Gov. Brandford's Statue in Plymouth Rock State Park, Plymouth
photo by Midge Frazel
William Bradford was orphaned at age seven, and raised by an uncle. He had an early interest in religion, and at age 18 joined the Separatists that left England and moved to Amsterdam in 1608, then moved on to Leiden, Holland a year later. He became a silk weaver there, and recovered some of his father's estate in England. He and his wife Dorothy May had a son, John, there.1

When a group of the Leiden church members decided to set off to America on the Mayflower he sold his house there, and leaving their young son behind, he and his wife Dorothy joined them. While the Mayflower was anchored off Provincetown Harbor, and with William on one of the expeditions exploring for a site for the new colony, Dorothy fell off the ship and drowned.2 There is a widely circulated story that she committed suicide, apparently based on a fictional work published in the Jun 1869 issue of Harper's New Monthly Magazine, but no evidence has been found to support that theory.3

The original governor of the Colony, John Carver, survived the terrible first winter in Plymouth in which with half the colonists perished. But on an unusually hot day the following spring he came out of his cornfield feeling ill. He fell into a coma and "never spake more."4 Bradford was elected as his replacement in the spring of 1621.3 He was re-elected nearly every year afterwards until his death. As Governor he was responsible for overseeing the courts, formulating policy regarding Indians, foreigners, and other matters, and corresponding with the Colony's investors at home.1 He had a very active role in running the entire Colony, and is generally seen as playing a major role in the Colony's survival.

The chart below shows the descent from Governor Bradford to Abigail Dyer and Gideon Cobb, who moved their family to Pawlet, Vermont, and became the ancestors of all the Cobbs included in this website.


William Bradford
baptized 19 Mar 1589/90, Austerfield, Yorkshire, England 5
died 9 May 1657, Plymouth 6
married second 14 Aug 1623, Plymouth 7
 Alice (Carpenter) Southworth
born say 1595, probably Wrington, Somerset 8, 9
died 26 or 27 Mar 1670/1, Plymouth 10
William Bradford
born 17 Jun 1624, Plymouth 11
died 20 Feb 1703/4, Plymouth 12
married first shortly after 23 Apr 1650 13
Alice Richards
baptized 7 Apr 1629, Pitminster, Somersetshire 14
died 12 Dec 1671, Plymouth 15
Alice Bradford
born about 1659, Plymouth 16
died 15 Mar 1745/6, Canterbury, Connecticut 17
married second 8 May 1687, Norwich, Connecticut 18
James Fitch
born 2 Aug 1649, Saybrook, Connecticut 19
died 10 Nov 1727, Canterbury, Connecticut 20
Abigail Fitch
born 22 Feb 1678/8, Norwich, Connecticut 21
died 19 May 1759, Canterbury, Connecticut 22
married 22 Oct 1713, Canterbury, Connecticut 23
John Dyar
born 9 Apr 1692, Wemouth, Connecticut 24
died 25 Feb 1779, Canterbury, Connecticut 25

Citations

  1. [S82] Johnson, Caleb Johnson's MayflowerHistory.com, William Bradford article.
  2. [S82] Johnson, Caleb Johnson's MayflowerHistory.com, Dorothy (May) Bradford article.
  3. [S1265] Wikipedia, online, William Bradford (Plymouth governor) article.
  4. [S2184] White, John Howland of the Mayflower, pg 2, citing Bradford, History of Plimouth Plantation, pp 121-2.
  5. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 1, citing George Ernest Bowman, editor, The Mayflower Descendant, 34 vols (Boston: 1899-1937), 7:65.
  6. [S2191] Anderson, The Great Migration Begins, 1:208, citing "Diary of John Hull," Transactions and Collecions of the American Antiquarian Society, vol 3 (Worchester 1857), pg 180.
  7. [S2191] Anderson, The Great Migration Begins, 1:208, citing Thomas Prince, A Chronological History of New England ..., Sameuel G. Drake, ed., third editon (Boston 1852), pg 165.
  8. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 1, shows place.
  9. [S2191] Anderson, The Great Migration Begins, 1:314, shows date, approximated based on the ages at death of her sisters Juliann, Mary, and Pricilla.
  10. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 1, citing Bowman, The Mayflower Descendant, 15:213 and 18:68.
  11. [S2191] Anderson, The Great Migration Begins, 1:208, citing Prince, A Chronological History of New England, pg 227, and Bowman, The Mayflower Descendant, 30:4.
  12. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 5, citing Bowman, The Mayflower Descendant, 15:212.
  13. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 5, citing George E. Bowman, Pilgram Notes and Queries, 5 vols (Boston, 1913-17), 5:123, states his father deeded land to him that date upon his agreement to marry Allice, daughter of Mr. Thomas Richards of Weymouth.
  14. [S2191] Anderson, The Great Migration Begins, 3:1577, citing Utah Genealogical and Historical Magazine, 31 vols, (Salt Lake City, 1910-1940), 24:92.
  15. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 5, citing Bowman, The Mayflower Descendant, 18:68.
  16. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pp 8,17.
  17. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 17, citing Canterbury, Connectict Vital Records 1:148.
  18. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 17, citing Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Connecticut, Vital Records of Norwich, 1659-1848 (Hartford, 1913) 1:6.
  19. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 17.
  20. [S2190] Johnson, "Inscriptions in the Cleaveland Cemetery," pg 344, provides a transcription of his tombstone.
  21. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pp 18, 59, citing Society of Colonial Wars, Vital Records of Norwich, 1659-1848 1:6.
  22. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 59, citing Canterbury, Connectict Vital Records 1:131.
  23. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 59, citing Canterbury, Connectict Vital Records 1:120.
  24. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 59, citing, Vital Records of Weymouth 1:96.
  25. [S2189] Lainhart and Wakefield, Mayflower Families, Vol. 22, William Bradford, pg 59.