Passengers to Virginia in 1635

List of Early Settlers from England

Dec 11, 2008 Rosemary E. Bachelor

These 42 passengers bound for Virginia were primarily men between ages 16 and 36. There were only eight women aboard.

The absence of punctuation in the ship log’s account makes it difficult to know if this ship is named the Phillip, which is implied by using the word "imbarqued," or whether the ship’s master was Phillip Richard Morgan. It reads “imbarqued in the Phillip Richard Morgan Mr.” (master).

The log reports the passengers were examined by the minister of the town of Gravesend and consequently took the required oath to conform to the orders and discipline of the Church of England.

Church of England Official Religion in Virginia

The Church of England was the “state” religion of the Virginia Colony. It officially registered the baptisms, marriages and deaths of everyone in the colony, including the Quakers. Many parish registers dating back to the 1600s have been transcribed and printed and are available at the various county libraries in Virginia.

However, the New England Separatists, who were rebelling against the Church of England, also took the oath. It was a prerequisite for boarding ships bound for America.

Passengers Listed

The ship left England on June 2O, 1635. The 42 passengers were:

Wm. Arundell, 32; Marie Baker, 25; Ann Barnie, 23; George Bonham, 31; Katherin Bowes, 20; William Bransby, 34; Ellen Burgis, 45; John Coachman, 28; Robert Davies, 28; Ric: Dawson, 31; Nathaniell Disnall, 23; Thomas Edwards, 20; William Emson, 33;Tymothie Featlie, 23; John Gorham, 18; Thomas Gorham, 19; James Habroll, 22; Edward Halock, 32; John Hart, 33; George Hill, 23.

Peter Johnson, 36; Richard Johnson, 19; Marcie Langford, 24; John Lawter, 17; Alexander Leake, 22; John Mason, 16; Samuel Milner, 18; Robert Morgan, 33; Thomas Peslett, 23; James Quarrier, 32; John Reddam, 32; Nicholas Rippen, 31; Wm. Rogers, 35;John Shawe, 30; Sara Shawe, 18; John Taylor, 16; Wm. Taylor, 36; Susan Trask, 25;Richard Upcott, 26; Elizabeth Willerton, 18; Richard Wilson, 19; James York, 21.

Indentured Servants

Since this ship full of settlers did not have entire family groups on board it is probable that these passengers were a mix of indentured servants, poor people and people convicted of minor crimes.

At this time, poor people were imprisoned. England did not feed its prisoners. They had to, instead, rely on family members or friends to bring them food. It was fairly common for England to lower its prison population by sending the poor, as well as those convicted of petty thievery, to America.

Indentured servants had contracts with Virginia landowners. When their apprenticeship was up, they were entitled to land of their own.

Companion articles list passengers on two other ships that took settlers from England to Virginia. They are the 150 settlers on the Transport of London and the 88 passengers on the ship America.

SOURCE: A list sent to Rosemary Bachelor in 1985; The Second Boat, Vol. 6, No. 2 (1985: Machias, ME).

The copyright of the article Passengers to Virginia in 1635 in American History is owned by Rosemary E. Bachelor. Permission to republish Passengers to Virginia in 1635 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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