23 MAYFLOWER 400
In 1620, the Mayflower and the Speedwell set sail from Southampton for the New World with Pilgrims, passengers and crew onboard but they were forced to put into Dartmouth to repair the leaking Speedwell.
Dartmouth was a thriving port at that time, with several shipyards that employed skilled ship- wrights that could undertake the repair work. The ship was “thorowly searcht from steme to steme [and] some leaks were found & mended”; and then they waited several days for a fair wind. When they set sail again the Speedwell contin- ued to leak, so they returned to Plymouth. “No spetiall leake could be founde”, but the Speed- well was abandoned, and the Mayflower set off alone. According to William Bradford’s account, the Speedwell’s master and crew “ploted this strategem to free themselves”. During 2020, in common with 11 other destinations throughout the UK, Netherlands and the US, Dartmouth commemorated 400 years since the Pilgrims set sail for America and the part our town played in that story. As part of this, a Mayflower Heritage Trail was created and a special Mayflower exhibit can be seen in the Dartmouth Museum - see page 25. The Trail is marked by a series of wonderful bronze markers, created by Tom Leaper, a South West artist. Look out for these around town together with information boards such as the one at Bayards Cove. A free Trail Map leaflet, detailing
the location and history of each point of interest, is available from the Dartmouth Visitor Centre and other pick-up points in the town. Look out for the sculpture, ‘Pilgrim: New Horizons’, which represents the figure of a Pilgrim looking out to sea. It was created by sculptor Mark Gregory together with students from Dartmouth Academy, and is situated on the South Embankment on the Town Trail route.
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