Francis Eaton

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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. 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. This literacy may have been connected with his religion and the Protestant belief in the power of individual Biblical interpretation.

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

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