BORN: About 1569, probably in Yorkshire or Nottinghamshire, England
DIED: April 1627/Plymouth

We know nothing of Mary Brewster’s origins, not even her family name. Yet as the oldest and highest-ranking surviving female Mayflower passenger, she would have been a respected matriarch in early Plymouth.

Married to Plymouth’s spiritual leader and church elder, Mrs. Brewster, like other ministers’ wives, played an important role in the community as a source of moral authority and public charity. As an early member of the congregation from its beginnings in northern England, she and her family endured persecution and hardship from their commitment to the Separatist enterprise.

The Brewsters were educated and cosmopolitan; William had served in Queen Elizabeth’s court. After fleeing England, the couple lived for a dozen years as religious exiles in the Low Countries. In Leiden, Brewster published religious tracts and taught university-level English. It is likely that, like many members of the Separatist congregation, Mary Brewster was literate. Her husband owned hundreds of books. This extensive library may have been valuable to Mary as she continued her own religious education. 

When the decision was made to emigrate to America, the Brewsters brought their two youngest children, sons Love and Wrestling, on the voyage. Older son Jonathan followed in 1621 and daughters Patience and Fear in 1623. Unfortunately, Mrs. Brewster did not live long after being reunited with her children, and died in the spring of 1627.

William Brewster died at the age of about 80 in April 1644. As William Bradford recalled, Mary had “dyed long before, yet she died aged,” probably before the age of 60.