Priest, Degory Born about 1579. Died at Plymouth, 1 January, 1620/1. He married, at Leiden, 4 November, 1611, Sarah (Allerton) Vincent (the widow of John Vincent). She was sister to Isaac Allerton and came afterward with two children Mary, who m. Phineas Pratt and Sarah, who m. John Coombs.

Very little is known about Degory Priest. He was 3 years old, on August 11, 1583, when baptized in Hartland County, England.  Since he was married in Holland in 1611, it is clear that he was a religious Separatist very early on, and was an early member of the Pilgrims' Leyden congregation.  He came to America on the Mayflower and was the 29th signer of the Mayflower Compact.

Arriving December 21, 1620, with a harsh winter and illnesses' upon them, this note from the Prince, annals p.96 starts out with a sad note:

  "January 1. Monday, the people at Plymouth go betimes to work and the year begins with the death of Degory Priest."

Degorys' widowed wife, Sarah, would marry again on November 13, 1621 in Leyden Holland to Godbert Godbertson.  In 1623, Godbertson would bring Sarah and her 2 daughters, Mary and Sarah to Plymouth on the ship ANNE.

Notable descendants actor) Richard Gere → Homer Gere → Albert Gere → George Gere → Sarah Tewksbury → Lucina Fuller → Elkanah Elms → Sarah Bennett → Ruth Coombs → Francis Coombs → Sarah Priest → DEGORY PRIEST

(Pres) Franklin D. Roosevelt → Sara Delano → Warren Delano → Warren Delano → Elizabeth Cushman → James Cushman → Elizabeth Coombs → John Coombs → Sarah Priest → DEGORY PRIEST

Notes

•  It has been suggested that Degory Priest of the Mayflower may have been the Degorius Prust, baptized 11 August 1582 in Hartland, Devon, England, the son of Peter Prust. However, given that the baptism appears to be about 3 years too late, and the fact that none of the Leiden Separatists are known to have come from Devonshire, I doubt this baptism belongs to the Mayflower passenger. Degory Priest was one of the earliest to have arrived in Leiden, so it is more reasonable to suspect he is from the Nottinghamshire/Yorkshire region, the Sandwich/Canterbury region, the London/Middlesex region, or the Norfolk region: all of the early Separatists in Leiden appear to have come from one of these centers.
• As with all things, caveat emptor! There are conflicting stories about the lineage to his son John. Some sources claim his only two children were his daughters, listed above. Others claim that the John Priest of Woburn was his son, who came on a later ship from Holland to join his father. 

References 

• NEHGR111:320. 

Links

• http://www.mayflowerfamilies.com/mayflower/degory_priest_family.htm
• http://www.linkpendium.com/genealogy/USA/sur/surc-P/surc-Pri/sur-Priest/

1. Savage, Genealogical Dictionary

•  http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~smason/combined/fam02288.htm