John Billington (c. 1580 – September 30, 1630) was the first Englishman[1] to be convicted of murder in what would become the United States, and the first to be hanged for any crime in New England. Billington was also a signer of the Mayflower Compact.
Billington came to the Plymouth Colony on the famous voyage of the Mayflower in 1620 with his wife and two sons. He soon made enemies with many aboard the ship. He was known as a "foul mouthed miscreant" and "knave".[cite this quote] He was not a member of the separatist Brownist congregation that dominated the colony's life, but had fled England to escape creditors. His sons were also seen as troublemakers.
In March 1621, Billington was convicted of contempt for insulting Captain Myles Standish. His punishment was to have his heels tied to his neck. Billington apologized profusely and was spared from the penalty.
In 1624, Billington became a follower of the Reverend John Lyford, who was banished from Plymouth Colony in 1625 for being a danger to the community. Though Billington was nearly convicted as Lyford's accomplice, he was permitted to remain in Plymouth Colony.
In September 1630, after a heated argument over hunting rights, Billington fatally shot fellow colonist John Newcomen in the shoulder with a blunderbuss. After counseling with Governor John Winthrop, Governor William Bradford concluded that capital punishment was the necessary penalty. Billington was convicted of murder and hanged at Plymouth, Massachusetts. The inland pond known as Billington Sea was named after his son, Francis.[2]
U.S. President James Garfield was a descendant of Billington.[3]
Governor William Bradford's account of Billington's hanging was included in The Library of America's 2008 anthology True Crime.
References
- ^ Mann, Charles C. (2005). 1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus. Knopf. pp. 55. ISBN 9781400040063. "...at least two other Europeans were executed in North America before him. And one of them was convicted for the much more interesting offense of killing his pregnant wife and eating her."
- ^ "Billington Sea". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/habitat/maps/ponds/pdf/dfwbill.pdf. Retrieved May 9, 2009.
- ^ "Famous Descendants of Mayflower Passengers". MayflowerHistory.com. http://www.mayflowerhistory.com/Genealogy/famousdescendants.php. Retrieved May 9, 2009.
External links
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