Of all the numerous routes the Mayflower undertook, none was more famous than from Southampton, England to the northeast of America. On board were English religious separatists, who fled the volatile East Midlands region for the relative safety of the Netherlands, and then decided to voyage to the New World, to create a colony where they could create their perfect society, based on English values coupled with the separation of Church and State.

On this day, November 9, in 1620, the Mayflower pilgrims spotted Cape Cod, the first welcome sign of land for a crew fearful their ship would break apart in the rough and rocky waters.

The combination of cramped quarters and unhygienic conditions, an outbreak of disease felled passengers and crew alike. But they finally made it to the shores of Cape Cod, dropping anchor two days after land was sighted. The grateful passengers offered their praise to God, but with a land almost barren with frost, the temperature steadily dropping, and hostile Indians lurking in the forests beyond, the trials of the Pilgrims were just beginning.