Joan (Hurst) Tilley, "Mayflower" Passenger

Biography

Joan (Hurst) Tilley, "Mayflower" Passenger was born in Henlow, Central Bedfordshire, England and baptized at the parish church there on March 13, 1567/8. Her parents were William Hurst and Rose Marshe. She came on the Mayflower (1620) with her second husband, John Tilley, and their 13 year old daughter Elizabeth, as well as John's brother Edward Tilley and his wife Ann or Agnes Cooper. Edward and Ann brought along Ann's relatives Henry Sampson and Humility Cooper.

Joan and her husband died the first winter at Plymouth, (1621), and were buried in the Coles Hill Burial Ground at Plymouth, Plymouth County, Massachusetts.

Joan Hurst was baptized 13 Mar 1568 at Henlow, Bedfordshire, England. Joan was the daughter of William Hurst and Rose Marshe

Note: Henlow Parish Registers & Bishop's Transcripts; Baptisms: 1567/8 Mar 13 Joan, d. William Hurst.<English Ancestry of Seven Mayflower Passengers: Tilley, Sampson and Cooper, by Robert Leigh Ward,database online at The American Genealogist, Vol. 52 #4; p. 204

Joan married first Thomas Rogers 18 Jun 1593 at Henlow,Bedfordshire, England.

Note: Thomas Rogers was not the Mayflower passenger. Joan was mentioned as his widow when she married John Tilley in 1596. English Ancestry of Seven Mayflower Passengers: Tilley, Sampson and Cooper, by Robert Leigh Ward, database online at The American Genealogist, Vol.52 #4; p. 203/4

Joan married secondly, John Tilley 20 Sep 1596 at Henlow, Bedfordshire, England.

Note: Henlow Parish Register & Bishop's Transcripts; Marriages: Tilley; 1596, Sep. 20; John Tyly & Joan Rogers English Ancestry of Seven Mayflower Passengers: Tilley, Sampson and Cooper, by Robert Leigh Ward, database online at The American Genealogist, Vol. 52 #4; p. 199

John Tilley was baptized 19 Dec 1571 at Henlow, Bedfordshire,England, the son of Robert Tilley and Elizabeth Ellborne.

John, Joan, their daughter Elizabeth, John’s brother, Edward, and Edward’s wife, Ann, were passengers on the Mayflower in 1620. John andEdward both signed the Mayflower Compact. John, Joan, Edward, and Ann died shortly after their arrival in Plymouth. Of the Tilley family who came to the New World, only daughter Elizabeth survived.

Children of Joan Hurst and Thomas Rogers

1. Joan Rogers, baptized 26 May 1594 at Henlow, Bedfordshire, England; married Edward Hawkins 27 Jun 1620 atSt. Paul’s Church, Bedford, Bedfordshire, England.

Children of Joan Hurst and John Tilley

1. Rose Tilley, baptized 23 Oct 1597 at Henlow, Bedfordshire, England; Rose Tilly, daughter of John Tilly : England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," database, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V5GY-8JB : 11 February 2018, Rose Tilly, 23 Oct 1597); citing HENLOW,BEDFORD,ENGLAND, index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm Q942.565 B4E V. 26. buried 28 Feb 1601 at Henlow. Rose Tilley, buried 28 Feb 1601 at Henlow, Bedford : Maine, Nathan Hale CemeteryCollection, ca. 1780-1980," database with images, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVJ5-MXF8 : 16 March 2018), Rose Tilley, ; citing Henlow, , Bedford, England, Cemetery, Maine State Library, Augusta; FHL microfilm 1,316,315.
2. John Tilley, baptized 26 Aug 1599 at Henlow, Bedfordshire, England
3. Rose Tilley, baptized 28 Feb 1602 at Henlow, Bedfordshire, England. Rose Tyllye, daughter of John Tyllye : "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," database, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V5GY-8VM : 11 February 2018, Rose Tyllye, 28 Feb 1602); citing HENLOW,BEDFORD,ENGLAND, index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm Q942.565 B4E V. 26.</ref># Robert Tilley, baptized 25 Nov 1604 at Henlow, Bedfordshire, England; served as an apprentice to a tailor; married Mary Hawkins 1 Nov 1632 at St Paul’s Church, Bedford, Bedfordshire, England
4. Elizabeth Tilley, baptized 30 Aug 1607 at Henlow, Bedfordshire, England; sailed on the Mayflower in 1620; married John Howland 14 Aug 1623 at Plymouth, Plymouth, Massachusetts; died 21 Dec 1687 at Swansea, Bristol, Massachusetts; will written 17 Dec 1686 and proved 10 Jan 1687/8

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Identity

From MAYFLOWER INCREASINGS by Susan Roser

There has been some controversy about the identity of the wife of John Tilley, who came over on the Mayflower. In "Saints and Strangers" by George F. Willison, she was identified as "Mrs. Elizabeth (Comyngs) 1585-1621 of St. Andrew Undershaft, London. Married London 1605". In "The Women who came in the Mayflower" by Alice Russell Marble, she is identified stating "the mother of Elizabeth Tilley bore a Dutch name, Bridget Van De Veldt".
Only in 1976 were the Tilley records discovered in the Henlow parish church proving that Elizabeth Tilley, the bride of John Howland, was the daughter of Joan Hurst.

"This letter is in reference to the query from Harold H. Everett of Flagler Beach, FL, who wrote about Joan Hurst Rogers being the step-mother of Mayflower Pilgrim rather than her mother (MQ, Aug, 1991, p. 232).

Joan Hurst Rogers did not 'come to New England" to marry John Tilley. John Tilley and Joan Rogers were m. in Henlow Co., Bedford, ENG on 20 Sep 1596, in St. Mary the Virgin Church, where John Tilley and his ancestors had been members for generations. Joan Rogers was bapt. in the same church on 13 Mar. 1567/8 as Joan Hurst, dau. of William Hurst. Records also show that Joan (Hurst) Rogers Tilley and husband, John, had the following children baptized there (source: Redding Family and its Relatives, by Billie Redding Lewis, 1984, 3rd edition): . . .
Elizabeth, bapt. 30 Aug. 1607; this date agrees with the death record of 21 Dec. 1687, which states that at the time of death, she was 80 years of age."
"Their mother Rose remarried after the death of Joan's father to John Rushe in 1571 and had a second family of two sons and two daughters so Joan would have grown up with her step-family as well as her sister and her brother Henry Hurst. In his will of 1603 John Rushe left generous legacies of forty shillings to Joan and each of her children."

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Notes

From MFQ, vol 62, no 1, Feb 1996, p 56-60. MFQ, vol 62, no 1, Feb 1996, p 56-60.

Both she and her husband, John TILLEY were probably "secretly buried ...at night on Cole's Hill, overlooking Plymouth Rock" so that the Indians wouldn't know of their great losses that first few months. They leveled the graves and planted the plot with corn the next spring. Wnen water pipes were being installed along the Hill in 1859, some bones were uncovered, which Dr. Oliver Wendell HOLMES confirmed to be the bones of those who died in 1620-1621. The Pilgrin Society had them mortared into the ceiling of the canopy directly above Plymouth Rock. In 1921, during the celebration of the 300th anniversary of the landing of the Pilgrims, a giant sarcophagus was unveiled on Cole's Hill, after a procession through the streets, and in it were placed the small box of Pilgrin bones unearthed 50 years before.

From MFQ, vol 61, no 3, Aug 1995, p 177: vol 62 no 1, Feb 1996, p 56-57: vol 63 no 1, Feb 1997, p 43.

Married 1st ROGERS, Thomas, 18 Jun 1593, Henlow, Bedfordhire, Eng. They had 1 child, Joan ROGERS, who would have been 26 when the Mayflower sailed in 1620. 2nd TILLEY, John, 20 Sep 1596, St. Mary the Virgin's Church, Henlow, England. They had 5 children christened in Henlow, Bedfordshire, England. The children, except for Elizabeth, may also have been married but preferred to stay in England.

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Legacy

Photo of monument Added by: Caryn on 3 Jan 2017 at FindAGrave

Joan’s daughter Elizabeth Tilley 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.

References

1. [Category:MtDNA Haplogroup_H] [Category:Henlow, Bedfordshire] {Mayflower Passenger}
2. [Category:Mayflower Passengers] [Category:Mayflower Family Member]
3. 2. link to A genealogical profile of John Tilley, (a collaboration of Plimoth Plantation and New England Historic Genealogical Society. Retrieved 2013)
4. 6. Forster, Joy "The Lost Children of Bedfordshire's Pilgrim Fathers: The Tilley family of the Mayflower, The Mayflower Quarterly, Vol. 65, No. 4, Nov 1999. Cited at http://www.boydhouse.com/michelle/gorham/johntilley.html
5. 10. Caleb H. Johnson, The Mayflower and Her Passengers, (Indiana: Xlibris Corp., 2006), pp. 237 - 238
6. 11. Reference made in GSMD Five Generation, Silver Book 2006 edition. Volume 23, Part one, page 1 under #1 John Howland, identifying Joan as mother of Elizabeth.
7. "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/V5GY-T2Z : 11 February 2018, Joan Hurst, 13 Mar 1568); citing HENLOW,BEDFORD,ENGLAND, index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm Q942.565 B4E V. 26.
8. "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/V5GY-T28 : 30 December 2014, William Hurst in entry for Joan Hurst, 13 Mar 1568); citing HENLOW,BEDFORD,ENGLAN …
9. "England Marriages, 1538–1973 ," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/V5K1-HNK : 10 February 2018), Thos Rogers and Joan Hurst, 18 Jun 1593; citing Henlow,Bedford,England, reference , index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm 826473, Q942.565 B4E V. 26.
10. "England Marriages, 1538–1973 ," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/V5K1-4NF : 10 February 2018), Jn Tylly and Joan Rogers, 20 Sep 1596; citing Henlow,Bedford,England, reference , index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm 826473, Q942.565 B4E V. 26
11. Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s, Gale Research, Name: Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2009.Original data - Filby, P. William, ed.. Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s. Farmington Hills, MI, USA: Gale Research, 2009.Original data: Filby, P. William, ed.. Passeng;, Ancestry.com, http://www.Ancestry.com, null, Page number: Place: Plymouth, Massachusetts; Year: 1620; Page Number: 1822.
12. Robert Leigh Ward, English Ancestry of Seven Mayflower Passengers: Tilley, Sampson and Cooper, The American Genealogist, Volume 52 No. 4: p. 198 -207. Page 204: “William Hurst of Henlow, possibly son or brother of Agnes Hurst who was bur. at Henlow, 17 Nov. 1569; b. say 1530, d. before 1571. Probably m. Rose —, who m. (2) 4 Feb. 1571/2 at Henlow, John Rush, and was bur. 23 July 160 at Henlow.”
13. Zubrinsky, Eugene Cole. A Fresh Look at the Parentage of Mayflower #Passenger Joan (Hurst) (Rogers) Tilley. American Genealogist (D.L. Jacobus). (Jan 2011) 85:7. < AmericanAncestors > (document attached)
14. https://mayflowerdna.org/wiki/index.php/Joan_Hurst_%26_Elizabeth_Tilley_(mtDNA) mtDNA Results H1a1
15. Eugene Cole Zubrinsky, FASG: The Parentage of Mayflower Passenger Joan (Hurst) (Rogers) Tilley; The Howland Quarterly, Volume 81 (December 2016), pages 11-18
16. Olar, Jared L.RootsWeb: “The Hurst Genealogy” (February 2019)
17. Olar, Jared L. “The Marshe Genealogy” (February 2019)
18. Wikipedia: John Tilley retrieved 12 May 2018
19. link to Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 12 May 2018), memorial page for Joan Hurst Tilley (13 Mar 1568 to 1621), Find A Grave Memorial no. 16539005, citing Coles Hill Burial Ground, Plymouth, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, USA ; Maintained by Kay Cynova (contributor 47064119
20. link to Genealogical and Family History of the State of Connecticut: A ..., Volume 4 edited by William Richard Cutter, Edward Henry Clement, Samuel Hart, Mary Kingsbury Talcott, Frederick Bostwick, Ezra S. Stearns
21. link to FamilySearch tree

Additional References

• BIRTH: Date from Henlow Parish Register in TAG vol. 52 p. 204.
• link to Second Supplement To Torrey's New England Marriages Prior to 1700
• Stratton, Eugene Aubrey. Book: Plymouth Colony; Its History & People 1620-1691. Salt Lake City, UT; Ancestry Publishing, 1986. p. 312 & 362.
• "Plymouth Colony" states that Joan died soon after the 1620 arrival ofthe Mayflower. Acording to the Mayflower Descendant, volume ii page119, she died early in 1621 but after 11 January.
• Caleb Johnson, Genealogical Summary, John Tilley, from the internet (Mayflower Home Page). Mayflower Home Page, 11/96.
• Willison, George F.. Book: Saints and Strangers; Being the Lives of the Pilgrim Fathers & Their Families, with Their Friends & Foes. Orleans, MA; Parnassus Imprints, Inc., 1945. p. 439.
• Legends, loves and loyalties of old New England, Ancestry.com, Online publication - Provo, UT: The Generations Network, Inc., 2005.Original data - Goodenough, Caroline Leonard,. Legends, loves and loyalties of old New England. Rochester, Mass.: The author, 1930.Original data: Goodenough, Caroline Leonard,. Legends, lo, Ancestry.com, http://www.Ancestry.com From https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Hurst-26 retrieved 12 May 2018
• English Ancestry of Seven Mayflower Passengers: Tilley, Sampson and Cooper, by Robert Leigh Ward, database online at The American Genealogist, Vol. 52 #4; p. 204
• English Ancestry of Seven Mayflower Passengers: Tilley, Sampson and Cooper, by Robert Leigh Ward, database online at The American Genealogist, Vol. 52 #4; p. 203/4
• English Ancestry of Seven Mayflower Passengers: Tilley, Sampson and Cooper, by Robert Leigh Ward, database online at The American Genealogist, Vol. 52 #4; p. 199
• Author: Robert Leigh Ward, English Ancestry of Seven Mayflower Passengers: Tilley, Sampson and Cooper, The American Genealogist, Volume 52 No. 4: p. 198 - 207.
• link to Caleb Johnson's MayflowerHistory.com, database online, copyright 2002 - 2012.
• Bradford's History "Of Plymouth Plantation", Wright & Porter Printing Company, Boston, 1898.
• link to Robert Charles Anderson, "John Tilley", The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Vol. III, Boston, New England Historic Genealogical Society 1995, p. 1822.
• Rooted Ancestry, database online by Austin W. Spencer, copyright 2013
• link to Boyd, Michelle. Boydhouse.com. - John Tilley and Joan Hurst : accessed 8 Mar 2018.
• Robert Leigh Ward, English Ancestry of Seven Mayflower Passengers: Tilley, Sampson and Cooper, The American Genealogist, Volume 52 No. 4: p. 198 -207.
• Caleb Johnson's MayflowerHistory.com, database online, copyright 2002 - 2012.
• Bradford's History "Of Plymouth Plantation", Wright & Porter Printing Company, Boston, 1898.
• Robert Charles Anderson, "John Tilley", The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Vol. III, Boston, New England Historic Genealogical Society 1995, p. 1822.
• Rooted Ancestry, database online by Austin W. Spencer, copyright 2013
• Boyd, Michelle. Boydhouse.com. - John Tilley and Joan Hurst : accessed 8 Mar 2018.
• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/16539005/joan-tilley