Priscilla Alden
Encyclopedia
Priscilla Alden (c. 1602–c. 1680?), noted member of Massachusetts
's Plymouth Colony
of Pilgrims, was the wife of fellow colonist John Alden (c. 1599–1687). They married in 1623 in Plymouth.
in Surrey
, the daughter of William and Alice Mullins. Priscilla was a seventeen-year-old girl when she boarded the Mayflower
. She lost her parents and her brother Joseph during the first winter in Plymouth. She was then the only one of her family in the New World
, although she had another brother and a sister who remained in England
. She spun wool and flax for the colony, taught children, and helped with the cooking.
John Alden and Priscilla Mullins were likely the third couple to be married in Plymouth Colony. William Bradford’s marriage to Alice Carpenter on August 14, 1624, is known to be the fourth. The first was that of Edward Winslow and Susannah White in 1621. Francis Eaton’s marriage to his second wife, Dorothy, maidservant to the Carvers, was possibly the second.
Priscilla is last recorded in the records in 1650, but oral tradition states that she died only a few years before her husband (which would be about 1680). She lies buried at the Miles Standish Burial Ground in Duxbury, Massachusetts. While the exact location of her grave is unknown, there is a marker honoring her.
's 1858 poem The Courtship of Miles Standish
. According to the poem, Standish asked his good friend John Alden
to propose to Priscilla on his behalf, only to have Priscilla ask, “Why don’t you speak for yourself, John?”
Longfellow (a direct descendant of John and Priscilla) based his poem on a romanticized version of a family tradition, though there is no independent historical evidence for the account. The basic story was apparently handed down in the Alden family and published by John and Priscilla’s great-great-grandson, Rev. Timothy Alden, in 1814.
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
's Plymouth Colony
Plymouth Colony
Plymouth Colony was an English colonial venture in North America from 1620 to 1691. The first settlement of the Plymouth Colony was at New Plymouth, a location previously surveyed and named by Captain John Smith. The settlement, which served as the capital of the colony, is today the modern town...
of Pilgrims, was the wife of fellow colonist John Alden (c. 1599–1687). They married in 1623 in Plymouth.
Biography
Priscilla was most likely born in DorkingDorking
Dorking is a historic market town at the foot of the North Downs approximately south of London, in Surrey, England.- History and development :...
in Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, the daughter of William and Alice Mullins. Priscilla was a seventeen-year-old girl when she boarded the Mayflower
Mayflower
The Mayflower was the ship that transported the English Separatists, better known as the Pilgrims, from a site near the Mayflower Steps in Plymouth, England, to Plymouth, Massachusetts, , in 1620...
. She lost her parents and her brother Joseph during the first winter in Plymouth. She was then the only one of her family in the New World
New World
The New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
, although she had another brother and a sister who remained in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. She spun wool and flax for the colony, taught children, and helped with the cooking.
John Alden and Priscilla Mullins were likely the third couple to be married in Plymouth Colony. William Bradford’s marriage to Alice Carpenter on August 14, 1624, is known to be the fourth. The first was that of Edward Winslow and Susannah White in 1621. Francis Eaton’s marriage to his second wife, Dorothy, maidservant to the Carvers, was possibly the second.
Priscilla is last recorded in the records in 1650, but oral tradition states that she died only a few years before her husband (which would be about 1680). She lies buried at the Miles Standish Burial Ground in Duxbury, Massachusetts. While the exact location of her grave is unknown, there is a marker honoring her.
Longfellow's poem
She is known to literary history as the unrequited love of the newly widowed Captain Miles Standish, the colony's military advisor, in Henry Wadsworth LongfellowHenry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet and educator whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline...
's 1858 poem The Courtship of Miles Standish
The Courtship of Miles Standish
The Courtship of Miles Standish is an 1858 narrative poem by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow about the early days of Plymouth Colony, the colonial settlement established in America by the Mayflower Pilgrims.-Overview:...
. According to the poem, Standish asked his good friend John Alden
John Alden
John Alden is said to be the first person from the Mayflower to set foot on Plymouth Rock in 1620. He was a ship-carpenter by trade and a cooper for Mayflower, which was usually docked at Southampton. He was also one of the founders of Plymouth Colony and the seventh signer of the Mayflower Compact...
to propose to Priscilla on his behalf, only to have Priscilla ask, “Why don’t you speak for yourself, John?”
Longfellow (a direct descendant of John and Priscilla) based his poem on a romanticized version of a family tradition, though there is no independent historical evidence for the account. The basic story was apparently handed down in the Alden family and published by John and Priscilla’s great-great-grandson, Rev. Timothy Alden, in 1814.
The Alden children
Priscilla and John Alden had ten children, with a possible eleventh dying in infancy. It is presumed, although not documented, that the first three children were born in Plymouth, the remainder in Duxbury. The children were:- JohnJohn Alden (Capt.)Captain John Alden Jr. was the son of John Alden Sr. and Priscilla Mullins, who settled in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1620, arriving on the Mayflower. He was a sea-captain, a merchant in Boston, and a charter member of Rev. Samuel Willard's Third Church in Boston...
(1626–1701). Moved to Boston and married there Elizabeth (Phillips) Everill, widow of Abiel Everill. They also had thirteen children. He was a mariner and became a naval commander of the Massachusetts Bay ColonyMassachusetts Bay ColonyThe Massachusetts Bay Colony was an English settlement on the east coast of North America in the 17th century, in New England, situated around the present-day cities of Salem and Boston. The territory administered by the colony included much of present-day central New England, including portions...
. He was a member of the Old South ChurchOld South Meeting HouseThe Old South Meeting House , in the Downtown Crossing area of Boston, Massachusetts, gained fame as the organizing point for the Boston Tea Party on December 16, 1773. 5,000 colonists gathered at the Meeting House, the largest building in Boston at the time.-Church :The church, with its 56 m ...
of Boston and his ancient slate headstone is embedded in the wall there. Perhaps the best known event of his life is when, on a trip to SalemSalem, MassachusettsSalem is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 40,407 at the 2000 census. It and Lawrence are the county seats of Essex County...
, he was accused of witchcraftWitchcraftWitchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
, spending fifteen weeks in a Boston jail. He escaped shortly before nine of the other victims were executed/murdered during the Salem witch trialsSalem witch trialsThe Salem witch trials were a series of hearings before county court trials to prosecute people accused of witchcraft in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Middlesex in colonial Massachusetts, between February 1692 and May 1693...
. Alden was later exonerated. - ElizabethElizabeth PabodieElizabeth Pabodie , also known as Elizabeth Alden Pabodie or Elizabeth Peabody, was allegedly the first white woman born in New England....
. (1624/25–1717). Married William Pabodie (Peabody), a civic and military leader of Duxbury, where all thirteen of their children were born. They moved to Little Compton, Rhode IslandLittle Compton, Rhode IslandLittle Compton is a town in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States. Its population was 3,492 at the time of the 2010 census. Little Compton is located in southeastern Rhode Island, between the Sakonnet River and the Massachusetts state border...
, where Elizabeth died in 1717 at the age of about ninety-four. Their descendants were prominent in settling areas of Rhode IslandRhode IslandThe state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
and ConnecticutConnecticutConnecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
. From Elizabeth’s line comes the one individual most credited with spreading the fame of John and Priscilla far and wide, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in his Courtship of Miles Standish. - Joseph. (1627-1697) Moved to BridgewaterBridgewater, MassachusettsFor geographic and demographic information on the census-designated place Bridgewater, please see the article Bridgewater , Massachusetts.The Town of Bridgewater is a city in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States, 28 miles south of Boston. At the 2000 Census, the population was 25,185...
where he was a farmer on land purchased earlier from the Indians by his father and Myles Standish. He married Mary Simmons. They had a total of seven children. Joseph died sometime after. - Sarah. Her marriage to Myles Standish's son, Alexander, undercuts any idea of a long-standing feud between the Aldens and the Standish clan. In fact, there is much evidence to suggest that John and Myles remained lifelong friends or, at the minimum, associates. Sarah and Alexander lived in Duxbury until Sarah’s death sometime before June 1688. (Alexander subsequently married Desire Doty, a twice widowed daughter of Pilgrim Edward Doty.) They had seven or possibly eight children. Their home, Alexander Standish HouseAlexander Standish HouseAlexander Standish House is an historic house in Duxbury, Massachusetts.The house was built in 1666 by Alexander Standish , son of Mayflower Pilgrim, Capt. Myles Standish. Alexander Standish and his wife Sarah Alden, daughter of John Alden and Priscilla Mullins lived in the house until their deaths...
, in Duxbury still stands. - Jonathan. Married Abigail Hallett December 10, 1672. Lived in Duxbury until his death February 14, 1697. Was the second owner of the Alden House which he received from his father. The house then passed to his own son, John. Six children. At his funeral oration, Jonathan was described as "a sincere Christian, one whose heart was in the house of God even when his body was barred hence by restraints of many difficulties which confined him at home."
- Ruth. Married John Bass of Braintree, MassachusettsBraintree, MassachusettsThe Town of Braintree is a suburban city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Although officially known as a town, Braintree adopted a municipal charter, effective 2008, with a mayor-council form of government and is considered a city under Massachusetts law. The population was 35,744...
, where they lived and had seven children. Of the more illustrious descendants of this union came Presidents John AdamsJohn AdamsJohn Adams was an American lawyer, statesman, diplomat and political theorist. A leading champion of independence in 1776, he was the second President of the United States...
and John Quincy AdamsJohn Quincy AdamsJohn Quincy Adams was the sixth President of the United States . He served as an American diplomat, Senator, and Congressional representative. He was a member of the Federalist, Democratic-Republican, National Republican, and later Anti-Masonic and Whig parties. Adams was the son of former...
. Ruth died on October 12, 1674. - Rebecca. Married Thomas Delano of Duxbury by 1667, a son of Philip Delanoye, one of the original settlers of Duxbury. They had nine children. Died in Duxbury sometime after June 13, 1688.
- Mary. No record of birth or marriage. Died after June 13, 1688.
- Priscilla. Same information as for Mary.
- David. Married Mary Southworth, daughter of Constant Southworth of Plymouth Colony. Died sometime during 1718 or 1719. Six children. A man described as "a prominent member of the church, a man of great respectability and much employed in public business."
External links
- Mayflowerhistory.com page on Priscilla Mullins
- John and Priscilla Alden's descendants (through three generations) at Alden Kindred of America