I want to know what happened to the original Mayflower!

Does anyone realize that they never bothered to preserve such a historical ship from being scrapped by the English??? The story goes that the mayflower was sent back to England to be scrapped for wood. This has never been confirmed at least from what I know about this. Rumor has it that the ships scrapped wood was used for a barn that houses the grave of it's commander Christopher Jones.The grave does exist in a barn but the "scrapped wood" has never been confirmed as the ships actual remains. So my question is where is the ship or what happened to it after it returned to England in 1623? And why was it sent back to the people the colonists hated in the first place?

reply to post by paranormal78


Well, they probably sent it back because they were still english citizens, and were actually expanding Englands reign. So I don't see why they would not send it back, and also, they need to move supplies to and from, along with people.

As for the final fate of it, i havent the foggiest!

reply to post by chancemusky
That's the problem I am trying to get down to the bottom of. What happened to the Mayflower on her final days? It really got me thinking. Could it be out there somewhere still surviving in a ship collection somewhere in England? Or is there wreckage of it somewhere? I want to know what happened and where exactly it is. It's a real mystery.

reply to post by paranormal78


Good question but i agree with chance.
Back when it was just another boat.
I'm sure if the monarchy realized that boat would be more than worth its weight in gold someday they would have preserved it.
Just another case of inadvertent destruction of history.
Like Cinderella sang,......"Don't know what ya got till it's goooone".

reply to post by paranormal78

Well, you could have just read Wikipedia:

In 1623, a year after the death of captain Christopher Jones, the Mayflower was most likely dismantled for scrap lumber in Rotherhithe, London.

Mystery solved.

reply to post by g146541
I created this thread because i was doing a report in a government class I had and after reading about the ship on Wikipedia the end of the information says "likely turned into the Mayflower barn historical site." But it was never really confirmed.

reply to post by harrytuttle
My point is they said "likely" as if it was not confirmed yet.

reply to post by g146541
I see what your saying about the Cinderella thing. Its kind of like that I guess. But if i were the captain of that ship i would do everything I can to preserve that ship and label it as a historical piece of American history. Just imagine how much it would be worth these days! the ship should have been placed in a museum after her final days.

Not to be rude (And please excuse me if it comes across that way) but what did you expect? For them to be able to predict the future and be aware of the future historical significance of such a ship? 1623, they were English Citizens, and the rumblings of revolution were only just starting...

I am not surprised at all that it was sent back to be used as lumber...At the time, why would they think that it would be anything other than one of many ships used to send citizens to this new land in order to colonize and become another British Colony?

However, there are many mayflower replicas that you can go visit, all over the place.

Click here, please.

Not the original, but still very neat to go see. I have seen one myself in Corpus Christi, Texas. Surprisingly small.

When you are young, no material thing really seems that special. I should say that when surrounded by the present, you take the things around you for granted. You don't think about future worth of things, you think in terms of resource. They had to work like fiends for every plank of wood. I figure if it wasn't used as a sailing vessel back to England, then the Pilgrims would have simply scrapped it and used every inch of it's being. You have to grow a certain way to enter that 'rosebud' stage of existence. It's not for everyone. You really can't store everything you think is destined to be of value or historical importance. Just ask any Mom.

reply to post by starless and bible blackAh I know what your saying. Before I didn't pay to much attention to the details of the first English settlers. I was mostly curious on the exact end of the Mayflower. It's kind of puzzling at first on why a huge ship wasn't documented well enough to determine its exact end.
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reply to post by gimme_some_truthThat's the thing about replicas of something that is just gone now. they dont get them just right on the measurements.