The Pilgrims & Plymouth Colony 1620 P10

With the continuous bad weather, the Pilgrims (and many of the 30 crew members) understandably remained below deck for a large part of the voyage to America. On one of these days, John Howland, a Pilgrim in his early twenties, seeking some relief from the cramped conditions, decided to go topside. He was swept overboard by a wave.

Few in that day knew how to swim; and making it worse, most did not know that Howland had been washed off the ship. Furthermore, fierce winds made it virtually impossible to stop the ship and turn back to rescue him - and even if they could have done so, it would have taken the better part of an hour. Howland would undoubtedly have drowned by then His accident sentenced him to death. Except………

CONTENT SOURCED FROM: "The American Story, the beginnings" by David Barton and Tim Barton