Elizabeth Tilley (c. August 1607 – December 21, 1687) was one of the passengers on the historic 1620 voyage of the Mayflower and a participant in the first Thanksgiving in the New World. She was the daughter of Mayflower passenger John Tilley and his wife Joan Hurst and, although she was their youngest child, appears to be the only one who survived the voyage. She went on to marry fellow Mayflower passenger John Howland, with whom she had ten children and 88 grandchildren. Because of their great progeny, she and her husband have millions of living descendants today.

Early life

Elizabeth Tilley was born in Henlow, Bedfordshire, England, where she was baptized in August, 1607. According to parish records, she was the youngest of five children born to her parents. She also had an older step-sister, Joan, from her mother's first marriage to Thomas Rogers (no relation to the Mayflower passenger of the same name). It is likely that when she was a small girl, she moved with her parents to the Netherlands, where her parents and her uncle Edward Tilley are documented as members of the Leiden Separatist congregation. Edward's ward, Henry Samson, may also have been a member.

On the Mayflower and in the New World

William Bradford, in his memoirs, listed the Tilley family on the Mayflower as: "John Tillie, and his wife; and Elizabeth, their daughter." Elizabeth would have been about 13 years old during the journey. The Mayflower departed Plymouth, 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, 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. 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 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. Elizabeth's father, John Tilley signed as "John Tilly."

In the New World

Upon arriving in the New World, John Tilley took part in early expeditions of exploration around their new home and was present at the first meeting between the Pilgrims and Native Americans, later known as the First Encounter. Elizabeth's parents both died the first winter, as did her uncle, Edward Tilley, and aunt, Ann. This left Elizabeth an orphan and so she was taken in by the Carver family. The elder Carvers died about a year later, and part of their estate was inherited by their servant, John Howland, and Elizabeth became his ward.

Family and children

Although the date of their marriage is not recorded, a few years after their arrival in the New World, Elizabeth married John Howland (c. 1623/4). She and John would go on to have ten children, all of whom would live to adulthood, and 86 grandchildren. Elizabeth outlived her husband by 14 years, being one of the few original Pilgrims to live to see King Philip's War.

Children of John and Elizabeth Howland

Notable descendants

John and Elizabeth Howland founded one of the three largest Mayflower progenies and their descendants have been "associated largely with both the 'Boston Brahmins' and Harvard's 'intellectual aristocracy' of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries." Their direct descendants include notable figures such as: