Subscribe to stay up to date with the latest in Provincetown!
Subscribe to ptownie

    Provincetown History Snippets: What is The Mayflower Compact?

    The Mayflower Compact
    May 4, 2018

    The Mayflower Compact was a set of rules for self-governance established by English settlers on the Mayflower on November 11, 1620. London stockholders had financed the Pilgrims’ voyage with the understanding they’d be repaid in profits from the new settlement. But when the Mayflower landed in Massachusetts instead of Virginia, the “strangers” (non-Pilgrims) on board argued the contract was void. Pilgrim leaders wanted to quell the rebellion before it took hold, so they created a temporary set of laws for ruling themselves per majority agreement.

    Mayflower Compact

    The Mayflower Compact created laws for Mayflower Pilgrims and non-Pilgrims alike for the good of their new colony. It was a short document establishing that:

    • the colonists would remain loyal subjects to King James, despite their need for self-governance
    • the colonists would live in accordance with the Christian faith
    • the colonists would create one society and work together to further it
    • the colonists would create and enact “laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions and offices…” for the good of the colony, and abide by those laws

    Click here to check out all of our Provincetown History Snippets!

    More Recent Provincetown News

    Art We Love – More than Meets the Eye
    September 9, 2022
    Art We Love – More than Meets the Eye
    The first impression a piece of art makes when you walk into a gallery can be thrilling.  But sometimes what’s even more exciting is discovering that what you see up close is not at all what you thought you saw from afar. All of the pieces here had that...
    The Lemonade Girl
    April 21, 2022
    For more years than many of us can remember, summers in Provincetown weren’t complete without the sight of a little girl walking up and down Commercial Street, calling out in a lovely singsong voice, “Lemonade! Fifty cents! Lemonade!” That little girl...
    Art We Love – Lightning Strike
    February 20, 2023
    One of the great bonuses of being an artist is the ability to meet and interact with other artists. In these moments, the work they produce becomes more than an artifact, it becomes an extension of the times we’ve had together, the conversations, the laughs...
    Real Estate Update January 2023
    January 25, 2023
    ptownie Real Estate January 2023
    2022 in Review This month the full data for 2022 is available and it is only a pretty picture if you are selling a property on the Outer Cape. See the below for the full YOY statistics, but here is the summary. Inventory is way down, prices are up, and the...
    Winter in Provincetown for Dining
    December 28, 2022
    Guide to Winter Dining in Provincetown! We are always asked “What’s Open for Food in the Winter?”  Well here you are! 1620 Brewhouse 214 Commercial Street (508) 413-9687 Tue&Thu-Sun 12pm-9pm Where everyone is welcome to come, grab a...