Francis Eaton (1596-1633)

1620 passenger of the Mayflower and early settler of Plymouth_Colony

Vital Statistics

 * Ancestry - Born in England?
 * 11-Sep-1596 - Baptized
 * 1st Marriage - Sarah
 * 1620 - Voyage to America with wife and son
 * 2nd Marriage - Unidentified - possibly the unnamed maid servant of Gov John Carver
 * 3rd Marriage - Christiana Penn - who as widow remarred Francis Billington
 * 1633 - Died during the general epidemic.

Biography
Francis Eaton (baptized 11 September 1596-1633) was a passenger on the Mayflower and also a signer of the Mayflower Compact. He traveled from England with his first wife, Sarah, and their "sucking" child, Samuel. Unlike many of the Mayflower voyagers, the Eatons were never involved with the strict Protestants from the Leiden church, and their precise motivations in emigrating to America are not known.

Sarah Eaton died during the first, hard winter, and Francis remarried soon thereafter to a servant named “Dorothy”. Dorothy, herself, only survived for perhaps two or three years and Francis soon married his third and last wife, Christiana or Christian Penn.

Existing records indicate that Francis Eaton was a carpenter, specifically a "house carpenter" in the Bristol apprenticeship record of 1626. This would have certainly been an occupation in great demand as the colonists built needed structures of all sorts.[original research?] He died young, though, in his late thirties, leaving four children, varying from about 13 years of age (Samuel) to perhaps 8 for Benjamin. Francis’ estate, not surprisingly, included many carpentry tools, as well as two hats, one white and one black. Francis Eaton was literate, at some level, and able to sign his name.[citation needed] This literacy may have been connected with his religion and the Protestant belief in the power of individual Biblical interpretation.[original research?]

His widow Christian remarried to Francis Billington, son of John Billington.

Children of 1st Marriage

 * Samuel Eaton - Mayflower passenger

Bradfords Passenger List
From Gov Wm Bradfords list of Mayflower passengers (written ca 1651): "Francis Eaton, and Sarah, his wife, and Samuell, their sone, a yong child."

"Francis Eaton his first wife died in the generall sicnes; and he maried againe, and his 2nd wife dyed, and he maried th 3rd time and had by her 3 children. One of them is maried, and hath a child; the other are living, but one of them is an ideote.  He dyed about 16 years agoe (1634). His sone Samuell, who came over a sucking child, is allso maried and hath a child."