Our Howland Families Lineage

Descendant from John Howland and Elizabeth Tilley; Arthur Howland and Margaret Walker and Henry Howland Jr and Mary Newland

Our Howland--Sampson Heritage Tree

"John Howland was the thirteenth name on the list of forty-one persons who signed the memorable compact, or 'combination' as Bradford called it, in the cabin of the Mayflower in 'Cape Codd Harbor' on the 21st of November 1620. At this time he was likely under twenty-five years of age, one of Bradford's described 'lusty young men.' According to Prince John Howland was a member of Governor Carver's 'family,' today it is known he was a servant of Carver's. While the Mayflower was yet in Cape Cod harbor, ten of her 'principal men,' including John, were 'sent out' in a boat manned by eight sailors, to select a place to establish the longed-for home for the weary band of pilgrims. That he possessed sound judgement and business capacity is shown by the active duties that he assumed at Plymouth Colony, and the trust that was reposed in him in many of the early labors in establishing that settlement."--John Howland and His Descendants

Early on in my research into my mother's Sampson family, it was discovered that her great-great grandmother Mercy Keen of Pembroke, Massachusetts was a descendant of John and Elizabeth (Tilley) Howland through her grandmother Zilpha Hatch. Zilpha was a great-granddaughter of Desire Gorham, daughter of John and Elizabeth's daughter Desire Howland. Then, after many months of searching for our Grandmother, Irene Melissa Davidson's lineage, we were contacted by a new cousin, grand-daughter of Grandmother's brother Archibald Davidson. Kathy and her husband Doug have provided us with a rich source of material on our Grandmother's line back to Daniel Davison of Scotland, which at the same time shows that we now have a third line to Henry Howland Sr. and Margaret Aires, through their son Arthur Howland. Our Mayflower line from John Howland and Elizabeth Tilley we have known from early on leads to our grandfather Ray Dexter Sampson--Irene Melissa's husband. The second known line is that from the family of Henry Howland Jr and Mary Newland which also leads to Grandpa Ray through his great-great-great grandmother Deborah Bonney Samson wife of Miles Samson Jr. See Our Sampson Family page here: Descendants of Abraham Samson

Will of John Howland

The Pilgrim John Howland Society website

Caleb Johnson's Mayflower Pages John Howland Citation

James Papke's FTM Pages on "The Descendants of Henry Howland"

John Howland Gravesite on Burial Hill, Plymouth Mass.

John Howland Stone--Close Up

Monument to Site of Howland Home; Rocky Nook, Kingston, Massachusetts

Monument to Site of Howland Home; Rocky Nook, Kingston, Massachusetts: View 2

Headstone of Abraham Howland (1675-1747)--Fern Hill Cemetary, Hanson Massachusetts

Fern Hill Cemetary, Hanson Massachusetts--with Abraham Howland in Foreground

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