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According to history, those Pilgrim Fathers who sailed on the good ship Mayflower back in 1620 were escaping religious persecution for their Puritan views. But what is not so well known is the fact that whilst some of them joined ship in Plymouth, most loaded their bags on board at Rotherhithe and even more down stream in Essex at Leigh on Sea, where according the legend the Mayflower was built. Even less well known is the part played in this venture by my ancestor Matthew Rookard, who plied his trade of supplying wood for the Leigh on Sea ship building industry. You name it, he could get it, Oak planks, a nice bit of Teak a spot of Larch. or even some striped Pine for the captains cabin. For a price it was yours. Which is where his connection with the Mayflower comes in. By 1615 the Mayflower had seen a bit a fair bit of sea service, As a result she had torn and patched up sails, was prone to leaking and even the rats had jumped ship, She was therefore sadly in need of a refit. So Leigh on sea was the perfect port for her to return to. The only snag was her owners had run out of hard cash, so for almost a year she became a standing joke amomg the local shipwrights being laid up on the mud flats. Until that is, a bunch of smart men about town brought the rotting hulk. The idea being to make an easy penny of more in dumping political malcontents, Adventurers and the odd pack of religious communities looking for the promised lands over the Atlantic. Even better they had money to flash around for the Leigh on Sea craftsmen to start work on the ship. All went well until Matthew got involved. "We want some nice Oak planks" cried the ship repairers. "No problems mate", said our Matthew as he sloped off to Epping Forest to chop down a few Oaks. This was a bad move on his part as they belonged to someone else, and that someone else was out to do much harm to Matthew. This is the reason he cadged a lift on the Mayflower as it sailed up Thames to Rotherhithe to collect the first passengers. It was as the ship passed the Barking Creek that the second problem for Matthew became apparent as it was noted the ship was leaking somewhat, due to the bad quality of the wood our Matthew had flogged the shipbuilders. "You sold the wood to us, so you fix it" they said, pushing him down below with a bucket of tar, He was still hard at work when the ship returned to Leigh on Sea and that waiting Somebody. "Where's Rookard" he yelled to the captain. Again this was a bad move, for the Captain realised that if Matthew down below stopped his repairs for any reason, the ship might sink. Which is why he told a little white lie and replied that my ancestor had only that morning had departed for another job up Chelmsford way. With that he upped anchor, sailed down the Leigh creek, turned sharp right at Margate and headed down Channel towards Plymouth. To join another ship the Speedwell from Southamption. Which had limped into Plymouth after stormy channel weather. Would Matthew help them as well asked the captain holding a bag of money. "No problems squire" said our hero, leaping over the side with his bucket of tar. It was to no avail as the Speedwell was in an even worse condition then the Mayflower, so had to be abandoned, after legend has it he made a deal with the local lads for Salvage rights on the ship which would have been patched up and sold after the Mayflower had vanished. Alas this was not to be, as the Mayflowers captain had him press-ganged him into continuing the repair work. Work that continued way into the Atlantic. Which is why we became a reluctant Pilgrim Father. Not that you'll find his name listed among their number. Well would you admit to having an Essex Jobbing Carpenter along with you by mistake, with his outstanding account still unpaid?
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