Name |
BREWSTER, Elder William [1] |
Suffix |
Mayflower Passenger 1620 |
Birth |
Abt 1566 |
Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, England [1] |
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BREWSTER, William - The Great Migration Begins Volume 1 Page 227
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BREWSTER, William - The Great Migration Begins Volume 1 Page 228
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BREWSTER, William - The Great Migration Begins Volume 1 Page 229
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BREWSTER, William - The Great Migration Begins Volume 1 Page 230
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Gender |
Male |
Biography/Personal History |
William Brewster was born about 1566, the son of William Brewster. He was educated in both Greek and Latin and spent some time at Cambridge University, although he never completed a full degree. He went into the service of William Davison, then Secretary of State, while his father back home maintained a position as the postmaster of Scrooby, Nottinghamshire. Under Davison, Brewster first traveled to the Netherlands. After Davison's departure as Secretary of State, Brewster worked himself into his father's postmaster duties and maintained Scrooby Manor. Brewster was instrumental in establishing the small Separatist church with Richard Clyfton, and they often held their meetings in the Manor house. Brewster and the others were eventually found and forced out, and fleeing prosecution and persecution they headed to Amsterdam in 1608, and moving to Leiden, Holland in 1609. Brewster became the church's Elder, responsible for seeing that the congregation's members carried themselves properly, both helping and admonishing them when necessary.
In Leiden, Brewster working with Thomas Brewer became working a printing press and publishing religious books and pamphlets which were then illegally conveyed into England. Brewster also employed himself teaching University of Leiden students English. By 1618, the English authorities were onto him and his printing press, and had the Dutch authorities in pursuit of him. Thomas Brewer was arrested and held in the University of Leiden's prison, but Brewster managed to evade the authorities and went into hiding for a couple years.
When the Leiden church congregation decided to send the first wave to set up and establish a colony that everyone could eventually move to, their pastor John Robinson decided to remain behind in Leiden with the majority of the congregation, intending to come later. The smaller group that went on the Mayflower desired the next highest ranking church official, Elder Brewster, go with them; so he agreed. He brought his wife Mary and two youngest children, Love and Wrestling, on the Mayflower with him.
Brewster continued his work as Church Elder throughout his life at Plymouth Colony. His wife Mary died in 1627, and he never remarried. He lived to be nearly 80 years old, dying in 1644. Shortly after he died, William Bradford wrote a short but concise biography of Brewster, just a couple pages, in his history Of Plymouth Plantation.
- http://www.mayflowerhistory.com/Passengers/WilliamBrewster.php |
Find-A-Grave Memorial # |
Burial Hill, Plymouth, Plymouth, Massachusetts, United States [2] |
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=16195888 |
Immigration |
11 Nov 1620 |
Plymouth, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA |
On Mayflower |
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HISTORY - PASSAGE 1620 - Mayflower Passenger
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Death |
10 Apr 1644 |
Duxbury, Plymouth, Massachusetts, United States [1] |
Person ID |
I02390 |
Schuler |
Last Modified |
28 Oct 2016 |
Father |
BREWSTER, William II, b. 1534, Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, England d. 1590, Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, England (Age 56 years) |
Mother |
SMYTHE, Mary, b. 1535, Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, England d. 1567, Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, England (Age 32 years) |
Marriage |
1560 |
Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, England |
Family ID |
F01361 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
Family |
BREWSTER, Mary () d. 17 Apr 1627, Plymouth, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA |
Marriage |
Abt 1592 |
Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, England [3] |
Children |
+ | 1. BREWSTER, Fear Anne Passenger, 1623 |
| 2. BREWSTER, Jonathan, b. 12 Aug 1593, Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, England |
+ | 3. BREWSTER, Patience Anne Passenger, 1623, b. Abt 1603, Scrooby, Nottinghamshire, England d. 12 Dec 1634, Plymouth, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA (Age ~ 31 years) |
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Family ID |
F00928 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
Last Modified |
8 May 2009 |