Thoms Rogers - Mayflower Passanger

10th Great-Grandfather

Excerpt taken from Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Rogers_(Mayflower_passenger)

Thomas Rogers traveled on the Mayflower with only his eldest son Joseph, leaving behind in Leiden his wife and their three other children – John, Elizabeth and Margaret. In the 1622 poll tax for Leiden, Rogers’ family were found among the poor of Leiden, residing at the rear of Anthony Clement’s home. His possible second wife, who author Eugene Stratton lists as Elizabeth (or Elsgen) in the 1622 poll tax, may have died in Leiden sometime between 1622 and when his son John and possibly his daughters came to Plymouth sometime after 1627.

The embarkation of the Mayflower for America, A.D. 1620.

William Bradford’s later recollection of Thomas Rogers and his son embarked on the Mayflower: “Thomas Rogers, and Joseph, his sone. His other children came afterwards.

Thomas Rogers and his 18 year old son Joseph departed Plymouth, England aboard the Mayflower on September 6/16, 1620. The small, 100-foot ship had 102 passengers and a crew of about 30-40 in extremely cramped conditions. By the second month out, the ship was being buffeted by strong westerly gales, causing the ship‘s timbers to be badly shaken with caulking failing to keep out sea water, and with passengers, even in their berths, lying wet and ill. This, combined with a lack of proper rations and unsanitary conditions for several months, attributed to what would be fatal for many, especially the majority of women and children. On the way there were two deaths, a crew member and a passenger, but the worst was yet to come after arriving at their destination when, in the space of several months, almost half the passengers perished in cold, harsh, unfamiliar New England winter.

On November 9/19, 1620, after about 3 months at sea, including a month of delays in England, they spotted land, which was the Cape Cod Hook, now called Provincetown Harbor. After several days of trying to get south to their planned destination of the Colony of Virginia, strong winter seas forced them to return to the harbor at Cape Cod hook, where they anchored on November 11/21. The Mayflower Compact was signed that day.

Thomas Rogers was the eighteenth signatory to the Mayflower Compact. His son Joseph was then about seventeen years of age and could not sign the Compact.

Landing of the Pilgrims by Cornè - circa 1805.jpg