The Pilgrims
The Pilgrims who settled at Plymouth came from England. In the 1600s,
English law said that everyone had to belong to the Church of England.
The Pilgrims did not agree with that church, and wanted to form their
own group. People who wanted to leave the church were called
Separatists. Because this was illegal, it was not safe for them to stay in
England. The word pilgrim means a person who goes on a long trip for a
religious purpose. Because they went to the “New World” for religious
reasons, they were called Pilgrims.
They decided to leave England, and went to Holland. There they would
be safe from the English government and could practice their religion.
However, it was not easy to live in a new country. They had to work
very hard to survive. Some were afraid they would lose their English
culture. They were also afraid that Holland would go to war with Spain,
and they feared for their safety.
They decided to move to the New World. Here they would still be
English, but could practice their religion. Going across the ocean and
settling in a new place was very expensive. The Pilgrims made a deal
with an English company. The company would pay for everything, and
the Pilgrims would work for the company for seven years. Some
business men would also go to the New World with them.
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The Pilgrims were to sail on a ship named Speedwell, while the business
men went on a ship named the Mayflower. Sadly, the Speedwell began
to leak, and they had to go back to England. Everyone had to cram on
the Mayflower, and some families were separated because there
wasn’t much space. The Mayflower finally went on to the New World
with 102 passengers on September 6, 1620, arriving there on
November 11.
They landed in what is now called Cape Cod Bay. The men made an
agreement called the Mayflower Compact. Since the Pilgrims were
Separatists and the business men still belonged to the Church of
England, it was important that the two groups could agree to work
together in their new home. After looking for a good place to settle,
they found an empty Wampanoag (an American Indian group) village
and began to build. They had to live on the boat until their news homes
were ready. Many Pilgrims got sick and died, probably from their long
trip and from eating foods with lots of salt. Only 52 people from the
Mayflower were alive in the spring.
Some Wampanoag men helped the colonists survive by teaching them
how to grow native crops, including corn. In 1621 they had a nice
harvest, and invited the Wampanoags to join them. They feasted and
played games for three days. By 1627, more of the people from Holland
and England had joined the Pilgrims and their colony was successful.
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