Beacon 1-21

January 2021 THE BEACON Page 9B
Aurora and the Mayflower Landing
By Margaret Drury
As I was preparing to write
my column for this month, I
received a call from Aurora
resident and dear friend, Judie
Howard. She had an idea for
this month’s column and
shared with me that this year
is the four hundredth anniversary
of the Mayflower’s
landing at Cape Cod. Judie
also shared that she is a
direct descendant of William
Bradford and William Brewster
who were two of the one
hundred two passengers on
the Mayflower. I always enjoy
hearing about and celebrating
such rich history.
From out of her stash of
boxes and books on her
heritage, Judie shared a book
with me called Mayflower,
The Voyage that Changed the
World by Anthea and Julia
Ballam. It was a quick read as
Judie promised and I am so
glad I took the time to read it.
It gave me a new-found appreciation
for our forefathers.
The book is a documentary on
the Pilgrims (or Separatists as
they were called in England.)
The book began with their
struggles of extreme poverty
and religious persecution in
sixteenth-century England
which included imprisonment
and often death for folks who
did not embrace the government-
supported Church of
England. With the advent of
the printing press, bibles were
accessible to more than just
clergy; men such as Bradford
and Brewster began reading
the Bible for themselves and
gained a deeper understanding
of Christ’s teachings. They
discovered that the rituals
and conduct of the Protestant
Church were more about politics
and not about true faith in
God. They wanted to worship
God the way that He wanted
them to worship as they understood
from the Bible.
The book tells first of their
harrowing and difficult escape
to the Netherlands where
there was a greater religious
freedom; living there in hardship
without sufficient food,
housing or jobs; then it goes
on to tell of their journey
from the Netherlands back
to England (temporarily)
until they ultimately hired
the Mayflower (a small 90 ft.
by 26 ft. ship) to come to the
new world. As I read over my
previous sentences, it does
not sound too bad, BUT when
you read of ALL the details of
the persecution, living conditions,
and EVERYTHING
stolen from them (INCLUD-
ING the clothes on their
backs) by an unscrupulous
ship captain it was bad, but
their faith and determination
to live the way God intended
did not waiver.
In the making of plans to
sail to the new world, one of
their “weak-kneed brethren”,
Robert Cushman, signed a
deal for them with ruthless
investors (known as Merchant
Adventurers) allowing the
Pilgrims (known as Planters)
to be exploited and basically
be slaves for nearly twentythree
years after landing at
Plymouth Rock in the New
World. They were desperate
to hire a ship in the hopes of
escaping England before the
government was wise to their
presence back in England and
their plans for promise in a
new land.
Judie’s twentietth greatgrandfather,
William Bradford,
was a young man in his
twenties when the merchant
ship, Mayflower, set sail from
Plymouth England September
16, 1620. He and his wife
Dorothy had left their twoyear-old
son, John, behind in
the care of dear friends in the
Netherlands. The trip across
the ocean lasted sixty-five
days, was full of storms with
massive waves, sickness,
torment from crew, famine,
and cold wet hard accommodations.
Mid-November
1620 the Mayflower landed at
Cape Cod in the New World.
They had originally intended
to land in Virginia where there
were more resources, people
and security, but storms had
blown them off course. Winter
was coming fast and fierce in
New England. They needed to
find a suitable place to settle
before sending the Mayflower
on her way back to England.
A group of men (among
which was their military
leader, Miles Standish) set
out on multiple expeditions to
find that suitable place where
they could build safe shelter,
have “sweet” water, hunt,
fish, trap and grow crops.
During their excursions, they
had found evidence of human
existence… shelters,
corn, beans, tools, bows and
arrows. They felt like they
were being watched, but they
saw no one. At one point they
were attacked by a group of
Nauset Indians. Sickness,
slavery, and death brought on
by prior white men from Europe
had all but decimated the
tribe. Their survival depended
on driving these newcomers
away. The Pilgrims knew
nothing of that history of
persecution the natives had
experienced at the hands of
fellow Europeans, but the
persecution had been as bitter
as their own. That incident
or attack was known as the
“First Encounter.”
That third expedition
proved to be successful; they
found a suitable site that
was away from where they
had been attacked. The men
returned to the Mayflower to
gather their loved ones, other
passengers and their meager
belongings. --I had always
thought that ALL of the Mayflower
passengers were Pilgrims
seeking religious freedom,
but they only comprised
forty of the one hundred two.
Judie’s Grandfather, William
Bradford, returned to the ship
after that third expedition to
be given the tragic news that
his young wife, Dorothy, had
fallen overboard and drowned
in the cold sea while trying to
rescue children who had been
playing on the upper deck
during a storm.
The suitable site they
discovered would yet require
them to sail northwest from
Cape Cod to Plymouth Rock
which had been discovered
and named by adventurer,
Captain John Smith. At that
time in December of 1620,
they did not yet know that the
area they wanted to settle was
named Plymouth… Funny
how things work out… They
left Plymouth for Plymouth…
Things that make you go,
“Hmmm!” Pilgrims, exhausted,
yet trying to remain
excited, disembarked from
the Mayflower and settled in
their new home. That winter
was hard and saw much
death. Military leader, Miles
Standish, regularly conducted
expeditions into the countryside
seeking contact with Native
Americans as he was convinced
that survival depended
on good relations with them.
On a cold clear morning in
March of 1621 a tall-tanned,
clean shaven Indian by the
name of Samoset strolled
into their village and said, “I
come in peace.” He was chief
of the Pemaquid Indians and
had learned English from
some fishermen at Monhegan.
He shared much with them
that day about the surrounding
area and their neighbors.
After spending the night, he
left, promising to return to
trade with them and introduce
them to others. On his return
visit later in March, Samoset
brought Squanto with him.
Squanto was a Native American
who had been taken prisoner
as a young boy and was
raised in London and worked
as a translator on ships that
sailed to the New World.
After many years, Squanto
was homesick and returned to
his homeland to discover that
his family and friends were all
dead from the plague. He then
worked for the treasurer of the
Newfoundland Company
To read the rest of the story,
visit goBEACONnews.com.
American Legion Post 452 New Alsace
Newly
remodeled
rental
facility!
Judie Howard with a book
that tells of the Mayflower
and its passengers, one
of which was her twentieth
great grandfather, William
Bradford.
Perfect for Wedding Receptions,
Birthday Parties, Anniversaries,
Reunions, Holidays
Reasonable rates, nice atmosphere
Contact Larry @ 812-623-3695
Next euchre party Jan. 10
Doors open 12 noon • Games begin at 1 • All are invited
Proudly serving our veterans and the community since WWII
O
ur
DILLSBORO
By
Lorene
Westmeier
Community
Correspondent
dillsboro@goBEACONnews.com
Veterans Day at Heritage
Pointe was opened by Commander
Inferrera and the
Northcutt-Laaker Post 292
Color Guard. The National
Anthem was sung by Jeanne
Kinnett and the presentation
of the wreath was made by the
Auxiliary. Sherman Hughes
did the invocation. Tina
Wallace, the next 9th District
Commander, gave a speech.
Dillsboro Elementary
students honored Veterans
Communities
BUSINESS &
PROFESSIONAL
DIRECTORY
Cornerstone Realty, Inc. &
Lutz Auction Service, LLC
“One Call Does It All”
Dale Lutz
.
by cleaning and polishing
Plaques at Oakdale Cemetery.
The chairman of the PTO,
Linda Hurrelbrink and
Lana Melton from the Local
Legion Auxiliary organized
the day. Those attending
were given a pamphlet with a
description of the Wars from
the American Revolution to
the war in Afghanistan. Thank
you, children. Thank you, Veterans.
Let Us Never Forget.
Families are invited to see
the pretty lights and decorations
provided by the Beautification
Group and the Civic
Club. They all do a great job
decorating the town. We also
have beautiful homes that
are sparkling with lights and
many decorations. Wishing
everyone a Safe and Blessed
Christmas.
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Office 812-637-2220
Cell 513-266-1859
cstonerealty.com lutzauctions.com
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Lawrenceburg IN
812-537-0619
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