Write everything in yellow.
Start on page 27 in your notebook.
Title it “Plymouth Pilgrims”
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People came to Jamestown for economic
reasons.
They wanted to find gold or other riches.
They wanted to make a profit by selling
tobacco.
Pilgrims did NOT come to American for
economic reasons. They came to America for
religious freedom.
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Religious Freedom means the right to have
any religious beliefs you want, or none at all.
In the 1600’s you had to belong to the Church
of England, ruled by the King of England.
If you did not follow this religion you were
persecuted. Persecuted means you were put in
jail or not treated nicely.
One group did not want to follow the Church
of England decided to separate and became
known as the Separatists.
In 1608 they moved to Holland so they could
follow their religion freely.
 In Holland they had religious freedom but began
to worry that their children would not learn
English ways.
 The Separatists decided to move to
America so they could
live with other English people
but could still follow their own
religion.
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Discuss at your tables and report out.
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Religion was a push and pull factor that led the
Separatists to migrate to North America
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In 1620 they got a charter from the Virginia
Company to make a new settlement in
Virginia.
Some people became scared to go. In the end
only 40 Separatists planned to go.
Do you think this was a large enough group to
begin a new settlement? Why or Why not?
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They needed more people to join them so they
signed up other English people who did not
share their religion. They called these people
“Strangers”.
Two ships were chosen. The Speedwell and the
Mayflower.
Why have we never heard of the Speedwell?
What do you think happened?
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Each time they sailed on the Speedwell it began to
leak and they had to turn back.
Finally, the Mayflower left alone on September 16,
1620.
The ship had 30 sailors, 100 passengers and 2 dogs.
The journey was long and difficult. They did nto
have fresh water or enough food.
Terrible storms came and blew the Mayflower
North.
After 66 days at sea they saw land. But it was not
the Virginia Colony. They were too far north in the
area that is now Massachusetts.
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The Pilgrims decided to stay in the area of
Massachusetts instead of trying to get to
Jamestown and Virginia. But this presented
them with a problem. Why do you think it was
a problem?
While they were on the ship they decided to
write an agreement that would create a
government for them and keep order.
 This type of agreement was called a
“Compact”.
 The Mayflower Compact was the
agreement the Pilgrims signed
that created a government for
their colony.
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Glue the “Understanding the Mayflower
Compact” into your notebook. Read and
discuss.
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They began looking for a place to settle.
They wanted a place with a safe harbor, fresh
water and good soil.
Most people stayed on the ship, some began to
look for a good place.
In December they found a clearing with old
cornfields that used to be a settlement of the
Wampanoag Native Americans.
On December 26, 1620 the group went ashore. This
was officially the beginning of Plymouth Colony,
which was also known as the Plymouth Plantation.
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How would landing in December affect the
Pilgrims?
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The first winter at Plymouth was very hard.
The weather was cold and there was not
enough food. Many people became ill. By
spring about one half of the settlers had died.
KEY IDEA___A lot of the settlers died because
the winter was so cold and there was not
enough food.
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Help came in the spring when an Abenaki
Native American named Samoset walked into
the settlement. HE shocked the group by
speaking English to them. He explained that he
had learned English from sailors who fished
along the coast.
KEY IDEA___Samoset came and helped them.
He spoke English. __________________
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He returned to Plymouth with a Wampanoag who
spoke English better than he did. He was
Tisquantum. The Pilgrims ended up calling him
Squanto. Years before Tisquantum had been taken
and sold as a slave in Spain. He had later escaped
and spent some years in England before returning
to his homeland. He stayed with the Plymouth
colonists and showed them where to fish and how
to plan crops like squash, pumpkins and corn.
KEY IDEA_Squanto came and taught them how to
fish and plant crops.
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How do you think so many deaths affected the
colony?
How were these events similar to those of
Jamestown?
How were they different?
Why do you think Tisquantum (Squanto)
decided to help the people even though he had
been taken and sold as a slave by Europeans
before?
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In the fall of 1621, the Pilgrims gathered for
their first harvest. It was to celebrate the
harvest and give thanks for it. A festival was
held for three days that included the 53 English
colonists and 90 Wampanoag men. It included
feasting.
This became Thanksgiving.
This became a national holiday in 1863 (more
than 200 years later) when President Lincoln
declared it a holiday.
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The Plymouth colony continued to grow
through fishing, farming and fur trading.
Their farms stayed small because of a colder
climate and rocky soil.
It remained a separate colony until 1691 when
it became part of the Massachusetts Bay
Colony.