Isn’t this a sweet picture? [View all]

It’s from the beautifully illustrated book, The Boy Who Fell Off the Mayflower, by P.J. Lynch, who also did the artwork. The “boy” was John Howland, and “Lizzy” was Elizabeth Tilley. They were my 9x great-grandparents.

In the book, John tells the story, and this excerpt goes with the picture.

~~~~

Some weeks out from England, we were caught in a really cruel storm. Everyone held tight to a rope or a bulkhead, and the little ‘uns were firmly strapped in. Of a sudden, the ship reeled right over, and Lizzy Tilley rolled out of a bunk and landed at my feet.

“Are you all right, miss?” I said, helping her up.

“Yes, thank you, Master Howland.”

...

So Lizzy Tilley knew my name.

~~~~

I bought each of my kids and adult grandkids a copy of the book. It’s a children’s book (ages 8 and up), but we grownups like it too.