the shore. A pilot whale had been beached Commercial Street. large sculpture depicts the signing of the May#ower or cast up dead on the beach. !e Native Americans A park and plaque Compact in the cabin of the May#ower. Two ran away when they saw the shallop. !e men landed commemorating the memorial stones are also located in the park. One some distance down the beach and camped for the event are located in lists the May#ower passengers who died while the night. Later, while camped, the band was attacked by the center of the May#ower was at anchor in Provincetown Harbor Native Americans. !ey shot arrows at the Pilgrims. rotary. and the other contains the text of the May#ower No one was injured. !e Pilgrims recorded, “So a%er Compact. we had given God thanks for our deliverance, we took On the 200th Anniversary of incorporation our shallop and went on our journey, and called this "e Pilgrim Monument: !e Pilgrim Monument in 1927, Provincetown erected this large bas relief, place, !e First Encounter.” (Mourt’s Relation, p. 37) was completed in 1910. It was built to commemorate depicting the signing of the May#ower Compact by A%er a terrible trip during which it began to Provincetown as the "rst the Pilgrim Fathers in the cabin of the May#ower. of the snow, the rudder broke, and the mast was split into landing place of the !e bas relief was designed by the well-known artist three pieces, the shallop anchored in Plymouth Pilgrims and the signing of Cyrus Dallin. Corn Hill: A marker, with a #agpole surrounded by Harbor. !e Pilgrims were pleased with all they saw. the May#ower Compact in a fence in the far corner of the beach parking lot at Pilgrims !e harbor was good for shipping. !e land had a the harbor at Provincetown. IN TRURO Corn Hill, commemorates the Pilgrim’s discovery of thick layer of topsoil. Many fowl, "sh, mussels, crabs !e movement to build a "e Pilgrim Spring Trail: In the Cape Cod National A Tour of Pilgrim Memorials seed corn le% by Native Americans. !e Pilgrims and lobster were found. On shore they found several monument at Provincetown Seashore’s Pilgrim Heights area is a short half mile took several bushels of this corn and were later and Places Associated with small brooks of sweet fresh water . !ey saw no Native began in 1892 when a group chastised by the Indians for having taken it. A sign the Pilgrims in Americans, but found "elds that had been cleared to of Cape Codders got on Route 6 marks the turn o& for Corn Hill. Provincetown, Truro, plant corn. !ey recorded, “ . . . so we returned to our together to raise funds for a ship again with good news to the rest of our people, monument, because they and Eastham IN EASTHAM which did much to comfort their hearts.” felt Cape Cod was not First Encounter Beach, Eastham Laurel Guadazno !e Pilgrims lived aboard the May#ower that getting the recognition it Turn right o& of Route 6 at the windmill across from !e Pilgrim Monument & Provincetown Museum "rst winter while houses and a fort were built. deserved as the "rst landing Eastham Town Hall when you see the sign for First Weakened by hunger and cold, "%y-two members of site of the Pilgrims. Encounter Beach. Look for a marker near the the group died the "rst winter. In spite of the hard Cape & Islands Historical Association parking lot. www.capehistorymuseums.org. conditions, none returned to England on the May#ower when it le% in the spring.