| Notes |
- www.mayflowerhistory.com/Passengers
John Howland
Birth: About 1599 (see notes below), the son of Henry and MargaretHowland of Fenstanton, Huntington.
Marriage: Elizabeth Tilley, about 1624, Plymouth.
Death: 23 or 24 February 1672/3, Rocky Nook, Kingston.
Children: Desire, John, Hope, Elizabeth, Lydia, Hannah, Joseph, Jabez,Ruth, and Isaac.
Biographical Summary
John Howland was born about 1599, probably in Fenstanton, Huntington.He came on the Mayflower in 1620 as a manservant for Governor JohnCarver. During the Mayflower's voyage, Howland fell overboard duringa storm, and was almost lost at sea--but luckily for his millions ofdescendants living today (including Presidents George Bush and GeorgeW. Bush, and Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt) he managed to grab ahold of thetopsail halyards, giving the crew enough time to rescue him with aboathook.
It has been traditionally reported that John Howland was born about1592, based on his reported age at death in the Plymouth ChurchRecords. However, ages at death were often overstated, and that isclearly the case here. John Howland came as a servant for JohnCarver, which means he was under 25 years old at the time (i.e. he wasborn after 1595). William Bradford, in the falling-overboardincident, refers to Howland as a "lusty young man", a term that wouldnot likely have applied to a 28-year old given that Bradford himselfwas only 30--Bradford did call 21-year old John Alden a "young man"though. Howland's wife Elizabeth was born in 1607: a 32-year oldmarrying a 17-year old is an unlikely circumstance. Howland's lastchild was born in 1649: a 57-year old Howland would be an unlikelyfather. All these taken together demonstrate that Howland's age waslikely overstated by at least 5 years. Since he signed the MayflowerCompact, we can assume he was probably about 21 in 1620, so the bestestimate for his birth would be about 1599.
John Howland had several brothers who also came to New England, namelyHenry Howland (an ancestor to both Presidents Richard Nixon and GeraldFord) and Arthur Howland (an ancestor to Winston Churchill).
Additional Resources
Will of John Howland
Mike Haywood's painting, "Pilgrim Overboard," depicts John Howlandnear-death experience when he fell overboard during a storm on theMayflower's voyage. This giclée print on canvas measures 32" x 22",and is meant to be stretched like a traditional canvas painting.Every Howland descendant should own a copy of this great piece of art! A great gift idea. Giclée Print, $240
(Internet extraction provided by David H. Drollinger 9 Apr 2012)
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d. 23 OR 24 Feb 1672/73, Rocky Nook, Kingston