Constance Hopkins (baptized May 11, 1606 – October 1677), also sometimes listed as Constanta, was a passenger on the ''

Mayflower ''Mayflower'' was an English ship that transported a group of English families, known today as the Pilgrims, from England to the New World in 1620. After a grueling 10 weeks at sea, ''Mayflower'', with 102 passengers and a crew of about 30, r ...

'' in 1620.

Biography

Hopkins was probably born in

Hursley Hursley is a village and civil parish in Hampshire, England with a population of around 900 in 2011. It is located roughly midway between Romsey and Winchester on the A3090. Besides the village the parish includes the hamlets of Standon and ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

since her baptism record is there along with older sister and younger brother. Constance was the second daughter of Stephen Hopkins, by his first wife, Mary. Some believe she was named in honor of Constance (Marline) Hopkins. Constance, at the age of fourteen, along with her father and his second wife Elizabeth (Fisher), accompanied by brother Giles, half-sister Damaris as well as two servants by the name of

Edward Doty Edward Doty (August 23, 1655) was a passenger on the 1620 voyage of the ''Mayflower'' to North America; he was one of the signers of the Mayflower Compact. Early life Doty came from England, but from where in England is currently unknown. A po ...

and Edward Lester were passengers on the ''

'' on its journey to the

New World The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. ...

in 1620. Along the way her half-brother Oceanus was born, the only child born on the Mayflower journey. Her memorial plaque, in the Cove Burying Ground in Eastham, Massachusetts, placed in 1966 by descendants, states in part "Wife of Nicholas Snow, Eastham's first town clerk 1646 – 1662". We do not know the exact location of their graves. Constance married Nicholas Snow sometime before the Division of Cattle which occurred May 22, 1627. Nicholas came to Plymouth on board the ship ''Anne'' in 1623 and was made a freeman at Plymouth in 1633. The inventory of Nicholas Snow's estate made at his death lists a wide variety of cooper's and carpenter's tools; this may indicate his trade. He was a town clerk at Eastham and held several other local government offices. According to Governor William Bradford, who wrote between March 6 and April 3, 1651: "Constance is married, and has 12 children all of them living, and one of them married".

Children of Constance and Nicholas Snow

*Mark b. Plymouth, May 9, 1628, married (1) Ann Cooke daughter of Josiah Cooke, married (2) Jane Prence, daughter of

Thomas Prence Thomas Prence (c. 1601 – March 29, 1673) was a New England colonist who arrived in the colony of Plymouth Colony, Plymouth in November 1621 on the ship ''Fortune''. In 1644 he moved to Massachusetts Bay Colony, Eastham, which he helped found, re ...

*Mary b. Plymouth, 1630, married Thomas Paine *Sarah b. Plymouth, 1632, married William Walker, who came to the colony on the ship '' Elizabeth'', in 1635 *Joseph b. Plymouth, 1634, Joseph Snow married Mary Higgins she was the daughter of Richard and Mary (Yates) Higgins *Stephen b. Plymouth, 1636, married (1) Susanna Rogers (Deane), daughter of Stephen Deane, married (2) Mary Bigford (Cottle, Bickford), daughter of Edward Cottle and Judith, last name unknown *John b. Plymouth, December 11, 1638, married Mary Smalley, a twin daughter of John Smalley and Ann Walden *Elizabeth b. Plymouth, 1640, married Thomas Rogers, son of Joseph Rogers, the son of

Pilgrim A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) who is on a journey to a holy place. Typically, this is a physical journey (often on foot) to some place of special significance to the adherent of ...

, Thomas Rogers *Jabez b. Plymouth, 1642, married Elizabeth, last name unknown, she was possibly the daughter of Ralph Smith *Ruth b. Plymouth, 1644, married Lieutenant John Cole Sr., son of Daniel Cole and Ruth Chester Josiah Paine, a Town Clerk and historian of Harwich wrote "Nicholas and Constance had a dau. named for her mother who was the first wife of Daniel Doane of Eastham…" *Constance (unproved), b. Plymouth, married Daniel Doane The name Constance Snow (child of Nicholas Snow and Constance Hopkins Snow), was seen by the town clerk Josia Paine listed on proper documents and testified to this in a town meeting. This was 100 years after Constance Hopkins Snow had lived. A fire burned down the building retaining these documents, and the town clerk Josiah Paine was questioned about the Snows lineage. The Doane Family and Lineage accept Constance Snow Doane as a descendant of the Stephen Hopkins family. The only Society that does not accept the Constables' testimony is the Mayflower Society. As far as the Doanes are concerned, Constance Snow was the granddaughter of Stephen Hopkins who was on the Mayflower along with other family members including Constance Hopkins, Constance Snow's mother. * Two unknown children Constance Hopkins had 72 grandchildren. She is the 10-times great-grandmother of actress

Allison Janney Allison Brooks Janney (born November 19, 1959) is an American actress. In a career spanning three decades, she is known for her performances across multiple genres of screen and stage. Janney has received various accolades, including an Academ ...

Legacy

A beaver hat, reputed to have belonged to Constance Hopkins, is in the collection of the Pilgrim Hall museum in Plymouth.

Fictional representations

Constance Hopkins is the central character in Patricia Clapp's young adult novel ''Constance: A Story of Early Plymouth.'' Clapp herself was a descendant of Hopkins.

References

1. Caleb Johnson, ''

The American Genealogist ''The American Genealogist'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal which focuses on genealogy and family history. It was established by Donald Lines Jacobus in 1922 as the ''New Haven Genealogical Magazine''. In July 1932 it was renamed ...

'' 73:161-171, "The True English Origins of Stephen Hopkins of the Mayflower", July 1998. His first wife was not Constance Dudley, though this erroneous name is given by older references with no citations 2. ''Mayflower Families Through Five Generations,'' Volume Six, Third Edition, Stephen Hopkins

External links