COMPACT DAY MEETING AND LUNCHEON. Saturday, October 27, :00 a.m. (Board of Assistants Meeting 9:30 a.m.) The Club, Birmingham, Alabama

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1 ALABAMA PILGRIM The Newsletter for the Society of Mayflower Descendants in the State of Alabama, a member society of the General Society of Mayflower Descendants September 12, 2018 COMPACT DAY MEETING AND LUNCHEON Saturday, October 27, :00 a.m. (Board of Assistants Meeting 9:30 a.m.) The Club, Birmingham, Alabama Speaker Timothy D. Hall, Dean & Professor of History, Samford University College of Arts & Sciences Governor s Highlights We meet in Birmingham the last Saturday in October (the 27 th ) to hear Samford University s Tim Hall about The Colonial Great Awakening in Benjamin Franklin s Newspaper (tying in to the Mayflower). Our Alabama Mayflower Society exceeded our $5,000 goal for restoration of The National Pilgrim Memorial Meetinghouse in Plymouth. Built in 1897, it stands where the Pilgrims raised their meetinghouse for worship and protection on their First Street, now Leyden Street. Governor General George Garmany detailed the project to our April 2018 Annual Meeting audience in Huntsville. Donations to this worthy and exciting project remain much encouraged. Your tax-deductible gift checks to the SMDAL, marked for The National Pilgrim Memorial Meetinghouse Restoration, should go to Treasurer Patricia S. Harper, 4781 County Road 150, Dawson, Alabama Darlene and I attended the General Board meeting in St. Charles, Illinois, along with Ann and John Ferguson. My details will be in the DGG report. One sad note is the passing of Mary Ann Neeley on August 29, She was the Historian of Montgomery and present at the Capital Colony charter meeting. I attended her wake on September 4 at the Loeb Center in Old Alabama Town, among a crowd of Who s Who of Central Alabama 1 Historians. Also, I spoke at the Gulf Coast Colony May meeting. Lt. Governor Kevin Sellew is planning many activities promoting our Society in and around Mobile. We had a First when Brenda Gouge telecasted our April Huntsville meeting by cell telephone for Kevin in Mobile when he was unable to attend. We will see you in Birmingham. Governor Alan Davis GG George Garmany speaks in Huntsville PS: Pay $ SMDAL DUES to Pat Harper, 4781 County Road 150, Dawson, Alabama

2 CURRENT BOARD OF ASSISTANTS Governor Alan M. Davis, Dep. Governor Brenda Gouge, Secretary - Nancy C. Logan, Treasurer Patricia S. Harper, Historian Mark F. Chesebro, Elder Regena C. Dawson, Captain - Anne T. Kilgrow, Librarian - Carol C. Kitchens, Colony Lieutenant Governors M. Inge Tingle, Cahaba River, Edward H. Phillips, Capital, Kevin D. Sellew, Gulf Coast, Stacy Smith, Tennessee Valley, & Juniors Chair Board of Assistants Members-at-large - Amy R. Hill-Price, Linda Alcott Maples, J. Michel Marcoux, Pamela J. Pittman, Former Governors Ellie Lienau, Rich Hobson, Mary Helen Mahan, Ann Ferguson, Charlotte Hobson, Ann King, Sid Leak, Mary Alice Carmichael Board of Assistants General Society Officers Deputy Gov. General - Alan Davis, Assistant General - Ann Ferguson, The officers serve the Society of Mayflower Descendants in the State of Alabama membership. If we can assist you, let us know. We also welcome your help and suggestions April 2018 Report From Your New Governor General Summarizing His Huntsville Talk Identifying our Pilgrim story as an essential part of western civilization in the U.S. and other countries, Governor General George Garmany [ GGGG!] explains that the GSMD joins with 53 Member Societies in a federated body. We look to express love for 2 history and the Pilgrim memory by (i) educating ourselves and the public about the Pilgrims experiences and accomplishments, and (ii) promoting family history and genealogy through high quality research. Posing the question What does the Mayflower Society do?, he updates thus: Leiden Street Meetinghouse. Noting the maintenance and preservation of The National Pilgrim Memorial Meetinghouse to be one of the most important projects for our generation, he explains that a declining First Parish Church congregation no longer can support this 1897 building at the top of Plymouth s Leyden Street. Regarded as a masterpiece of the late 1880s British and American Arts and Crafts Movement, the building may be the only surviving unaltered interior by the Boston architectural firm Hartwell and Richardson, whose work includes many National Register of Historic Places listings. The building s interior stained-glass windows alone are worth a visit. Raising necessary funds gives the GSMD not only the building but also records from the 17 th century onward collectively making a magnificent contribution from our generation for the 400 th Mayflower voyage anniversary. As an aside, GGGG notes that in 1897 the GSMD was simply a tiny, new entity based in a small Boston office! 2020 Commemorative Stamps & Coins. The U.S. government issued stamps and coins in 1920, but apparently the GSMD was not involved. Not so now. We are asking the U.S. Postal Service for a pictorially highquality stamp series. We also are working to achieve an Act of Congress to issue coins. Beyond Our Borders. Reaching out to potential GSMD members in other parts of the world, we have left flowers at the monument to the Mayflower s Master, Christopher Jones in the Rotherhithe, London churchyard where he is buried, a short walk

3 from the south bank of the Thames. Great Britain members have helped organize the new Mayflower Society in Europe a subject of discussion for a century but now a recent reality. The GSMD is in contact with those organizing the Plymouth, England commemoration. We will contribute to a 400 th Anniversary memorial there, likely near the Mayflower Steps, where our ancestors last viewed England before sailing west. Back Home. Reaching out to civic and cultural leaders, Ken Tavares, Plymouth Board of Selectmen Chair, and Ellie Donovan, Plimoth Plantation Executive Director, have visited Mayflower House. Publications. Robert Cushman was an important Leiden congregation member who wrote a short book in 1619 (The Cry of a Stone) to explain the beliefs of his fellow Separatist congregation members to lay readers. First published in 1642, the GSMD re-published it two years ago. We also recently published Dr. Jeremy Bangs rigorous history of our ancestors Netherlands years, including events and concerns that caused them to leave Leiden for the New World. Both that book, Strangers and Pilgrims, Travellers and Sojourners, and the Robert Cushman monograph merit your close attention. Current GSMD publications include the new Mayflower Journal, A magazine of genealogy, history, literature, and the arts in Colonial New England (volume 3 issues in two numbers this year). We support such scholarly work with our Pilgrim Academic Research Committee. Perhaps the core of our love for history and the Pilgrim memory are GSMD genealogical publications, including the Silver Books and related Pamphlets. We will preserve the gold standard quality of such publications for future researchers. And, what is new? We are engaging our members with Family Tree DNA, encouraging members to participate to try to build DNA files for Pilgrim ancestors. Monuments Old and New. Human bones thought to be from colonists who died the first winter that were found on Plymouth s Cole s Hill are enclosed by a crypt covered by a sarcophagus. Each GSMD Congress holds a service at this place, overlooking Cape Cod Bay waters, to memorialize such ancestors. Since the sarcophagus was completed for the Tercentenary, it has had little upkeep. Recently, we partnered with the State of Massachusetts to refurbish the sarcophagus. Also, a monument for this century is in the works: a bronze statue of Wm. Bradford, with a permanent flame and quoting his famous words: [A]s one small candle may light a thousand, so the light here kindled hath shone unto many, yea in some sort to our whole nation Diggings. For the last two years, graduate archaeology student teams from the University of Massachusetts Boston have tested the ground along School Street at Burial Hill s edge in Plymouth. They hope to find remnants of original palisade walls described by visitors to Plymouth Plantation during the 1620s. They are directed by Dr. David Landon, whose broader interests in colonial archaeology are recognized by his receipt of the GSMD 2016 Pilgrim Academic Research Award. We expect his team(s) will work on our GSMD campus in Plymouth in the ongoing search for early town structures and those who inhabited them. Mayflower II. Currently in Connecticut dry dock for extensive repairs in preparation for 2020, the GSMD continues to support the repair effort financially, recently by a competitive Pennies for Planks project to encourage Member Societies to contribute. GSMD s Mayflower House Campus. Our public mission starts at the Plymouth campus of our beautiful, 1754 Winslow Family Mayflower House. Improvements are under way to make the House more useful to 3

4 visiting members and officers, especially for Society Historians training at our Genealogy Library. Further, we are digitizing all Library records with volunteer help to streamline the Historian General s work. GG Garmany finished his thorough and interesting presentation by encouraging us to mount a SMDAL 2020 commemoration to help all understand what it meant for our Pilgrim ancestors to climb aboard a rented ship to sail off westwards for a land unseen. Capturing that spirit will attract and retain members excited by the experience of learning about their own heritage. Alan Davis Michel Marcoux HISTORIAN S REPORT Mark Chesebro NEW MEMBERS Warren Albert Adams AL#620, GS th in descent from James Chilton Skye Elizabeth (Augustine)(Banko) Graham AL#621, GS th in descent from John Alden Barbara Kay (Dubois) LaGreca AL#622, GS th in descent from John Howland Joan (Soesbe) Brokowsky AL#623, GS th in descent from Richard Warren Lisa (Greenlee) Mitchell AL#624, GS th in descent from William Bradford Colleen (Wood) O Steen AL#625, GS th in descent from Thomas Rogers Karen (Edgington) Philpott AL#626, GS th in descent from Richard Warren Dalton James Jim Smith AL#627, GS th in descent from John Howland Marie (Barker) Sanford AL#628, GS th in descent from Richard Warren Transfer Connecticut (CT#4457) SUPPLEMENTALS Please contact us about Supplemental Applications you want to submit. This is a good time for Supplementals, or to have your family members apply. The Plymouth Staff agree to work expeditiously with us. Deane Kraybill Dayton AL#609, GS Supplemental 12 th in descent from John Billington Regena (Campbell) Dawson AL#590, GS Supplemental 13 th in descent from William Brewster Paul Eugene Harriman AL#608, GS Supplemental 12 th in descent from William Mullins Eleanor (Smith) Lienau AL#352, GS Supplemental 10 th in descent from Priscilla Mullins Mark Frederick Chesebro AL#560, GS Supplemental 12 th in descent from Stephen Hopkins OVERVIEW We have seven Applications pending in Plymouth, no Supplemental Applications pending in Plymouth, and about 21 Applications being prepared for Plymouth or actively gathering documentation. ELDER S REPORT IN MEMORIAM Regena Dawson John Leo House passed away on May 13, 2018, at the age of 87. Eleventh in descent from Richard Warren (AL#559, GS 90280) and an active Gulf Coast Colony member, John was born December 19, 1931, in Allendale, Missouri, to John Leo House Sr. and Kathryn Magdalena Pryor House. On 4

5 graduation from secondary school, he joined the Air Force, serving as a jet mechanic in the Korean War. John married Shirley Gay Nelson on April 26, He attended the University of Missouri, receiving a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree in John practiced with Dr. Don Lucas in Shelbina, Missouri. In 1972, he had a unique opportunity to work in Auckland, New Zealand, as a veterinarian in Her Majesty s Service [U.K.]. John finished his career with the U.S. Department of Agriculture as a veterinarian in Clovis, New Mexico; McKinney, Texas; and Batesville, Arkansas, until his retirement in During his full life, he scuba dove around the world, piloted his own airplane, and on his 75 th birthday took up skydiving. John was preceded in death by his parents along with his sisters, Margaret House and Madelyn House Thompson. He is survived by his wife; his son Bryan House and wife, Yasmin House, of Niceville, Florida; and his daughter Brenda Gouge and husband, Stan Gouge, of Andalusia, Alabama. He also is survived by his grandchildren, Lesan Gouge of Seattle, Washington; Sawyer House and his wife, Alyssa House of Mobile, Alabama; Mark Gouge of Greenville, South Carolina; Chad Gouge of Wenatchee, Washington; and Nicholas Cooley and his wife, Chelsey Cooley of McAlester, Oklahoma. Other survivors include two great-grandchildren, his sister, Marilyn House Scott, and several nieces and nephews. N.B., in some cases, in memoriam information may be incomplete, or otherwise incorrect. Often, complete such information unfortunately does not reach our Society when a death occurs. In many cases, it is well after the fact that we learn of a death. Current Members would be very thoughtful to tell your families to notify the Secretary or Treasurer or one of the other State or Colony Officers when the time comes. Would all Colonies notify me of the death of any member? You would be kind to send the following information: Name, Colony, SMDAL & GSMD Numbers, Ancestor Descended From, Date of Death, Obituary if available. Thank you. Regena Dawson, 3107 Ray Blair Place, Huntsville, Alabama Telephone: , RegenaCampbellDawson@gmail.com. A SPECIAL NEW MEMBERS WELCOME! We warmly welcome the nine new Alabama Mayflower Society members listed above. You are our fellow relatives, and we will greet you with pleasure on Saturday morning, October 29, at our Compact Day Meeting luncheon in Birmingham at The Club. Mayflower Family Societies Ellie Lienau, former Governor Mayflower descendants run family societies to focus on one Pilgrim family and their lineage. GSMD members easily can join a family society with which the GSMD partners because little or no lineage data are required. Dues vary. See the GSMD website s ( Our Society tab at GSMD Partnerships. 5

6 Who Named Plymouth? by Mark Chesebro Many people assume that the Pilgrims named Plymouth after the English seaport where they last set sail. But, a study of the history of early American maps tells us otherwise. In 1606, when royal permission was granted to colonize and explore Virginia, maps of America were notoriously inaccurate. Englishman Captain John Smith of Jamestown and Pocahontas fame attempted to correct this. In 1607, he began exploring the Chesapeake region. In 1608, he sent a map and papers back to England. In 1612, he published his remarkably accurate map of Virginia, considering he had only primitive mapmaking tools. See 1612 map below. John Smith s 1612 map included more than just the Atlantic coastline. I marked the boundaries of Smith s personal observations with 27 small crosses. Information mapped inland, beyond the crosses, came from accounts of Native Americans with whom he interacted, having learned some of the local Algonquian language. The map showed the region s people as well as its geography. It was the most widely known map of the region of its time and served as a basis for all other maps of that region until about John Smith s 1612 Map of Virginia 6

7 After John Smith left Jamestown in 1609, he did not return there. But, in April 1614 he set sail with two ships sponsored by the Plymouth Company. His purpose was to catch whales and search for gold and copper along the coast of what was then called Northern Virginia. At 34 years old, he headed for the coast of Maine, a popular spot for whaling. When no whales were killed, or metals found, to make the voyage profitable most of his men fished for cod and traded with Native Americans for furs. Smith found his half-dozen navigational maps of the region to be a waste of paper. So, he and eight of his men explored the 350-mile coastline from northern Maine south to Cape Cod to make their own map from their 1614 explorations. See 1614 map below. John Smith s New England Coastline Map from His 1614 Explorations There were no English settlements in the region Smith explored for his map. As in Virginia, for the most part he named places after the Native Americans living there. One exception was Cape Tragabigzanda around present day Gloucester, Massachusetts, which he named after a Turkish princess he knew. 7

8 However, before publication, when John Smith s map was presented to King James, the King s son, young Prince Charles, renamed some 29 locations. He gave English names such as London and Oxford to Native American settlements. Only name variations of three locations on the John Smith original published map remain in use today. For example, the Prince renamed the Massachusetts River to The River Charles after himself, Cape Tragabigzanda to Cape Anna after his mother, and the Native American settlement Accomack to New Plimouth. Captain John Smith today is credited with renaming the entire region in the publication of his map and book, A Description of New England, in Smith made two additional attempts to return to New England, but he could not persuade his former investors to finance another trip. The Pilgrims considered hiring John Smith as sailing master for their 1620 voyage. However, they were concerned about his temper and unpopularity among the Jamestown colonists, and Captain Miles Standish was hired instead. As a Jamestown veteran from 1610, Mayflower Stranger Stephen Hopkins added perspective and language skills to the Pilgrim company that Smith might have provided. The Pilgrims did have access to Smith s maps before their journey. It is unknown if they took the maps on their voyage. If not, they may have at least remembered what Smith wrote of Plymouth in his book: an excellent good harbour, good lands, and no want of anything but industrious people. In subsequent years, nine versions of Smith s map of New England were printed. By the 1635 version, English settlements such as Salem, Boston, and Charlestowne were added and the Charles River extended inland. Captain John Smith s writing and maps can be credited for naming New England. His works were certainly known to the Pilgrims in and the Puritans that followed ten years later in the Winthrop Fleet. But, neither Smith nor the Pilgrims can be credited with naming Plymouth. Such credit belongs to a teenage Prince Charles. Reference Works Brooks, Rebecca Beatrice. Captain John Smith Explores New England. History of Massachusetts Blog, 2 October 2013, Browne, Patrick. A Tale of Two Plymouths and Pilgrims. Historical Digression, 21 January 2014, Burden, Philip D. The Mapping of North America. Clive A. Burden Ltd, Captain John Smith Chesapeake. National Park Service, Deetz, Patricia Scott and James. Maps of New England and Plymouth. The Plymouth Colony Archive Project, 14 December 2007, Farrell, Cassandra. Virginia, Discovered and Described: John Smith s Map of Virginia and Its Derivatives. The Library of Virginia, March 2007, Gambino, Megan. John Smith Coined the Term New England on This 1616 Map. The Smithsonian.com, 24 November 2014, map /#RqAK4JZ2zScq2DRA.99. 8

9 DGG Report by Alan Davis The General Board of Assistants Meeting at Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles, Illinois was well attended. There were 158 people, including AG Ann Ferguson and me. At the Friday, September 7, 2018, Governors meeting, ideas were considered to maintain membership and promote the Society. The Governor General s Forum saw discussion of many topics such as membership growth initiatives, member society suggestions, best practices fundraising, and IMIS, a member management system. On Saturday, September 8, to open the meeting the newly formed Mayflower Guard performed the Flag Processional Ceremony. State Societies are encouraged to form their own guard. U.S. Representative William Foster for Illinois Eleventh Congressional District made a surprise visit and thanked the Society for meeting in St. Charles. He is the only Ph.D. scientist in Congress who worked at the nearby Fermilab. There are now 30,125 GSMD members nationwide and around the world. However, membership retention continues as a problem. The Society is approaching its Plymouth Meetinghouse $3,000,000 goal. Member society donations, plus future grants hopefully will amount to $2,832,167, leaving less than $200,000 to raise to complete the goal by 2020 when the Society will take over ownership of the Meetinghouse. In DNA research, there is a new Mayflower marker with Family Search DNA for those who have had their DNA tested. The 2020 coin initiative is proceeding and, in conjunction with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, it could generate $7,000,000 of which 30 percent would come to the GSMD. Our new GSMD Executive Director, Susan T. Belekewicz, reported that they are working to decrease application processing time. Also, the new IMIS system -- slated to be implemented by the end of will help member society Historians with membership recordkeeping. She also commented on Mayflower House repairs. Bylaws proposals to eliminate dues and lineage assessment amounts was passed to be voted on at the 2020 General Congress. The California Society will have a float in the January 2020 Rose Bowl Parade. We ended the meeting with a banquet and were entertained musically with the Spoon River Anthology by Paddy and Jon Lynn and Patti Ecker. The next General Board of Assistants meeting will be in Denver, Colorado on September 5-9, If you are planning to attend the 2020 General Congress, the hotels in Plymouth and surrounding areas will take reservations beginning in January

10 Junior Membership The Alabama Society would keep bright the Pilgrims memory, cherish their heritage of liberty and freedom for which they sacrificed so much, and hand it on to new generations. Welcome and congratulations! The Society of Mayflower Descendants in the State of Alabama now has a total of 65 Junior Members. We have had no new Junior members since this past spring. SMDAL members are encouraged to sponsor young relatives for Junior Membership. Junior Members whose information may need updating are listed in this Newsletter s Further Announcements. Contact Stacy Smith to update: ssmithsmdal@yahoo.com; (256) Junior Membership application An applicant must be sponsored by a GSMD member in good standing, be under 18 years of age, and be the sponsor s lineal or collateral descendant. There is a one-time fee of $10, payable to the SMDAL. A birth certificate may be requested. Junior members are not GSMD members. However, the SMDAL recognizes them and issues them a State society junior membership number. Junior members may not vote or hold office. At age 18, a junior member may transfer to GSMD membership provided the GSMD approves a usual lineage application. Such transfer to GSMD membership is encouraged before age 25. Junior members will be dropped from the SMDAL roll if they have not transferred to GSMD membership by age 25. Please provide the following information to Stacy Smith with the $10 fee: Junior applicant name: Junior applicant birth date: Junior applicant mailing address: Junior applicant Sponsor Mayflower ancestor(s): Sponsor name and relationship: Sponsor mailing address: Sponsor & SMDAL Colony: Stacy Smith, US Highway 11, Valley Head, Alabama Plymouth Rock (1921 Monument Enclosure at left) at Plymouth Harbor ****************************************************************************** 10

11 From the Desk of Patricia S. Harper, SMDAL Treasurer Thank you for the opportunity to serve as your SMDAL Treasurer. I give special thanks to Mary Helen Mahan for her service to the Society and for providing information I needed to get started. I have a degree in Accounting from Auburn University (1979) and have worked as a Certified Public Accountant before retiring from a full-time career to rear my children. Subsequently, I just retired. Now, I am self-employed part-time, and volunteer for two ministries. The Treasurer s duties include timely dues collection. I look to your cooperation in that effort. Our SMDAL s 2019 Membership Renewal Form is shown just below. Members pay $30. Dues will be distributed as follows: GSMD receives $15; Colonies receive $6; SMDAL keeps $9 Please fill out the form completely and mail to the address shown, or give it to me on Compact Day on October 27. Paying timely saves much effort and money (I won t need to mail reminders). Life Members: Please complete the Membership Renewal Form as well. Friends: Please consider giving Friend memberships at just $20. (at the bottom of the renewal form.) Also important, we will use the Membership Renewal Form for a QuickBooks database for communication, tracking dues payments, and reporting to the Membership, Colonies, Board of Assistants, and GSMD when requested. Please note that there is a space for your SMDAL# and GSMD#. These will be used as your Account Number. (e.g., mine is ) If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call, or write to me. Patricia S. Harper Cell: SMDAL.TREASURER@gmail.com 4781 County Road 150, Dawson, Alabama Thank you in advance for your help! Blessings, Pat Harper PS: The SMDAL Board of Assistants voted at the 2017 Compact Day meeting to encourage its members gifts to support the $3 million trust needed to restore The National Pilgrim Memorial Meeting House. Please thoughtfully consider and contribute to this restoration project -- sending your check to me which I will recognize under 501(c)(3) regulations. The Society of Mayflower Descendants in the State of Alabama is a 501(c)(3) organization. Donations are deductible as allowed by law. 11

12 SOCIETY OF MAYFLOWER DESCENDANTS IN THE STATE OF ALABAMA 2019 MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL FORM 2019 Annual Dues $30.00 Pay by: December 31, 2018 Name Date Address City State 9-digit Zip Code Phone *** *** *** *** *** *** SMDAL Member # General Society of Mayflower Descendants # Select Colony of Choice (Check 1) Cahaba River Colony Capital Colony Gulf Coast Colony Tennessee Valley Colony None Friends of the Pilgrims This is a special membership for friends, spouses, or relatives who are not Society members. Friends support the Society s principles and goals. Name Address Friends of the Alabama Mayflower Society Dues ($20.00) City State 9-digit Zip Code Phone Relationship to SMDAL member Send check payable to SMDAL to: Patricia S. Harper, Treasurer 4781 County Road 150 Dawson, Alabama Phone: SMDAL.TREASURER@gmail.com 12

13 Ongoing SMDAL Support for The National Pilgrim Memorial Meetinghouse Restoration Initiative To support GSMD restoration of this important Pilgrim historical property at the upper end of Leiden Street, adjacent to Burial Hill, the SMDAL Board of Assistants decided in late 2017 on a goal to give the National Pilgrim Memorial Meetinghouse restoration initiative at least $5,000. We exceeded that goal! However, if you have not yet given, you remain highly encouraged to do so. Send tax-deductible gift checks made out to the SMDAL, for The National Pilgrim Memorial Meetinghouse Restoration, to Patricia Harper, 4781 County Road 150, Dawson, Alabama See the GSMD website for former Governor General Lea Filson s Meetinghouse updates. national-pilgrim-memorial-meetinghouse. Also see her introduction to the subject in the March 11, 2018, Society of Mayflower Descendants in the State of Alabama Newsletter, pages 5-7. Governor General George Garmany accepts an April 2018 check in Huntsville for Meetinghouse restoration from then SMDAL Treasurer Mary Helen Mahan The Mayflower Society General Society of Mayflower Descendants (GSMD) 4 Winslow Street, Plymouth, Massachusetts Founded at Plymouth in 1897 Welcome! Any passenger who arrived in Plymouth on the Mayflower is considered a Pilgrim, with no distinction to be made based on their original purpose(s) for making that voyage. See After working on an application with the historian of one of the 53 GSMD Mayflower Societies, any person able to document their descent from one or more of the following Mayflower passengers is eligible and most welcome to apply for GSMD membership: 13

14 John Alden Bartholomew Allerton Isaac Allerton Mary (Norris) Allerton Mary Allerton Remember Allerton Elinor Billington Francis Billington John Billington William Bradford Love Brewster Mary ( ) Brewster William Brewster Peter Browne James Chilton Mrs. James Chilton Mary Chilton Francis Cooke John Cooke Edward Doty Francis Eaton Samuel Eaton Sarah ( ) Eaton Moses Fletcher Edward Fuller Mrs. Edward Fuller Samuel Fuller Samuel Fuller (son of Edw.) Constance Hopkins Elizabeth (Fisher) Hopkins Giles Hopkins Stephen Hopkins John Howland Richard More Priscilla Mullins William Mullins Degory Priest Joseph Rogers Thomas Rogers Henry Samson George Soule Myles Standish Elizabeth Tilley John Tilley Joan (Hurst) Tilley Richard Warren Peregrine White Resolved White Susanna (Jackson) White William White Edward Winslow Many families hold a tradition that they are descended from the Pilgrims, which often kindles an interest in finding out more. As the Mayflower Society website observes, sometimes the stories of a Mayflower heritage are true, and it is easy to document a line of descent. More often, the documentation is missing and must be researched and supplied to prove one s line. The good news is that advanced research techniques, improved genealogy library collections, and computerized resources have made the process easier. Within each generation, you must provide proof of the birth, marriage, and death of the line carrier, and the birth and death of the spouse. The best vital records are the birth, marriage, and death certificates for each person. Other documentation might include published genealogies, family documents, and other official records. If you have a relative who is a GSMD member, you may be able to use their lineage documentation to help you with your own documentation research. Also, proof of lineage from the original Pilgrims through at least the earliest generations can be found in the GSMD s Mayflower Families Through Five Generations, i.e., the ongoing Silver 14

15 Books. As indicated above, GSMD memberships are handled through individual Member Societies, including the Society of Mayflower Descendants in the State of Alabama (SMDAL). To receive a membership application and lineage research guidance, contact the Member Society through which you want to apply. Member Society contact data are available on the Mayflower Society website, as well as in a downloadable Membership brochure providing other such helpful membership information: If you want to inquire about Alabama Mayflower Society membership, or if you are an existing member and wish to encourage someone else to inquire about membership, please contact or encourage others to contact our Historian Mark Chesebro: Home Telephone, ; mchesebro@yahoo.com. You may contact the GSMD with membership questions or for general information ( ; membership@themayflowersociety.org). You also can use the optional GSMD website Preliminary Review Form, Membership Information, ****************************************************************************** Then Elder John Smith reads the Compact at the SMDAL s Huntsville Annual Meeting, April 28,

16 We publish these unapproved minutes for two reasons. The more important is so that members who were unable to attend will learn of our activities as noted at our Society s meetings. We believe you will find something of interest and will decide to attend on a future occasion. The other reason is so that those who attend might be better prepared to approve the minutes without having them read at the meetings, saving everyone s meeting time. THE SOCIETY OF MAYFLOWER DESCENDANTS IN THE STATE OF ALABAMA Annual Meeting Minutes, April 28, 2018 Huntsville Country Club, Huntsville, Alabama The meeting was called to order by Governor Ellie Lienau at 11:05 a.m. Stacy Smith, the Lieutenant Governor of the Tennessee Valley Colony, welcomed everyone to the meeting. Ellie Lienau mentioned that the gavel she was using, which belongs to Governor General George Garmany, was made of wood from the Mayflower II. Elder John Smith led the prayer, and read the Objects of the Society and the Mayflower Compact. He also led the Pledge of Allegiance to the American flag. There was a roll call and guests were introduced and welcomed. Meeting minutes from October 28, 2017, were not read, having been published in the Newsletter. Ann Ferguson had several corrections to those minutes. Those minutes stand as approved as corrected. Reports of Officers and Committees: Governor Ellie Lienau - Will speak later. Deputy Governor Alan Davis - The next State meeting will be on Saturday, October 27, 2018, with a BOA meeting prior to that. Deputy Governor General Alan Davis- Alan will be attending the GBOA meeting in September in St. Charles, Illinois. 16

17 Assistant General Ann Ferguson - Ann spoke to the Alexander City Rotary Club. She also spoke to approximately 250 students at Dadeville Elementary School in her Pilgrim attire. Ann will attend the GBOA meeting in September. Secretary Nancy Logan - No report. Treasurer/Finance Mary Helen Mahan Mary Helen gave her financial report and there were no questions. She noted that we had exceeded our goal for donations to the Plymouth Meetinghouse restoration effort. The SMDAL so far has raised $5,085. Mary Helen presented Governor General George Garmany a check for that amount, and reminded everyone that we are still accepting donations for two more years for this cause. Historian Brenda Gouge - Brenda announced that we have another two new members this week! This brings us up to 622 members in Alabama. Brenda announced that Mark Chesebro will be the new Historian. Elder John Smith- No report. No more deaths since the last meeting. Newsletter - Michel Marcoux- No report. Junior members Stacy Smith - We have nine new junior members since our last meeting. We now have 67 junior members. Stacy announced that he has a list of all the junior members and asked that if anyone has a junior member that they check the information for them and make sure that it is up to date and correct. There is a one-time fee of $10 to become a junior member. Also, there is a fee of $20 per year to be a "Friend" of the Society. Reports of Colonies: Cahaba River Colony - Mark Chesebro - The Cahaba River Colony had their spring meeting on April 21st in Birmingham at The Club. The CRC attendees discussed and approved a book donation/sale procedure. Their speaker was Jean Vaughn about Chief Ladiga in northeast Alabama. Capital Colony - Alan Davis - The Capital Colony will meet in July and the speaker will be Mr. William Dean. Gulf Coast Colony - Kevin Sellew - Kevin made a report by telephone and said he is trying to get organized. The GCC had a Meet-&-Eat meeting in March. Their spring meeting will be held on May 19th. Kevin also hopes to have a social event in the fall. Tennessee Valley Colony - Stacy Smith - Stacy reported that the TVC is fast-growing. Their next meeting will be held in October, and details will follow. Old Business: Old business was deferred. New Business: 17

18 BOA - Mark Chesebro put forth the idea that members donate genealogical books that they no longer need or want. The books would be sold, and the money donated to a particular Colony. A motion was made that this be allowed at the State meetings also. The motion was seconded, and it passed. Mark suggested that we put some Mayflower brochures in genealogical libraries. A motion was made that we spend up to $100 for this project. The motion was seconded, and it passed. Ellie stated that she had enjoyed these past three years as Governor and thanked everyone for their support. She stated she had attended almost all the Colony meetings and had met many people. She thanked everyone for the privilege of being the Governor. Ellie gave certificates of appreciation to all BOA members, including those present: Alan Davis, Nancy Logan, Mary Helen Mahan, Brenda Gouge, Stacy Smith, Mark Chesebro, Michel Marcoux, Linda Maples. The Nominating Committee for the new BOA included Ann Robinson King as chairman, Dean Rice, Ann Ward Smith, and Mary Helen Mahan. The nominees were: Governor, Alan Davis; Deputy Governor, Brenda Gouge; Secretary, Nancy Logan; Treasurer, Patricia Harper; Historian, Mark Chesebro; Captain, Anne Kilgrow; Elder, Regena Dawson; Librarian, Carol Kitchens; Assistants, Linda Maples, Michel Marcoux, Pam Pittman, Amy Hill-Price. A motion was made that the nominees be elected. The motion was seconded, and passed. Governor General George Garmany installed the newly elected officers. As her last duty as Governor, Ellie Lienau turned over the Governor s Medal and the gavel to newly-elected Governor Alan Davis. Alan presented Ellie the Past Governor s Medal symbolically as it had been ordered but not yet received. SMDAL Governor & Deputy Governor General Alan Davis The meeting was adjourned at 12:01 PM. Respectfully submitted, Nancy C. Logan, Secretary 18

19 SMDAL Board of Assistants meeting before the Huntsville Annual Meeting. April 28, 2018 Colony Activities Cahaba River Colony: The Cahaba River Colony held their spring meeting at The Club in Birmingham on April 21, The Colony appointed the following officers to serve three year terms: Inge Tingle Lieutenant Governor; Nell Rose Bracket Assistant Lt. Governor; Mark Chesebro Secretary/Treasurer; Fontaine Haskell Elder; and MaryJane I. Tingle Member-at- Large. The CRC also agreed to support an idea proposed by Carol Kitchens to bring to Colony meetings old Mayflower-related books that members are willing to donate. The books would be sold for $5 and the proceeds would go to the Colony as a donation. Once members finished reading the book, they could keep it or bring it to a subsequent meeting to donate again. All SMDAL members are encouraged to bring their old Mayflower or Pilgrim books to the Compact Day meeting. Donations will benefit the donating member s Colony. The guest speaker for the meeting was Mrs. Jean Vaughan who gave a wonderful and informative speech about Chief Ladiga, a Creek Indian in what is now Calhoun County, Alabama. Her presentation included a brief history of East Alabama, the resettlement of Native Americans to the West, and the hardships Chief Ladiga and his mother faced growing up. Our fall meeting will be held in October, in conjunction with the Saturday, October 27, Compact Day Meeting at The Club in Birmingham. Inge Tingle, Lieutenant Governor ; inge.tingle@gmail.com 19

20 Capital Colony: The Capital Colony will meet on Saturday, October 6, 2018, 11:00 a.m. in the Montgomery Country Club s Beauvoir Room. Edward H. Phillips will present our program on the Mayflower and the restoration of Mayflower II in Mystic Seaport, Connecticut, which he has been following closely. Ed graciously has agreed to accept the position of the CC Lieutenant Governor and the Colony looks forward with pleasure to working with him. He is a descendant of John Howland and a native of Cape May, New Jersey. We still need an Assistant Lt. Governor and a Secretary to complete our slate. Please call Mary Helen Mahan, , to accept either position. The Capital Colony appreciates Governor Alan Davis s service as our Lt. Governor for more than ten years. His dedicated service to our Colony, the State Society, and the General Society spans three decades in multiple offices. Always faithful to his duties, Alan has gone well beyond the requirements of any office he held. For Oct. 6th meeting reservations, please or call Alan by Tuesday, Oct. 2. The fee is $28. amd7thcedar@charter.net; telephone (cell) or (home). Mary Helen Mahan Edward H. Phillips ; capemaypilgrim1948@icloud.com Gulf Coast Colony: To recap the Gulf Coast Colony Spring Meeting/Luncheon on Saturday, May 19, 2018, members and guests of the GCC gathered at Felix's Fish Camp Restaurant on the Causeway in Spanish Fort, Alabama. Attendees hailed from Baldwin, Covington, Mobile, Monroe and Montgomery Counties in Alabama and Escambia and Okaloosa Counties in Florida. New Colony Lieutenant Governor Kevin Sellew called the meeting to order and welcomed everyone. In addition to normal reports and rituals, a memorial was offered in memory of recently deceased SMDAL and GCC member John Leo House of Andalusia, Alabama, with the Elder reading his obituary and offering our collective condolences to his family members in attendance. After lunch, our speaker, Alan M. Davis, newly-elected SMDAL Governor, recounted many happenings at the state and national levels of the Mayflower Society. We also enjoyed drawings for door prizes, group and head-shot photos of those present and a Facebook Live! Broadcast, before adjournment. DAR/SAR Patriot to Passenger Project: The GSMD has done extensive work in creating a list of DAR/SAR Patriots who have Mayflower ancestry. Our Colony has endeavored to make this project known to all the Alabama DAR and SAR chapters in the hopes that it might help grow the SMDAL membership. Brenda Gouge (SMDAL Deputy Governor & GCC Secretary) distributed flyers that our Colony created at the recent Alabama DAR Conference. In addition, she ed information to all State DAR chapters while Kevin Sellew did the same for the SAR chapters. If you know anyone in the DAR or SAR, please make sure they know about this project. See This is an image of the flyer we ve been distributing: 20

21 Upcoming GCC activities: An afternoon adventure on a wooden sailing vessel on Saturday, September 22, 2018, leaving from Orange Beach, Alabama. Pilgrim cousins will join us from the Louisiana Mayflower Society and from the Edward Doty Colony of the Florida Mayflower Society. A Meet-&-Eat at Barefoot Island Grill in Orange Beach, Alabama, on Saturday, September 22, After dinner, Mr. Lester Morris, a very entertaining former British tour guide, will speak to us. Our Compact Day Meeting will be Saturday, November 10, 2018, 1:00 p.m., in historic Bernheim Hall at Ben May Mobile Public Library, Mobile, Alabama, followed by Our Compact Day Seminar (same date and location) featuring Mr. Caleb Johnson of San Diego, California. Caleb is a renowned Mayflower researcher, speaker, author and the creator of MayflowerHistory.com. His seminar starts at 2:00 p.m. A Meet-&-Eat the evening of our Caleb Johnson/Compact Day Seminar at a restaurant in downtown Mobile on November 10, Details later. Our upstate Alabama Mayflower Society neighbors are welcome and invited to all our events. For further information about any of these activities contact Kevin Sellew. Current Colony Officers: Lieutenant Governor: Kevin Sellew Bayley s Corner, Mobile, Alabama; Assistant Lt. Governor: vacant; Secretary: Brenda Gouge Andalusia, Covington, Alabama; Treasurer: Jane Lies Pensacola, Escambia, Florida; Elder: Roger McCay Monroeville, Monroe, Alabama; Captain: Jeremy Sellew Bayley s Corner, Mobile, Alabama; Facebook Page Administrators: Lee Myers Getzinger Mandeville, St. Tammany, Louisiana & Kevin Sellew. VISIT Our Gulf Coast Colony Webpage: CHECK OUT Our Gulf Coast Colony Shirt Shop: (Coming very soon. Keep checking, please.) LIKE and FOLLOW Our Gulf Coast Colony Facebook Page: Kevin Sellew, Lieutenant Governor ; tjk5405@mediacombb.net 21

22 Tennessee Valley Colony: The Tennessee Valley Colony held their spring meeting in conjunction with the State meeting in Huntsville at the Huntsville Country Club on April 28, The guest speaker was GSMD Governor General George P. Garmany Jr. The TVC fall meeting will be held in November. Stacy Smith, Lieutenant Governor ; FURTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS From the Governor about 2020 Commemoration Activities: The GSMD asks us to undertake at least one activity in commemoration of the 400 th anniversary of the Mayflower landing (2020). or telephone with suggestions: For Librarian Carol Kitchens: Items of interest for our Scrapbook, including name, event, date, location County Road 852, Heflin, Alabama Social Media: ; Moving? Give Nancy Logan street & addresses, & telephone(s). Replace a U.S. Mail Address with an Address. Be sure to save us all money by giving your address to Treasurer Patricia Harper, SMDAL.TREASURER@gmail.com & Secretary Nancy Logan, nclnurse@yahoo.com. Junior Members Whose Information May Need Updating Alisa Anne Andrews Blake Adam Boothe Grace Elizabeth Boothe Cory Daniel Brunner Amanda Delight Carmichael Beatty Payseur Carmichael, Jr Caroline Grace Carmichael Elizabeth Ashley Carmichael James Faulkner Crenshaw Carmichael Mary Ann Carmichael Victoria Jean Carmichael Virginia Grace Carmichael Heather Ann Chrietzburg Jarod Scott Chrietzburg 22 Madeline Camille Fink Benjamin James Foster Aiden Parker Gender Jackson Glenn Ireland Lauren A. Mackenzie Nolen Oden Jacob Ross Peddycoart Lauren Nichole Peddycoart Daniel Ryan Porter Joseph Wallace Porter Barbara Wallace Rich John Robert Rich Philip Andrew Rich Aaron Scott Roberts Mara Elizabeth Roberts

23 Courtesy of the Gulf Coast Colony, this map from the Mississippi Mayflower Messenger, Spring 2018, page 6, plots the Pilgrims apparent English Homes: 23

24 Society of Mayflower Descendants in Alabama Compact Day Meeting and Luncheon The Club, Glen Iris Room, 1 Robert S. Smith Drive, Birmingham, Alabama Board of Assistants Meeting, 9:30 a.m.; 11:00 a.m., Compact Day Meeting & Luncheon Telephone: Menu: Garden Salad, Wild Mushroom & Gruyere Stuffed Chicken Breast, Twice Baked Potatoes & Southern Green Beans, Mississippi Mud Pie & Banana Pudding Parfait Guest Speaker: Timothy D. Hall, Dean & Professor of History, Samford University College of Arts & Sciences on The Colonial Great Awakening in Benjamin Franklin s Newspaper R.S.V.P. by U.S. MAIL, , or TELEPHONE I/We will attend the SMDAL s Compact Day Meeting and Luncheon on Saturday, October 27, 2018, 11:00 a.m., at The Club, Birmingham, Alabama. $30.00 per person. Name(s) Yes, I/We plan to attend. # Guests (please include their names), Check to the SMDAL enclosed or Pay at the door (you will be billed if you do not cancel by Tuesday, October 23) or use PayPal (bgouge@centurylink.net & designate the PayPal payment for Oct. 27 th SMDAL lunch). Respond about Compact Day no later than Tuesday, October 23, 2018, to Brenda Gouge, Tinsley Road, Andalusia, Alabama ; bgouge@centurylink.net; [& pay your 2019 SMDAL $30 dues by check to Patricia S. Harper, 4781 County Road 150, Dawson, Alabama SMDAL.TREASURER@gmail.com] 24