After having failed to sail from England on three earlier
occasions and leaving behind her sister ship Speedwell, the Mayflower
sailed from Plymouth for the New World on this day in 1620.
Aboard were 101 passengers. Just ninety
feet long and twenty-six feet wide, it hardly seemed the vessel to alter world
history. The sailors cursed the pious passengers, whom they detested. Their
food consisted of dried fish, cheese, and beer. The only sanitary accommodation
was a single slop bucket. There was nowhere to bathe. Seasickness was rampant
during storms. With little air below decks, the conditions were nauseating at
the best. Despite this, only one passenger died at sea.
Two months and five
days after sailing, the ship landed at Cape Cod. Before going ashore the
passengers signed their famous Mayflower Compact. And thus began the
saga of the Pilgrims in their new home: America.
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