The New England Historic Genealogical Society invites descendants of the Mayflower passengers and crew to commemorate their Pilgrim heritage with authoritative accounts of the lives of the Pilgrims and Mayflower crew, who set sail for the new world, 397 years ago
At the world’s first online gallery of Pilgrim descendants - Mayflower.AmericanAncestors.org - the New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS) is documenting the ever-increasing diaspora of an estimated 30 million living descendants of the original Mayflower passengers around the world. Descendants are invited to commemorate their connection and heritage to these venerated figures of US history by placing their name, photograph, and other identifiers in an online gallery - immediately joining a virtual community of people worldwide who share Mayflower ancestry. Participation is free.
The website’s content is the result of years of study by scholars at NEHGS - the USA’s founding genealogical organisation - and provides authoritative biographies of each Mayflower passenger. Data presented is culled from profiles created through the renowned Great Migration Study Project at NEHGS - the definitive source of reference for early immigration to New England.
In a unique section of 'Meet the passengers', the website lists the names of 108 passengers and crew members and highlights those known to have left descendants, allowing participants to link directly to the Pilgrim who is part of their family tree. Those who are uncertain about their genealogical relationship to the Pilgrims may access other resources offered by NEHGS to explore a possible family relationship to them. It also leads to resources that may help with one’s search for other ancestors from this era to the present. A world map illustrates the location of Pilgrim descendants from all over the world, and allows users to click on each for more information from the descendant’s own profile. The site provides an experience that both educates and engages participants in becoming a living part of the Mayflower story. The new website from NEHGS is part of the organisation’s preparation for the commemoration in 2020 of the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower’s passage and landing on American shores, and is the NEHGS portal for all 2020-related announcements and events. As the year 2020 approaches, NEHGS envisions that participation in the online gallery will include thousands of living Pilgrim descendants from around the world as the website itself expands to include additional features commemorating the Mayflower experience.
NEHGS, with its national headquarters located in Boston’s Back Bay, is the oldest and largest genealogical society in America. NEHGS serves more than 250,000 members and millions of online users engaged in family history nationally and around the world. It is home to a world-class research library and archive, and an expert staff. NEHGS offers an award-winning genealogical research website at AmericanAncestors.org with 1.4 billion records and maintains a publishing division which produces original genealogical research, scholarship, and educational materials, including the Mayflower Descendant, a quarterly journal of Pilgrim genealogy and history.
