Deacon Robert Cushman

Sarah Rider married Robert Cushman, son of Thomas Cushman and Elinor Hubbard, on 31 Jul 1606 in St. Alphege, Cantebury, Kent, England.660 (Robert Cushman was christened on 9 Feb 1578 in Rolvenden, Kent, England 659,660 and died about 1625 in London, London, England 659.)

Came to America on the Fortune in 1621. He left England in August, 1621 and arrived at Cape Cod Nov. 9, 1621. Robert returned to England on the Fortune in December 1621 on business for Plymouth Plantation. He died on this trip. Robert left his son, Thomas, in the care of Governor William Bradford.

Beginning in 1617, and continuing till the time of his death, Robert spent much time in London working on behalf of the Leiden congregation working with John Carver and William Brewster making arrangements with London merchants for provisions and shipping for the Mayflower and Speedwell. Robert had planned on going to America on the Speedwell. When the Mayflower set sail, Robert was one of those who remained behind to handle business for the Leiden group. Because of all his efforts on behalf of the others, Robert was assigned an acre of land in Plymouth in 1623, as if he had been a Mayflower passenger.

- Came to America on the "Fortune"

- Returned to England December 13, 1621 (many believe: Bearing the manuscript for Mourt's Relation

- 'We and Our Kinfolks"

- Part of Plymouth Colony

ROBERT3 CUSHMAN (THOMAS (COUCHEMAN)2, THOMAS (CROUCHEMAN)1) was born February 9, 1577/78 in Rolvenden, Kent, England (Source: Genealogical Register of Plymouth Families, by William T. Davis 1895), and died 1625 in London. He married (1) SARAH REDER July 31, 1606 in Canterbury, Kent, England at Alphege Parish Church. He married (2) MARY CLARKE 1617 in Leiden, England (Source: Plymouth Colony Its History & People 1620-1621 by Eugene Aubrey Stratton, 1986).

Notes

Agent for the Pilgrims in London & Leiden, Holland

Came to Plymouth Colony in Nov. 1621 in The Fortune

Robert Cushman came on the Fortune in 1621 with son Thomas of 14 years. Returned to England in the Fortune and left son in care of Governor Bradford

Source: Genealogical Register of Plymouth Families by William T. Davis 1895

Passenger List, ship Fortune, 1621

The ship Fortune arrived at Plymouth on November 9, 1621, just a few weeks after the First Thanksgiving. This passenger list is based on the 1623 Division of Land, the passenger list compiled by charles Edward Banks in Planters of the Commonwealth, and by the information found in Eugene Aubrey Stratton's Plymouth Colony: Its History and its People, 1620-1691. The author is descended from Fortune passengers John Adams, William Bassett, and Moses Simmons.

CUSHMAN, ROBERT - One of the Leiden Separatist leaders, Robert Cushman's English origins are given by Elizabeth French, "Genealogical Research in England-Cushman"NEHGR 68:181. He was baptized at Rolveden, Kent, 9 February 1577/78, son of Thomas and Elinor (Hubbard) Couchman. he was an apprentice to George Masters; was excommunicated from St. Andrews Church, Canterbury, after saying that he could not be edified by going to that church; was received back in the church in 1605; and in the same year became a freeman of Canterbury, being described as a grocer. his first wife was Sara Reder, by whom he had son Thomas, q.v., and he married (2) at Leiden in 1617 Mary (Clarke) Shingleton. He and John Carver were chosen by their fellow Separatists to go to England to negotiate for a patent to go to America, and Bradford in his History has much to relate about him. In 1621 he arrived at Plymouth on the Fortune with son thomas, but returned to England with the Fortune, leaving Thomas in the care of Governor Bradford. Cushman died in 1625 before having the chance to return to Plymouth. A good account of his family can be found in Small Descendants, 2:669, which mentions also that a Sarah Cushman who married William Hoskins on 6 October 1636 was thought to be the daughter of Robert Cushman (Hoskins married [2] on 21 December 1638 Ann Hynes [PCR 1:45, 1071].

Source: Plymouth Colony Its History & People 1620-1621 by Eugene Aubrey Stratton, 1986

Robert Cushman's Letter to Edward Southworth

If you thought the Mayflower's voyage was well organized, and that the Pilgrims were all cooperative with one another, and everything went smoothly--think again. this letter was written by robert cushman, one of the most prominent members of the Pilgrims congregation at Leyden. He had been the Pilgrim's negotiator with thomas Weston, and organized the hiring of the ships that would take the Pilgrims to America. he planned to go to America with the Mayflower and Speedwell himself. However, as can be seen by this letter, the Speedwell repeatedly got leaks and was forced in for repairs. A few days after this letter was written, it was decided the Speedwell would not be taken to America, and some of the passengers decided they no longer wanted to make the voyage because of lack of space, and the gloomy outlook for the colony's success. One of those passengers--not surprisingly--was Robert Cushman. Cushman's words, like "Friend, if ever we make a plantation, God works a miracle", "If I should write to you of all things which promiscuously forerun our ruin, I should over-charge my weak head and grieve your tender heart", and "Poor William Ring and myself do strive who shall be meat first for the fishes" echo hauntingly, and foreshadow many problems the Pilgrims had after reaching America.

Dartmouth, August 17

LOVING FRIEND, my most kind remembrance to you and your wife, with loving E.M. etc., whom in this world I never look to see again. For besides the eminent dangers of this voyage, which are no less than deadly, an infirmity of body hath seized me, which will not in all likelihood leave me till death. what to call it I know not, but it is a bundle of lead, as it were, crushing my heart more and more these fourteen days; as that although I do the actions of a living man, yet I am but as dead, but the will of God be done.

Our pinnace will not cease leaking, else I think we had been half-way to Virginia. Our voyage hither hath been as full of crosses as ourselves have been of crookedness. We put in here to trim her; and I think, as others also, if we had stayed at sea but three or four hours more, she would have sunk right down. And though she was twice trimmed at Hampton, yet now she is as open and leaky as a sieve; and there was a board a man might have pulled off with his fingers, two foot long, where the water came in as at a mole hole. we lay at Hampton seven days in fair weather, waiting for her, and now we lie here waiting for her in as fair a wind as can blow, and so have done these four days, and are like to lie four more, and by that time the wind will happily turn as it did at Hampton. Our victuals will be half eaten up, I think, before we go from the coast of Englnad, and if our voyage last long, we shall not have a month's victuals when we come in the country. Near L700 hath been bestowed at Hampton, upon what I know not; Mr. Martin saith he neither can nor will give any account of it, and if he be called upon for accounts, he crieth out of unthankfulness for his pains and care, that we are suspicious of him, and flings away, and will end nothing. Also he so insulteth over our poor people, with such scorn and contempt, as if they were not good enough to wipe his shoes. It would break your heart to see his dealings, and the mourning of our people; they complain to me, and alas! I can do nothing for them. If I speak to him he flies inmy face as mutinous, and saith no complaints shall be heard or received but by himself, and saith they are forward and waspish, discontented people, and I do ill to hear them. there are others that would lose all they ahve put in, or make satisfaction for what they have had, that they might depart; but he will not hear them, nor suffer them to go ashore, lest they should run away. the sailors are so offended at his ignorant boldness in medding and controlling in things he knows not what belongs to, as that some threaten to mischief him; others say they will leave the ship and go their way. But at the best this cometh of it, that he makes himself as scorn and laughing stock unto them. As for Mr. Weston, except grace do greatly sway him, he will hate us ten times more than ever he loved us, for not confirming the conditions. But now, since some pinches have taken them, they begin to revile the truth and Mr. Robinson was in the fault who charged them never to consent to those conditions, nor choose me ito office; but indeed appointed them to choose them they did choose. But he and they will rue too late, they may now see, and all be ashamed when it is too late, that they were so ignorant; yea and so inordinate in their courses. I am sure as they were resolved not to seal those conditions, I was not so resolute at Hampton to have left the whole business, except they would seal them, and better the voyage to have been broken off then than to have brought such misery to ourselves, dishonour to God and detriment to our living friends, as now it is like to do. Four or five of the chief of them which came from Leyden,came resolved never to go on those conditions. And Mr. Martin, he said he never received no money on those conditions; he was not beholden to the merchants for a pin, they were bloodsuckers, and I know not what. Simple man, he indeed never made any conditions with the merchants, nor ever spake with them. But did all the money fly at Hampton, or was it his own? Who will go and lay out money so rashly and lavishly as he did, and never know how he comes by it or on what conditions? Secondly, I told him of the alteration long ago and he was content, but now he domineers and said I had betrayed them into the hands of slaves; he is not beholden to them, he can set out two ships himself to a voyage. when, good man? He hat but L50 in and if he should give up his accounts he would not have a penny left him, as I am persuaded, etc. Friend, if ever we make a plantation, God works a miracle, especially considering how scant we shall be of victuals, and most of all ununited amongst ourselves and devoid of good tutors and regiment. Violence will break all. where is the meek and humble spirit of Moses? and of Nehemiah who re-edified the walls of Jerusalem, and the state of Isreal? Is not the sound of Rehoboam's brags daily here amongst us? Have not the philosophers and all the wise men observed that, even in settled commonwealths, violent governors bring either themselves or people or both to ruin? How much more in the raising of commonwealths, when the mortar is yet scarce tempered that should bind the walls! if I should write to you of all things which promiscuously forerun our ruin, I should over-charge my weak head and grieve your tender heart. Only this, I pray you prepare for evil tidings of us every day. But pray for us instantly, it may be the lord will be yet entreated one way or other to make for us. I see not in reason how we shall escape even the gaspings of hunger-starved persons; but God can do much, and His will be done. It is better for me to die than now for me to bear it, which I do daily and expect it hourly, having received the sentence of death both within me and without me. Poor William Ring and myself do strive who shall be meat first for the fishes; but we look for a glorious resurrection, knowing Christ Jesus after the flesh no more, but looking unto the joy that is before us, we will endure all these things and account them light in comparison of that joy we hope for.

Remember me in all love to our friends as if I named them, whose prayers I desire earnestly and wish again to see, but not till I can with more comfort look them in the face. The Lord give us that true comfort which none can take from us. I had a desire to make a brief relation of our estate to some friend. I doubt not but your wisdom will teach you seasonable to utter things as hereafter you shall be called to it. that which I have written is true, and many things more which I have forborn. I write it as upon my life, and last confession in England. What is of use to be spoken presently, you may speak of it; and what is fit to conceal, conceal. Pass by my weak manner, for my head is weak, and my body feeble. the Lord make me strong in Him, and keep both you and yours.

Your loving friend,

Robert Cushman

Dartmouth, August 17, 1620

Christened: 9 Feb 1578, Rolvenden, Kent, England 659,660

Marriage: Sarah Reder on 31 Jul 1606 in St. Alphege, Cantebury, Kent, England 660

Died: Abt 1625, London, London, England about age 47 659

 General Notes: 

Robert1 Cutchman or Cushman,[A] baptized at Rolvenden, co. Kent, England, 9 Feb. 1577/8, died in England, probably in the summer of 1625. He married first, in the parish of St. Alphege, Canterbury, England, 31 July 1606, Sara Reder, who dwelt in the precincts of the Cathedral at Canterbury and whose parentage has not been discovered; and secondly, at Leyden, Holland, 5 June 1617 Mary (Clarke) Shingelton, widow of Thomas of Sandwich, co. Kent, shoemaker, the licence for her marriage to her first husband, which was to be celebrated at St. Mary Bredman's, Canterbury, being dated 28 Jan. 1610/11. Robert Cushman is well known as the agent of the Leyden Pilgrims in England, and arrived at Plymouth in New England, with his son Thomas, in the Fortune in Nov. 1621. He sailed for England in the same ship about a month later, on busi­ness for the Colony, leaving his son Thomas in the care of Governor Bradford. Apparently his wife never came to New England, and she probably died before her husband and stepson began their voyage to Plymouth in 1621.[B]

[A] Robert Cutchman or Cushman was son of Thomas and Elinor (Hubbard) Couchman of Rolvenden, co. Kent, Eng., and information about this family may be found in Register, vol. 68, pp. 181-184.

[B] For longer accounts of Robert Cushman see Register, vol. 68, pp. 184-185, and Genealogy of the Cushmans, pp. 9-83. [A Grandson of Elder Thomas Cushman and Some of His Descendants by James Thomas Cushman, NEHGR]

 Noted events in his life were:

• Religion: Puritan.

Robert married Sarah Reder on 31 Jul 1606 in St. Alphege, Cantebury, Kent, England.660 (Sarah Reder was born about 1580 in Kent Co., England 660 and died on 11 Oct 1616 in Leiden, South Holland, Netherlands 660.)

from another source (http://www.wheelerfolk.org/keithgen/related/robert_c.htm)

Name: Deacon Robert CUSHMAN1,2,3,4,5,6,7

Sex: Male

Father: Thomas COUCHMAN (1538 - 14 Feb 1585/86)

Mother: Elinor HUBBARDE (abt 1549 - )

Individual Facts

Birth bef 9 Feb 1577/78 Rolveden, Kent, England

Baptism 9 Feb 1577/78 (age 0) Rolveden, Kent, England

Excomm abt 1605 (age 28) St. Andrews Church, Canterbury, England8

Elected bet 1609-1625 (age 32) Deacon; 9

Death 1625 (age 48) London, England

Marriages/Children

1. Sara REDER

Marriage 31 Jul 1606 (age 29) Canterbury, Kent, England10

Children Elder Thomas CUSHMAN (bef 8 Feb 1607/8 - abt 10 Dec 1691)

                               child #1 CUSHMAN (abt 1611 - )

child #2 CUSHMAN (abt 1614 - )
Sarah CUSHMAN (abt 1615 - 1636/37)
2. Mary (Clark) SHINGLETON

Marriage 5 Jun 1617 (age 40) Leiden, Holland

Notes (Individual)

General: "One of the Leiden Separatist leaders, .... He was apprentice to George Master; was excommunicated from St Andrews Church, Canterbury, after saying that he could not be edified by going to that church; was received back in the church in 1605; and in the same year became a freeman of Canterbury, being described as a grocer.... He and John Carver were chosen by their fellow Separatists to go to England (from Holland; 1617-20) to negotiate for a patent to go to America, .. In 1621 he arrived at Plymouth on the Fortune with son Thomas, but returned to England ...." (Plymouth Colony)

"sailed on Speedwell, 1620, ..; sermonized on "Danger of Self-Love"* soon after arrival of Fortune; returning to England to compose quarrel about amended articles of agreement; captured by French pirates; planning to settle in colony, died suddenly, London, 1625, probably of the plague." (Saints ..)

   *(noted to be 'the first recorded sermon on American soil')

"He early became interested in the movement for greater freedom of religious opinion and joined the little church at Scroby (England), with Rev. John Robinson, Elder Brewster, Governor Carver, Governor Bradford, Isaac Allerton and others, in 1602. Subsequently they removed to Holland, but were not satisfied with conditions at Leyden (Holland) and resolved to make application to the Virginia Company, whose authority extended over a considerable portion of the North American continent, for liberty to settle in the company's territory in America. For that purpose Robert Cushman and Deacon John Carver were selected to go to London in 1617 and open negotiations. The mission was not successful. Later they arranged with Thomas Weston and the Merchant Adventurers of London to go to America... He was most active and influential in securing a Charter for the Plymouth Colony and also for the first settlement of the Massachusetts Bay Colony at Cape Ann. He continued to perform his duties as agent of the Colony in London, and did his best to promote its interests. He died somewhat suddenly in 1625 before he could return to America as he had planned." (Burt pp.75-76)

From the Cushman Memorial on Old Burial Hill, Plymouth, MA: "Fellow-Exile with the Pilgrims in Holland, Afterwards their chief agent in England, Arrived here 9-November, 1621, With Thomas Cushman his son: Preached 9-December His memorable sermon on 'The Danger of Self-Love Ant the Sweetness of True Friendship:' Returned to England 13-December, To vindicate the enterprise of Christian emigration; And there remained in the service of the Colony Till 1625, When, having prepared to make Plymouth His permanent home." (Burt, p. 67; Robert Cushman of Kent, p. ii)

Translation from The Dutch Records at Leyden: "Robert Cushman, Woolcomber from Canterbury, England, Widower of Sara Cushman, dwelling in a little alley of the Nunsgate, accompanied by John Keble, his friend with Mary Shingleton from Sandwich in England, widow of Thomas Shingleton, accompanied by Catharine Carver, her friend, were married before Andries Jasperson VanVesanevelt and Jacob Peadts, Sheriffs, this fifth of June 1617." (Burt, p. 56)

The following was posted by Paul Cushman on October 04, 1998 at 01:42:10, on the Cushman Family Genealogy Forum, http://genforum.familytreemaker.com/cushman/: "I recently returned from a trip to Rolvenden, Kent Co. England, (birthplace of Robert CUSHMAN) where I did some snooping. I found his baptism listed in the parish records as Robert Dutcheman son of Thomas Dutcheman. There were some 20 other references to Couchman, Coutcheman and Cushman. I found it interesting that there are several Couchmans (pronounced cootchman)still in the area. I think we are very likely related but have yet to make a positive connection. Does anyone have knowledge of this connection? I believe that the spelling of Robert Cushman's name was listed in the Leyden, Holland records at one point during the pilgrims' exile as Croutchman. This leads me further to think that the pronunciation used to be the same as the current Couchmans referred to above."

Notes (Family #1)

Marriage: [This from the Registers of Parish of St. Alphege, Canterbury, 1606: "Robert Cushman unto Sara Reder dwelling within the precincts of Christ Churche, ("The Cathedral") married 31" July.]

Sources

1. Stratton, Eugene Aubrey. Book: Plymouth Colony; Its History & People 1620-1691. Salt Lake City, UT; Ancestry Publishing, 1986. pp 275-6.

2. 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. 444.

3. Cushman, Richard (son of Ellsworth Wilfred Cushman, grandson of Wilfred Cushman). Cushman Genealogy; type written, 3 page paper. (carbon copy). Dixon, CA; (date: 1960s). p. 1.

4. Burt, Alvah Walford. Cushman Genealogy and General History; Including The Descendants of the Fayette County, Pennsylvania, and Monongalia County, Virginia, Families. Cincinnati, OH: 1942. pp. 54-56, 67, 75-76.

5. Cushman, Robert E. & Cole, Franklin P.. Robert Cushman of Kent (1577-1625); Chief Agent of the Plymouth Pilgrims (1617-1625). Mass.: General Society of Mayflower Descendants, 1995.

6. Cushman, Henry Wyles. Historical and Biographical Genealogy of the Cushmans: The Descendants of Robert Cushman, The Puritan, From the year 1617 to 1855. Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1855. pp. 2-83.

7. author unknown. Collection of individual Family Group Record sheets for Cushman, Howland, Claghorn & Valentine families copied about 1975 by Carol Cushman of Chrome, CA, from an old family book that belonged to Fredrick Brewster Cushman (1897-1972) of Orland, CA. Each sheet references standard genealogical books and journals.

8. Stratton, Eugene Aubrey. Book: Plymouth Colony; Its History & People 1620-1691. Salt Lake City, UT; Ancestry Publishing, 1986. p. 275.

9. 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. 444.

10. Burt, Alvah Walford. Cushman Genealogy and General History; Including The Descendants of the Fayette County, Pennsylvania, and Monongalia County, Virginia, Families. Cincinnati, OH: 1942. p. 55.

Robert Cushman was baptized on February 9, 1577/8, at Rolvenden, Kent, son of Thomas and Elinor (Hubbard) Cushman. Death: He died in 1625, in England. Ship: Fortune, 1621 Life in England: Robert Cushman was one of five children born to Thomas and Elinor Cushman. In his February 10, 1585/6, will,Thomas Cushman gave bequests to his three surviving children: sons Richard and Robert, and daughter Sylvester. Elinor Cushman married (2) Emmanual Evenden on October 17, 1587, and (3) Thomas Tilden on November 6, 1593. Robert apprenticed to George Masters in Canterbury to learn the trade of grocer. If he served a full seven-year apprenticeship, then he started in 1598. In November 1603 while an apprentice, he was brought before the church court for saying, “he will not come to his parish church, because he cannot be edified and saith he can and will defend it by the word of God.” He was excommunicated a year later, but granted absolution and received again into the church in July 1605. Shortly thereafter he became a freeman of Canterbury. Robert Cushman returned to England in the winter of 1621/2. He worked as Plymouth Colony’s agent, sending supplies, etc. until his death in 1625. Life in Holland: Robert Cushman and his family emigrated to Leiden sometime before November 4, 1611, when he purchased a house. He worked in the city as a woolcomber. Beginning in September 1617, Cushman spent much of his time in England, working on arrangements for the new colony. He and his family were among those that left England in the summer of 1620, but stayed behind when the Speedwell was abandoned. Life in New England: Robert Cushman and his son,Thomas, traveled to Plymouth Colony aboard the Fortune in 1621. While there, Robert preached a sermon, published in 1846 as “The Sin and Danger of Self-Love.” Leaving his son in the care of Governor William Bradford, Cushman returned to England with the Fortune that winter. Family: Robert Cushman married (1) Sara Reder at St. Alphege, Canterbury July 31, 1606, and had three children. She was buried in Leiden on October 11, 1616. He married (2) Mary (Clarke) Shingleton, widow of Thomas Shingleton, on June 5, 1617.There are no recorded children, but some identify the Sara Cushman who married William Hoskins in Plymouth on November 2, 1636, as Robert Cushman’s daughter by one of his wives.This theory remains unproved. Children of Robert and Sara Cushman: •
• Thomas was baptized at St.Andrew, Canterbury on February 8, 1607/8. He married Mary Allerton about 1636 and had eight children. He died in Plymouth on December 11, 1691. She died in Plymouth on November 28, 1699, the last of the Mayflower passengers. • Child, buried at the Pieterkerk, Leiden on March 11, 1616. 
 • Child, buried at the Pieterskerk, Leiden on October 24, 1616.16

Robert Cutchman or Cushman baptized at Rolvenden, County Kent, England, 9 Feb. 1577/8, died in England, probably in the summer of 1625. He married first, in the parish of St. Alphege, Canterbury, England, 31 July 1606, Sara Reder, who dwelt in the precincts of the Cathedral at Canterbury; and secondly, at Leyden, Holland, 5 Jun 1617, Mary (Clarke) Shingelton, widow of Thoomas of Sandwich, Co. Kent, shoemaker, the license for her marriage to her first husband celebrated at St. Mary Bredman’s Canterbury, being dated 28 Jan 1610/11.

Robert Cushman is well known as the agent of the Leyden Pilgrims in England, and arrived at Plymouth, in New England, with his son Thomas, in the Fortune in Nov 1621. He sailed for England in the smae ship about a month later, on business fo the Colony, leaving his son Thomas in the care of Governor Bradford. Apparetnly his wife never came to new Egland, and some speculate that she may have died before her husband and stepson began their voyage to Plymouth in 1621. It is clear, though, that Roert intended to return to England to continue his services to the colony an this may account for leaving a wife behind.

Robert Cushman: The Man Who Would Have Signed the Mayflower Compact But Couldn't Discover History Written by Robert Jennings Heinsohn, PhD

During his years in Leiden, Cushman demonstrated unusual organizational skill such that in 1617 Cushman (age 40) and John Carver (age 51), deacons of the Leiden congregation, were chosen to travel to London to make arrangements for the congregation to immigrate to North America.

Initially Carver and Cushman sought a patent from the Virginia Company for a colony on the James River. The company was interested but King James refused to allow the Pilgrims to practice their religion as they wished. Next, Cushman and Carver approached wealthy Puritans in London. Sir Edwin Sandys, member of Parliament and Governor/Treasurer of the Virginia Company, and Thomas Weston a wealthy London ironmonger agreed to contact London colleagues to explore investing in a joint stock company with the Pilgrims to produce goods to sell in London. Eventually about 70 men of varying occupations, religious beliefs and positions in society invested in the company. The London men were called Merchant Adventurers. King James agreed not be persecute Pilgrims providing they behaved quietly and were faithful subjects of the King. Negotiations with the Merchant Adventurers were tedious. In the spring of 1620 a revised agreement with Thomas Weston was negotiated, and Carver and Cushman returned to Leiden to present the agreement to John Robinson and the congregation. Disagreement remained which lead to further negotiation. Eventually a set of 10 articles of agreement emerged. Cushman returned to London to lease of the Mayflower and Carver remained in Holland to purchase the Speedwell. The plan was to retain the Speedwell in America for fishing and coastal trade.

Because the voyage and land clearing would be strenuous, it was decided that only strong men and women and their children would make the voyage. During the summer of 1620, the Merchant Adventurers assembled a pool of money and the Pilgrims who were chosen to sail sold their homes and belongings to pay for the voyage. It has been estimated that the cost of the voyage was approximately 1500 pounds. It became clear that additional people would be needed, and single men, and whole families of women and children were recruited in England. The new members were called "Strangers" while members of the Lieden congregation were called "Saints". Some Separatists never left England and had no close relationship with members of the Leiden congregation. On the eve of the voyage individuals were asked to sign the 10 articles of agreement. The articles had not changed since they were presented earlier and some displeased individuals withdrew from the voyage. Even though the agreement was unsigned, the remaining Separatists decided to sail and settle the issue at a later time. The Separatists selected a leader, "Governor", for each ship. To pacify the restive Strangers, one of their members, Christropher Martin was chosen governor of the Mayflower. Martin was an abusive person and disliked by everyone. Robert Cushman was chosen assistant governor to ensure harmony.

After two attempts to sail, the Speedwell proved to be overloaded, unseaworthy and it returned to port. During this period Robert Cushman became seriously ill. In a letter to Edward Southworth in August 1620 he thought he was close to death. When it was decided not to sail the Speedwell, Cushman was asked to remain in London to look after its passengers until they could sail the next year. The Mayflower sailed from Southampton alone on September 16, 1620. Cushman recovered and looked after the affairs of the passengers and purchased supplies for the voyage of the Fortune in 1621.

In April 1621 the Mayflower left Plymouth and arrived in England on May 6, 1621. Only then did the London Separatists learn of the arduous voyage, harsh conditions in Plymouth, the deaths of nearly one-half the Mayflower passengers, and that Christopher Martin died and John Carver had been elected Governor. The London Separatists were unaware that Carver had died shortly after the Mayflower left Plymouth.

The Fortune with Cushman and his son Thomas (age 14) sailed for Plymouth on August 9, 1621 with 35 new colonists but very few supplies. The Fortune arrived in Cape Cod harbor on 9 November 1621. The Plymouth colonists were downcast. Their beloved Governor John Carver had died the previous spring. The fall harvest had not been good, and the Fortune brought them only meager supplies. With 35 new mouths to feed, the winter looked bleak.

The compelling task facing Robert Cushman was to secure the colonists' signatures to the 10 articles of agreement that were not signed the year before. The continued support of the Merchant Adventurers depended on it. On December 9, 1621, the first anniversary Sunday of the Pilgrim landing in Plymouth, Robert Cushman gave a sermon, which along with Robinson's farewell sermon in Leiden, are quintessential statements of Pilgrim belief. Cushman's sermon entitled "The Sin and Danger of Self-Love" was based on 1 Corinthians 10:24, Let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth. Cushman's pious prose is verbose by today's standard but the sermon speaks to us today as powerfully as it must have in the bleak winter of 1621. Cushman's remarks were a heart-felt plea for the Pilgrims to cooperate unselfishly for common good without regard for personal gain. I do not believe it an exaggeration to draw a parallel between John F. Kennedy's inaugural address in 1960 in which he said, "ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do your country" and Cushman's sermon. During the previous 12 months the hardships the Pilgrims endured softened the strongly-held opinions they and John Robinson embraced before they sailed for New England. They realized their marginal existence in Plymouth depended on supplies from England and they signed the 10 articles of agreement.

The writing of Cushman, Bradford and other Pilgrims shows that they had an excellent command of the English language. Except for William Brewster, few (if any) of the Leiden men were educated formally. Nevertheless all were literate and wrote, and presumably spoke with facility. Since the Pilgrims read and quoted the bible frequently, their command of language is not surprising. The Bible is poetic, eloquent and has a cadence that influenced English-speakers for centuries.

Creating the Undertakers in 1626 began a process that reversed Cushman's 1621 advice sermon and transformed the colony's fundamental beliefs. At no time was there a deliberate effort to repudiate Cushman's advice. Rather, economic conditions altered the Pilgrims concept of community. Ostensibly, creating the Undertakers simply transferred the colony's debt to familiar hands; inadvertently, the decision set into motion actions that made acceptable the pursuit of private gain.

Thomas Cushman remained in Plymouth under the care of Governor Bradford and his father returned to England on the Fortune on December 13, 1621. Carried on the Fortune were beaver pelts and other furs worth approximately 500 pounds obtained from trade with the Indians for corn. The cargo was the first shipment of goods to the Merchant Adventurers and important for their continued support. As luck would have it as the Fortune approached the English coast, French privateers stole its cargo and the passenger's belongings. Cushman and the crew were imprisoned in France but returned to England in February 1622. Luckily the signed articles of agreement and the manuscript of Mourt's Relation were not lost. Mourt's Relation was written to assure the Merchant Adventurers of the success of the colony and to interest others to emigrate.

After 1621 Robert Cushman was the colony's London agent arranging the transfer of remaining members of the Leiden congregation to Plymouth. As London agent, Cushman arranged the sale of furs and fish sent by the colonists to the Merchant Adventures purchased supplies for the colonists. When Miles Standish visited London in April 1626 he discovered that Robert Cushman had died (at age 48) during the spring of 1625. There is no record describing the details of Cushman's death.

Thomas Cushman married Mary Allerton (b 1616), the youngest daughter of Isaac Allerton in ca 1636. Both Mary and Isaac were Mayflower passengers. Thomas succeeded William Brewster as Ruling Elder upon Brewster's death in 1644. Thomas and Mary had eight children. Thomas died in 1691 and Mary died in 1699. Mary was the last Mayflower passenger to die.

Robert Cushman demonstrated enormous organizational ability. He was the principal person negotiating agreements with the crown and London investors, organizing the logistics to transport over a hundred people across the Atlantic, and lastly managing the finances to provision the colony and sell its products. His keen leadership was most evident when he persuaded the colonists to sign the articles of agreement they had strongly rejected the year before. Sadly he died before he could move to Plymouth and share the remainder of his life with associates who held him in such high esteem. If the Speedwell had been seaworthy, and Robert Cushman not been ill and able to sail on the Mayflower, he would have been one of the first signers of the Compact along with John Carver, William Brewster and William Bradford.

BIBLIOGRAPHY Cushman, H. W., "Historical and Biographical Genealogy of the Cushmans: Robert Cushman the Puritan From the year 1617 to 1855", Little, Brown, and Company, Boston, MA, 1855 French E., "Cushman, Genealogical Research in England", NEHGR, 68:181, 1914 Cushman, M. L., "Pilgrims of the Fruitbelt A Cushman Genealogy", Heritage Press, Lansing, MI, 1980 Cushman, R. E. and Cole F. P., "Robert Cushman of Kent", General Society of Mayflower Descendents, Plymouth, MA, 1995 Stratton, E. A., "Plymouth Colony, Its History & People 1620-1691", Ancestry Publishing, Salt Lake City, UT, 198617

A genealogical profile of Robert Cushman Birth: Robert Cushman was baptized on February 9, 1577/8, at Rolvenden, Kent, son of Thomas and Elinor (Hubbard) Cushman. Death: He died in 1625, in England. Ship: Fortune, 1621 Life in England: Robert Cushman was one of five children born to Thomas and Elinor Cushman. In his February 10, 1585/6, will, Thomas Cushman gave bequests to his three sur- viving children: sons Richard and Robert, and daughter Sylvester. Elinor Cushman married (2) Emmanual Evenden on October 17, 1587, and (3) Thomas Tilden on November 6, 1593. Robert apprenticed to George Masters in Canterbury to learn the trade of grocer. If he served a full seven-year appren- ticeship, then he started in 1598. In November 1603 while an apprentice, he was brought before the church court for saying, “he will not come to his parish church, because he cannot be edified and saith he can and will defend it by the word of God.” He was excommunicated a year later, but granted absolution and received again into the church in July 1605. Shortly there- after he became a freeman of Canterbury. Robert Cushman returned to England in the winter of 1621/2. He worked as Plymouth Colony’s agent, sending sup- plies, etc. until his death in 1625. Life in Holland: Robert Cushman and his family emigrated to Leiden sometime before November 4, 1611, when he pur- chased a house. He worked in the city as a woolcomber. Beginning in September 1617, Cushman spent much of his time in England, working on arrangements for the new colony. He and his family were among those that left England in the sum- mer of 1620, but stayed behind when the Speedwell was aban- doned. Life in New England: Robert Cushman and his son,Thomas, traveled to Plymouth Colony aboard the Fortune in 1621. While there, Robert preached a sermon, published in 1846 as “The Sin and Danger of Self-Love.” Leaving his son in the care of Governor William Bradford, Cushman returned to England with the Fortune that winter. Family: Robert Cushman married (1) Sara Reder at St. Alphege, Canterbury July 31, 1606, and had three children. She was buried in Leiden on October 11, 1616. He married (2) Mary (Clarke) Shingleton, widow of Thomas Shingleton, on June 5, 1617.There are no recorded children, but some identify the Sara Cushman who married William Hoskins in Plymouth on November 2, 1636, as Robert Cushman’s daughter by one of his wives.This theory remains unproved. Children of Robert and Sara Cushman: • Thomas was baptized at St. Andrew, Canterbury on February 8, 1607/8. He married Mary Allerton about 1636 and had eight children. He died in Plymouth on December 11, 1691. She died in Plymouth on November 28, 1699, the last of the Mayflower passengers. • Child, buried at the Pieterkerk, Leiden on March 11, 1616. • Child,buriedatthePieterskerk,LeidenonOctober24,1616. For Further Information: Robert C. Anderson. The Great Migration Begins. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995. Robert C. Anderson. The Pilgrim Migration. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2004. Robert E. Cushman and Franklin P. Cole. Robert Cushman of Kent (1577–1625): Chief Agent of the Plymouth Pilgrims. Plymouth: General Society of Mayflower Descendants, 1995.

Sailed on the Fortune in 1621, joining the co-religionists at Plymounth MA.

ROBERT CUSHMAN (1577/8 - 1625) - Rolvendon, Kent, England; Canterbury, Plymouth, England; Leiden, Holland; Plymouth Colony, MA BIRTH & BAPTISM Robert was born in 1577/8 in Rolvenden, Kent, England and baptized there on 9 February 1577/8; with his record reading "The ix daye of the same month of february was baptized Robert Cutchman the sone of Thomas Cutchman"[5,6]. DEATH He returned to England on the Fortune in December of 1621[5], leaving Thomas in the care of Governor Bradford. He died in England in 1625 while still on this trip for the Pilgrim colony; he was 48. "(On his return from England early in 1626 Myles Standish 'brought them notice of the death of their ancient friend Mr. Cushman, whom the Lord took away also this year'.)[12,13 OCCUPATIONS (Fourth Generation - Cushman Family) FATHER MOTHER THOMAS CUSHMAN ELINOR HUBBARD Robert changed careers more than the average 17th century man. In 1603, Robert was an indentured servant to the grocer George Masters in Canterbury, co. Kent, England. He remained a grocer as long as he was in England. However, once he moved to Holland, he turned to the more practical (for survival of colony) occupation of woolcomber[11] -- as explained in Bradford's History: "...They [the Pilgrims] removed [from Amsterdam] to Leyden, a fair & bewtifull citie, and of a sweete situation, but made more famous by ye universitie wherwith it is adorned, in which of late had been so many learned EDUCATION Anderson describes Cushman's educational status well: "Several literate and businesslike letters written by Cushman to John Carver, Edward Southworth, William Bradford and to the Leiden congregation are evidence of a well-educated man[8]." CHURCH MEMBERSHIP & FERVOR As evidenced by this court appearance, Robert was such an ardent Puritan that he was hauled into court over the issue. On 14 November 1603, "Robert Cushman, servant to George Maisters" was presented by the churchwardens of St. Andrew's Parish "for the like as the common fame goeth [i.e. 'for that he doth say he will not come to his parish church because he cannot be edified and saith he can and will defend it by the word of God']." He refused to do the assigned penance of acknowledging his offense "...in the parish church of St. Andrew, Canterbury on son Sunday in the time of service, according to the schedule [not given], and then to certify the Court afterwards..." (imposed upon him by the ecclesiastical court) and was excommunicated on 12 November 1604. However, on 28 June 1605, he appeared before the court and asked for absolution. Said absolution was granted to him on 7 July 1605 and he was again received into the church[4,9]. FREEMANSHIP In 1605, he became a Freeman by apprenticeship (as a "grosser") to George Masters[4,10]. MIGRATION men. But wanting that traffike by sea which Amsterdam injoyes, it was not so beneficiall for their outward means of living & estats. But being now hear pitchet they fell to such trads & imployments as they best could; valewing peace & their spirituall comforte above any other riches whatsoever. And at lenght they came to raise a competente & comforteable living, but with hard hard and continuall labor.[20]" Thus, he changed careers from grocer to a branch of the clothing trade -- an industry for which Kent was well known. Thus, he was variously called a Woolcarder or Woolcomber, and was listed as a "wool-carder" on the manifest of the Fortune. However, in Leiden, Holland, Robert became the agent of the Leiden Pilgrims in England[5,6,11]. He was quickly named agent of the American colony and he remained busy in the affairs of the colony until his death in 1625. Cushman had planned to make the voyage across the Atlantic in 1620, but when the FROM THE DUTCH RECORDS AT LEIDEN Speedwell had to be abandoned he was one of those who remained behind[16]. This original intention of Cushman's and his many other services in behalf of the Pilgrims are undoubtedly the justification for the assignment to Cushman in 1623 of land in Plymouth as if he had been a passenger on the Mayflower. Instead, Robert emigrated from England to America on the Fortune, Thomas Barton, master. She left London in August of 1621 and arrived at Cape Cod on 9 November 1621. The ship is believed to have had 35 passengers, but only 32 are known by name. They all came from London or its suburbs and all settled at Plymouth, Plymouth co., MA. Robert brought son Thomas arrived with him. He returned to England on the Fortune in December of 1621[5], leaving Thomas in the care of Governor Bradford. He died on this trip. Soon after Thomas' baptism in 1607, the Cushman family disappears from the Canterbury records. At this time, it is surmised that Robert and his family joined The Reverend John Robinson's Puritan colony in Leiden, Holland[20]. After Sarah's death in 1616, Robert is listed in the records as follows: "Robert Cushman, woolcomber, from Canterbury in England, widower of Sarah Cushman, dwelling in a little alley of the Nunsgate, accompanieed by John Keble his friend, with Mary Shingleton from Sandwich in England, widow of Thomas Shingleton, accompanied by Catherine Carver her friend..."[11] Anderson further explains Cushman's movement through the records: "...Beginning in 1617, and continuing right up until the time of his death, Robert Cushman spent much time in London and vicinity negotiating on behalf of the Leiden congregation and later on behalf also of the settlers in Plymouth. He, John Carver and William Brewster labored constantly in their dealings with a number of London merchants, arranging for the shipping and provisions for the Mayflower and the Speedwell in 1620. The details of these negotiations constitute a large portion of the story told by Bradford in his history of these years. In autumn 1617, Robert & John Carver were chosen by their companions to go to England and negotiate with the Council for Virginia about a patent within the grant of the Virginia Company. His connection with the transfer of a part of the Leyden congregation to Plymouth in New England is known from the writings of Bradford, and the story need not be repeated here.[20] On 12 December 1621, during his brief sojourn at Plymouth, Cushman preached a sermon whose principal intent was to convince the Pilgrims to accept the terms offered by the London merchants, and was therefore more of an economic than a theological nature. This sermon, accompanied by some additional notes by Cushman, was published in London in 1622..." [11,14,15]. In the 1623 Plymouth division of land "Robert Cochman" received one acre as an "honorary" passenger of the Mayflower[13,21]. On 2 November 1636 "William Hodgekins & Sara Cushman" were married at Plymouth[17]. Some have held that this was another child of Robert Cushman, but this remains only a surmise[18,19]..." MARRIAGE #1 On 31 July 1606 when Robert was 29, he first married Sarah REDER, in St. Alphage, Canterbury, Plymouth, England[13,22,23,24,25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32]. Their marriage record reads "Robert Cushman vnto Sara Reder dwelling with in Pr'cinct's of Christchurche" [the Cathedral] They were married before Andries Hasperson van Vesanevelt and Jacob Paedts, Sheriggs, this fifth of June 1617". Sarah lived in the precincts of the Cathedral at Canterbury and died in 1616 in Leyden, Holland and was buried on 11 October 1616 in St. Peter's, Leiden, Holland[13,33,34]. The entries...show that the banns were published three times, on 20 and 27 May, and on 3 June, 1617[4]. CHILDREN 12. i. Thomas CUSHMAN Please see his own page. 13. ii. [unknown child] CUSHMAN 14. iii. [unknown child] CUSHMAN MARRIAGE #2 On 5 June 1617 when Robert was 40, he second married Mary CLARK, in Leiden, Holland[13,35,36,23,37,27,38,39]. She is listed on her marriage record as "Mary Shingelton from Sandwich in England, widow of Thomas Shingelton". Mary died before 1621 in Leiden, Holland[13]. Anderson claims that she was "apparently dead" before this time since there is no evidence that she came to Plymouth with her husband and stepson. GENERATION Great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great (G10) Grandfather FAMILY NUMBER 7652 SOURCES 1. New England Historic and Genealogical Register. Vols. 1+, (Boston: New England Historic and Genealogical Society, 1845+), [NEHGR or Reg.], 68:327-8. 2. Ibid. 68:327. 3. Ibid. 68:328. 4. Ibid. 68:329. 5. Anderson, Robert Charles, The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633., (Boston: Great Migration Study Project, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995), [GreatMig1620-1633], I:502. 6. [NEHGR or Reg.], 68:181, 328. 7. Ibid. 68:330. 8. Bradford, William, Of Plymouth Plantation, 1620-1647, Samuel Eliot Morison, ed., (New York 1952), [Bradford], 45,54,107,125,128,355,361,365,373. 9. From the Visitation Books of the Archdeacon of Canterbury, volume for 1598-1608, part 2, folio 31. 10. From the Roll of the Freemen of the City of Canterbury, printed in Cowper's Freemen of Canterbury, column 183. 11. This translation is reprinted from The Mayflower Descendant, vol 10, p. 193, where may be found also a printed copy and a facsimilie of the original Dutch record, which is entered in the Leyden records. Echt Book B. fo. 64. The record is preceded by words which in the English translation read: "Entered on 19 May, 1617". 12. [Bradford], 180. 13. [GreatMig1620-1633], I:503. 14. Chronicles of the Pilgrim Fathers of the Colony of Plymouth..., Alexander Young, ed., (Boston 1844; rpt. Baltimore 1974), [YoungsPilgrimFathers], 255-68. 15. [GreatMig1620-1633], I:502-503. 16. [Bradford], 54. 17. Records of the Colony of New Plymouth in New England, 12 volumes in 10, Nathaniel B. Shurtleff and David Pulsifer, ed., (Boston 1855-1861), [PCR], 1:45. 18. Underhill, Lora Altine, Descendants of Edward Small of New England, and the Allied Families, (Cambridge: Riverside Press, 1910), [Small], 688-93. 19. [GreatMig1620-1633], I:503-4. 20. [NEHGR or Reg.], 68:331. 21. [PCR], 12:4. 22. [NEHGR or Reg.], 68:183. 23. Torrey, Charles, New England Marriages Prior to 1700., (Boston: New England Historic and Genealogical Society), [Torrey]. 24. [Riggs, Henry Earle-prob.], The American Ancestors of Margaret Esther Bouton Thom and John Thom, ( [Ann Arbor, MI: Edwards Bros., Inc., 1944]), [ThomAncChart], Chart 4. 25. Johnson, Alvin Page, Franklin D. Roosevelt's Colonial Ancestors; Their Part in Making American History, (Boston: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Co., ca. 1933), [RooseveltAnc], 108+. 26. Underhill, Lora Altine, Descendants of Edward Small of New England, and the allied Families, (rev. ed., Boston & New York: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1934), [Small (ed. 2)], 670. 27. Jacobus, Donald Lines, The Waterman Family, 3 vols., (New Haven: E.F. Waterman, 1939-54), [Waterman (1939)], 1:646. 28. Caldwell, Charles T., A Branch of the Caldwell Family Tree: Being a Record of Thompson Baxter Caldwell and His Wife, Mary Ann (Ames) Caldwell of West Bridgewater, Mass., Their Ancestors and Descendants, (Washington, D.C.: The Olympia, 1906), [CaldwellAnc], 12. 29. [NEHGR or Reg.], 68:184-5; 72:11. 30. The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, vols. 1+, (New York: New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, 1870+), [NYGBR], 43:294; 47:110. 31. Lineage Books of National Society Daughters of Founders and Patriots of America, ([Washington], D.C., 1910), [LBDF&P], 4:167. 32. The Parish Register of St. Alphege, Canterbury, Kent, England. Printed in Cowper's Registers of St. Alphange, p. 113. 33. [Small], 671. 34. Dexter, Henry Martyn and Morton Dexter, The England and Holland of the Pilgrims, (London 1906; rpt. Baltimore 1978), [Dexter], 611. 35. [NEHGR or Reg.], 68:183; 15:30,169; 72:12. 36. The Mayflower Descendant, vols. 1-34, Bowman, George Ernest, ed., (Boston: Mayflower Society, 1899-1937), [MD], 10:193. 37. Savage, James A., A Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England, 1860-1862., (Boston 1860-1862; rpt Baltimore 1955), [Sv or Savage], 1:492. 38. Briggs, Mary Balch, We and Our Kinsfolk. Ephraim and Rebekah Waterman Briggs, their Descendants and Ancestors. With a few Collateral Branches, (Boston: Beacon Press, 1887), [BriggsAnc], 101. 39. [Small (ed. 2)], 672. 40. Plymouth County Probate, [PlymProb]. 41. [NEHGR or Reg.], 68:183, 329. 42. From the Parish Register of St. Andrew, Canterbury, Kent, England. This is the only Cushman entry in the registers of the parish of St. Andrew, Canterbury, from 1575 to 1618, inclusive. 43. [PCR], 1:4,21. 44. Ibid. 12:5. 45. Ibid. 12:12. 46. [GreatMig1620-1633], I:503; I:37. 47. [MD], 4:37-42. 48. Cushman, Henry Wyles, A Historical and Biographical Genealogy of the Cushmans, the Descendants of Robert Cushman the Puritan from the Year 1617 to 1855, (Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1855), [Cushman], 85. 49. Farwell, John Dennis, Jane Harter Abbott, and Lillian M. Wilson, The Farwell Family, A History of Henry Farwell and His Wife Olive (Welby) Farwell of Boston, England, and of Concord and Chelmsford, Mass., 1605 to 1927, with Twelve Generations of Their Descendants; Also Many Lineages of Allied Families, 2 vols., (Rutland, Vt.: F.H. Farwell, 1929), [Farwell(1929)], 472. 50. Snow, Nora Emma, The Snow-Estes Ancestry, 2 vols., (Hillburn, N.Y.: privately printed, 1939), [Snow-Estes], 1:494. 51. [NYGBR], 43:294. 52. [Riggs, Henry Earle-prob.], The American Ancestors of Margaret Esther Bouton Thom and John Thom, ([Ann Arbor, MI: Edwards Bros., Inc., 1944]), [ThomAncChart], 136, Chart 4. 53. Sumner, Edith Bartlett, Descendants of Thomas Farr of Harpswell, Maine and Ninety Allied Families, (Los Angeles: American Offset Printers, 1959), [Farr Anc.], 12. 54. [Sv or Savage], 1:38,494. 55. [MD], 16:62,63. 56. [NEHGR or Reg.], 1:50; 4:254; 8:270; 68:185; 72:12; 103:220. 57. The Genealogical Advertiser, vols., 1-4, (1898-1901, reprint 4 in 1, Baltimore: Genealogical Publ. Co., 1974), [GenAdv], 2:106. 58. Holman, Mary Lovering, The Scott Genealogy, (Boston, MA: 1919), [Scott (1919)], 90. 59. Pope, Charles Henry, The Pioneers of Maine and New Hampshire, 1623 to 1660, (Boston: C.H. Pope, 1908), [PopesPioneersofMEandNH], 16. 60. Perley, Sidney, The History of Salem, Massachusetts, 3 vols., (Salem: Sidney Perley, 1924), [Salem], 1:233. 61. [BriggsAnc], 102,110. 62. Allerton, Walter Scott, A History of the Allerton Family, (Chicago: S. W. Allerton, 1900), [Allerton (1900)], 30. 63. [RooseveltAnc], 110,115. 64. [Small (ed. 2)], 697,714. 65. Jones, Emma C.(Brewster), Brewster Genealogy, 1566-1907, a Record of the Descendants of William Brewster of the "Mayflower", Ruling Elder, Pilgrim Church, which Founded Plymouth Colony in 1620, 2 vols., (New York: The Grafton Press, 1908), [Brewster], 24. 66. Clarke, Mary (Bosworth), Bosworth Genealogy; a History of the Descendants of Edward Bosworth who arrived in America in the Year 1634; with an Appendix containing other Lines of American Bosworths, (San Francisco, 1926), [Bosworth], 382. 67. [GreatMig1620-1633], I:37. 68. [MD], 6:63. 69. [Bradford], 448. 70. [Small], 688. 71. Families of The Pilgrims, (Boston: MA Society of Mayflower Descendants), [FamPil]. 72. Jameson, Ephriam Orcutt, The Cogswells in America, ([Boston: A. Mudge & Son], 1884), [Cogswell], 50. 73. [NEHGR or Reg.], 69:156; 72:12; 96:359. 74. [MD], 4:39; 17:224,228. 75. Lewis, Alonzo, & James Newhall, History of Lynn, Essex County, Mass., including Lynnfield, Saugus, Swampscot, and Nahant, 1629-1890, (Lynn: at the bookstore of George C. Herbert, [1890]), [LynnHist (1890)], 121. 76. [Farwell(1929)], 437. 77. [Small], 2:356,678. 78. Tingley, Raymon Meyers, Some Ancestral Lines; Being a Record of Some of the Ancestors of Guilford: Solon Tingley and His Wife, Martha Pamelia Meyers, Collected by Their Son, Raymon Meyers Tingley, (Rutland, Vt.: The Tuttle Publishing Co., 1935), [Tingley-Meyers], 235. 79. [Farr Anc.], 200. 80. [ThomAncChart], 133. 81. [Cushman]. 82. Lynn, Essex co., MA Vital Records, [LynnVR], II:174. 83. Smith, Ethel Farrington, comp., Adam Hawkes of Saugus, Mass. 1605-1672., (Baltimore: Gateway Press, 1980), [Hawkes (1980)]. 84. [LynnVR], II:499. 85. [Hawkes (1980)], 31. 86. Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts, 1636-1686, 9 volumes., (Salem 1911-1975), [EQC], I-VIII. 87. [Hawkes (1980)], 33-34. 88. Lewis, Alonzo, The History of Lynn, Including Nahant, (Boston: Samuel N. Dickinson, second edition, 1844), [LynnHist (1844)], 65. 89. The Probate Records of Essex County, [EssexProb or EPR], #12920 & #12911. 90. [Hawkes (1980)], 46-48. 91. Bodge, George Madison, Soldiers in King Philip's War, (1896), [Bodge], 406. 92. [Hawkes (1980)], 34. 93. [EssexProb or EPR], II:426. 94. Essex Institute Historical Collections, vol. 1+, (Salem, Mass., 1859+), [EIHC], 56:279. 95. [Hawkes (1980)], 37. 96. Ibid. 34-35. 97. Ibid. 36. 98. Ipswich Quarterly Court Records, [IQCR], 24d:7m:1678. 99. [Hawkes (1980)], 36-37. 100. Ibid. 33. 101. Ibid. 32-33. 102. [LynnHist (1844)], 120-121. 103. Ibid. 121. 104. Ibid. 123-124. 105. Ibid. 124-125. 106. Ibid. 127-129. 107. Ibid. 130-131. 108. Ibid. 138-139. 109. Ibid. 148-149. 110. Ibid. 154. 111. [Hawkes (1980)], 41. 112. [LynnHist (1844)], 167. 113. [Hawkes (1980)], 38. 114. Ibid. 38-45. Return to the Family Index page. Return to the Cushman Index page. Return to the Maddison Side Tree page. Return to the Surname Index page. email comments, suggestions, fixes and general mischievious mayhem to the web diva. all the content on this page is copyrighted ©1992-2006 by Kristin C. Hall. please drop me a line, if you wish to use it or link to it. many thanks! SPECIAL THANKS TO kattyb.com for the nifty background! Check our her sites, they are terrific!

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Robert Cushman came on the Fortune in 1621 with son Thomas of 14 years. Returned to England in the Fortune and left son in care of Governor Bradford Source: Genealogical Register of Plymouth Families by William T. Davis 1895 Passenger List, ship Fortune, 1621

The ship Fortune arrived at Plymouth on November 9, 1621, just a few weeks after the First Thanksgiving. This passenger list is based on the 1623 Division of Land, the passenger list compiled by charles Edward Banks in Planters of the Commonwealth, and by the information found in Eugene Aubrey Stratton's Plymouth Colony: Its History and its People, 1620-1691. The author is descended from Fortune passengers John Adams, William Bassett, and Moses Simmons.

CUSHMAN, ROBERT - One of the Leiden Separatist leaders, Robert Cushman's English origins are given by Elizabeth French, "Genealogical Research in England-Cushman "NEHGR 68:181. He was baptized at Rolveden, Kent, 9 February 1577/78, son of Thomas and Elinor (Hubbard) Couchman. He was an apprentice to George Masters; was excommunicated from St. Andrews Church, Canterbury, after saying that he could not be edified by going to that church; was received back in the church in 1605; and in the same year became a freeman of Canterbury, being described as a grocer. His first wife was Sara Reder, by whom he had son Thomas, q.v., and he married (2) at Leiden in 1617 Mary (Clarke) Shingleton. He and John Carver were chosen by their fellow Separatists to go to England to negotiate for a patent to go to America, and Bradford in his History has much to relate about him. In 1621 he arrived at Plymouth on the Fortune with son thomas, but returned to England with the Fortune, leaving Thomas in the care of Governor Bradford. Cushman died in 1625 before having the chance to return to Plymouth. A good account of his family can be found in Small Descendants, 2:669, which mentions also that a Sarah Cushman who married William Hoskins on 6 October 1636 was thought to be the daughter of Robert Cushman (Hoskins married [2] on 21 December 1638 Ann Hynes [PCR 1:45, 1071].

Source: Plymouth Colony Its History & People 1620-1621 by Eugene Aubrey Stratton, 1986

Came to the Colonies aboard the "Fortune" on August November 9, 1621 to check on his investment before returning to England.

Son of Thomas Cushman of Hawkhurst, Kent, England and Elynour Hubbarde of Rolvenden, Kent, England.

Deacon Robert Cushman advocated the Pilgrims settlement in America and was sent along with Elder Brewster to London in 1619 to obtain a charter from the King to relocate to America. Deacon Cushman was the person responsible for chartering the "Mayflower" for the voyage from London to America.

Cushman and his family embarked on the "Speedwell" on Ausust 5, 1620. Ironically, the "Speedwell" encountered problems and had to return to London and the "Mayflower" sailed alone. In July 1621, he sailed on the "Fortune", taking with him his only son, Thomas, who was 14 years of age. The ship "Fortune" arrived at Plymouth on November 21, 1621, just a few weeks after the first Thanksgiving.

He gave the first sermon preached in America on December 6, 1621, on "Sin and Danger of Self-Love".

He returned to England to act as a financial agent of the settlers and died of the plague in London in 1625 before having the chance to return to Plymouth.

Son of Thomas Cushman and Elynour Hubbarde.

Husband of Sara Reder.

Father of Elder Thomas Cushman and Sarah Cushman Hoskins.

The CUSHMAN MEMORIAL This is a granite column, twenty-five feet high, and it is by far the most conspicuous monument on the hill - it reads:

ROBERT CUSHMAN, Fellow exile with the Pilgrims in Holland, Afterwards their chief agent in England, Arrived here IX November, MDCXXI, With Thomas Cushman his son: Preached IX-. December, His memorable sermon on "the Danger of self-love And the sweetness of true friendship:" Returned to England XIII December, To vindicate tho enterprise of Christian emigration; And there remained in the service of the Colony Till MDCXXV, When, having prepared to make Plymouth His permanent home.

West side: --

He died, lamented by the forefathers as "their ancient friend, - who was as their right hand with their friends the adventurers, and for divers years had done and agitated all their business with them to their great advantage."

"And you, my loving friends, the adventurers to this plantation, as your care has been first to settle religion here before either profit or popularity, so, I play you, go on. -- I rejoice -- that you thus honor God with your riches, and I trust you shall be repaid again double and treble in this world, yea, and the memory of this action shall never die." DEDICATION OF THE SERMON.

South side: --

THOMAS CUSHMAN.

Son of Robert, died X December, MDCXCI, Aged neatly LXXXIV years. For more than XLII years he was Ruling Elder of the First Church in Plymouth, By whom a tablet was placed to mark his grave on this spot, Now consecrated anew by a more enduring memorial.

MARY,

widow of Elder Cushman, and daughter of Isaac Allerton, Died XXVIII November, MDCXCIX, aged about XC years, The last survivor of the first comers in the Mayflower.

East side:

Erected by The descendants of Robert Cushman In memory of their Pilgrim Ancestors, XVI September, MDCCCLVIII.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Aug 25 2017, 13:02:23 UTC

Source for burial information:Michael R. Paulick and Robert C. Cushman, “The 1625 Death of Pilgrim Robert Cushman in Benenden, Kent”, The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, Vol 172, Winter 2018, 25-29

Came to the Colonies aboard the "Fortune" on August November 9, 1621 to check on his investment before returning to England.

Son of Thomas Cushman of Hawkhurst, Kent, England and Elynour Hubbarde of Rolvenden, Kent, England.

Deacon Robert Cushman advocated the Pilgrims settlement in America and was sent along with Elder Brewster to London in 1619 to obtain a charter from the King to relocate to America. Deacon Cushman was the person responsible for chartering the "Mayflower" for the voyage from London to America.

Cushman and his family embarked on the "Speedwell" on Ausust 5, 1620. Ironically, the "Speedwell" encountered problems and had to return to London and the "Mayflower" sailed alone. In July 1621, he sailed on the "Fortune", taking with him his only son, Thomas, who was 14 years of age. The ship "Fortune" arrived at Plymouth on November 21, 1621, just a few weeks after the first Thanksgiving.

He gave the first sermon preached in America on December 6, 1621, on "Sin and Danger of Self-Love".

He returned to England to act as a financial agent of the settlers and died of the plague in London in 1625 before having the chance to return to Plymouth.

Son of Thomas Cushman and Elynour Hubbarde.

Husband of Sara Reder.

Father of Elder Thomas Cushman and Sarah Cushman Hoskins.

The CUSHMAN MEMORIAL This is a granite column, twenty-five feet high, and it is by far the most conspicuous monument on the hill - it reads:

ROBERT CUSHMAN, Fellow exile with the Pilgrims in Holland, Afterwards their chief agent in England, Arrived here IX November, MDCXXI, With Thomas Cushman his son: Preached IX-. December, His memorable sermon on "the Danger of self-love And the sweetness of true friendship:" Returned to England XIII December, To vindicate tho enterprise of Christian emigration; And there remained in the service of the Colony Till MDCXXV, When, having prepared to make Plymouth His permanent home.

West side: --

He died, lamented by the forefathers as "their ancient friend, - who was as their right hand with their friends the adventurers, and for divers years had done and agitated all their business with them to their great advantage."

"And you, my loving friends, the adventurers to this plantation, as your care has been first to settle religion here before either profit or popularity, so, I play you, go on. -- I rejoice -- that you thus honor God with your riches, and I trust you shall be repaid again double and treble in this world, yea, and the memory of this action shall never die." DEDICATION OF THE SERMON.

South side: --

THOMAS CUSHMAN.

Son of Robert, died X December, MDCXCI, Aged neatly LXXXIV years. For more than XLII years he was Ruling Elder of the First Church in Plymouth, By whom a tablet was placed to mark his grave on this spot, Now consecrated anew by a more enduring memorial.

MARY,

widow of Elder Cushman, and daughter of Isaac Allerton, Died XXVIII November, MDCXCIX, aged about XC years, The last survivor of the first comers in the Mayflower.

East side:

Erected by The descendants of Robert Cushman In memory of their Pilgrim Ancestors, XVI September, MDCCCLVIII.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Mar 30 2019, 11:25:34 UTC

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GEDCOM Source

@R300473034@ U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Find A Grave 1,60525::0

GEDCOM Source

1,60525::103461202

GEDCOM Source

@R300473034@ U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Find A Grave 1,60525::0

GEDCOM Source

1,60525::103461202

GEDCOM Source

@R300473034@ U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Find A Grave 1,60525::0

GEDCOM Source

1,60525::103461202

GEDCOM Source

@R300473034@ U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current Ancestry.com Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Find A Grave 1,60525::0

GEDCOM Source

1,60525::103461202

GEDCOM Source

@R300473034@ Ancestry Family Trees Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members.

GEDCOM Source

Ancestry Family Tree http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=40323802&pid...