John Billington (also spelled as Billinton) (c. 1580September 30, 1630) was an Englishman who travelled 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. ...

on the '' Mayflower'' and was one of the signers of the Mayflower Compact.

In England

Nothing is known about John Billington's life in England. His son Francis was named in a 1612 lease of property in

Cowbit __NOTOC__ Cowbit (locally pronounced ''Cubbit'') is a village and civil parish in the South Holland district of Lincolnshire, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 1,220. It is situated south from Spalding and no ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-we ...

and either John or Eleanor, or both, were associated with this area. Around Cowbit and Spalding, in Lincolnshire, Francis Longland named young Francis Billington, son of John Billington, an heir.''A genealogical profile of John Billington,'' (a collaboration of Plimoth Plantation and New England Historic Genealogical Society accessed 2013) Robert Charles Anderson, ''Pilgrim Village Family Sketch: John Billington'' (a collaboration between American Ancestors and New England Historic Genealogical Society

/ref>

''Mayflower'' voyage

John Billington, his wife Elinor, and their two sons, John and Francis, departed on the ''Mayflower'' from Plymouth,

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

, England 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, contributed to what would eventually be fatal for many, especially the majority of women. 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 the cold, harsh

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the Can ...

winter.Eugene Aubrey Stratton, ''Plymouth Colony: Its History and People, 1620-1691,'' (Salt Lake City: Ancestry Publishing, 1986), p. 413 On November 9/19, 1620, after about three months at sea, including a month of delays in England, they spotted land, which was the

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mont ...

hook, now called

Provincetown Harbor Provincetown Harbor is a large natural harbor located in the town of Provincetown, Massachusetts. The harbor is mostly deep and stretches roughly from northwest to southeast and from northeast to southwest – one large, deep basin with no dr ...

. 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. Billington signed the Mayflower Compact that day.

Life in Plymouth colony

The Billington family appeared a number of times in the accounts of early

Plymouth Colony Plymouth Colony (sometimes Plimouth) was, from 1620 to 1691, the first permanent English colony in New England and the second permanent English colony in North America, after the Jamestown Colony. It was first settled by the passengers on the ...

and were reported to be the colony's troublemakers. Francis made squibs and fired a musket in the ''Mayflower'' while the ship was anchored off Cape Cod. Francis went exploring soon after their arrival and discovered the body of water now known as Billington Sea. In March 1621 John Senior challenged Myles Standish's orders for "contempt of the Captain's lawful command with several speeches" and was punished for it. He would do this many times more. In May 1621 John Billington (the younger) became lost in some woods for several days, eventually being returned home by some natives from

Nauset The Nauset people, sometimes referred to as the Cape Cod Indians, were a Native American tribe who lived in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. They lived east of Bass River and lands occupied by their closely-related neighbors, the Wampanoag. Although the ...

on Cape Cod. In 1624 John Billington was implicated in the Oldham-Lyford scandal (a revolt against the rule of the Plymouth church), but insisted he was innocent and was never officially punished. In 1625 Governor Bradford wrote a letter to Robert Cushman saying "Billington still rails against you…he is a knave, and so will live and die." In 1636, wife Elinor (Eleanor) was sentenced to sit in the stocks and be whipped for slandering John Doane.

Family

John Billington married Elinor (Unknown)Whiston, R.N., "Francis Billington and Lincolnshire" NEHGR, vol. 124 (1970): pages 116-118. in England. They had two sons. After John's death, Elinor married Gregory Armstrong in September 1638. Elinor died after March 2, 1642/3. Gregory Armstrong died in Plymouth on November 5, 1650. It is possible that Elinor was born Elinor Longland, sister of Francis Longland, as the Billington's son Francis was included in a three-life lease with Francis Longland and a nephew of Francis Longland for land in the manor of Spalding in Lincolnshire, implying that Francis Billington was also a nephew of Longland's. However, despite extensive research, no other evidence has been found. Children of John and Elinor Billington: * John, born about 1604. He died in Plymouth between May 22, 1627, and his father's death in 1630. * Francis, born about 1606. He married Christian (Penn) Eaton in Plymouth in July 1634 and had nine children. A survey in 1650 indicated that Francis Billington was then in New England. He died in Middleboro on December 3, 1684.

Death of John Billington

In September 1630 John Billington was tried by a jury and hanged for the murder of John Newcomen, whom he saw as an enemy. This was the first such execution in Plymouth colony. Bradford states he was approximately forty years of age. His burial location is unknown.William Bradford, ''History of Plymouth Plantation by William Bradford, the second Governor of Plymouth'', (Boston: 1856, Not in copyright), pp.276, 277 Nathaniel Mourton, colony secretary from 1645-1685, indicated that Billington saw Newcomen robbing his traps.

References

External links

Biography at Pilgrim Hall MuseumBiography at Mayflowerhistory.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Billington, John 1580s births 1630 deaths 17th-century executions of American people 17th-century English criminals Mayflower passengers People executed for murder Executed English people People executed by the Plymouth Colony English people convicted of murder American people convicted of murder People executed under the Stuarts People executed by the Thirteen Colonies by hanging Murder in 1630 1630 in the Thirteen Colonies Murder in the Thirteen Colonies