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This probably sounds ignorant, but I'm not talking about gardening/farming which of course would be challenging to get going the first season. But here they are with endless game in the forest; a whole sea of fish to catch; crabs, clams, mussels on the shore.
I was just watching the new series on Netflix about the Pilgrims, so this struck me. And here is the crew of the Mayflower starving onboard for many months---didn't those seafarers FISH??
If no one knew how to fish or hunt, what hope did they have as colonists?
This probably sounds ignorant, but I'm not talking about gardening/farming which of course would be challenging to get going the first season. But here they are with endless game in the forest; a whole sea of fish to catch; crabs, clams, mussels on the shore.
I was just watching the new series on Netflix about the Pilgrims, so this struck me. And here is the crew of the Mayflower starving onboard for many months---didn't those seafarers FISH??
If no one knew how to fish or hunt, what hope did they have as colonists?
Part of the problem was they landed November 11th, 1620. Worst time of the year for collecting wild edibles, and this was the new world so they didn't know the plants or animals, plus hunting was forbidden in Europe so they didn't have any hunting skills.
As for the seafood, it takes a lot of clams to make a meal and there is never an infinite supply, and digging them during winter storms can be dangerous. Fish are better, but for sea fishing you need a net which they didn't have. Plus, they didn't know the fishing grounds so they could have just been dragging a net over empty ocean.
They came to be farmers, so they had implements to plow and plant, not go native.
The Pilgrims were much like any other urban people, they had more knowledge of growing gardens than modern urban residents, and probably knew native plants in Europe they could eat, but plants are gone in winter and they had no idea what plants were here anyway.
One of my ancestors was in on that little adventure, he survived or I wouldn't be here. Still it was a pretty rough time and they were completely unprepared for what they encountered in part because they had planned on settling in Virginia, not Massachusetts.
It was a tragic perfect storm of doing everything wrong.
Part of the problem was they landed November 11th, 1620. Worst time of the year for collecting wild edibles, and this was the new world so they didn't know the plants or animals, plus hunting was forbidden in Europe so they didn't have any hunting skills.
As for the seafood, it takes a lot of clams to make a meal and there is never an infinite supply, and digging them during winter storms can be dangerous. Fish are better, but for sea fishing you need a net which they didn't have. Plus, they didn't know the fishing grounds so they could have just been dragging a net over empty ocean.
They came to be farmers, so they had implements to plow and plant, not go native.
The Pilgrims were much like any other urban people, they had more knowledge of growing gardens than modern urban residents, and probably knew native plants in Europe they could eat, but plants are gone in winter and they had no idea what plants were here anyway.
One of my ancestors was in on that little adventure, he survived or I wouldn't be here. Still it was a pretty rough time and they were completely unprepared for what they encountered in part because they had planned on settling in Virginia, not Massachusetts.
It was a tragic perfect storm of doing everything wrong.
Part of the problem was they landed November 11th, 1620. Worst time of the year for collecting wild edibles, and this was the new world so they didn't know the plants or animals, plus hunting was forbidden in Europe so they didn't have any hunting skills.
As for the seafood, it takes a lot of clams to make a meal and there is never an infinite supply, and digging them during winter storms can be dangerous. Fish are better, but for sea fishing you need a net which they didn't have. Plus, they didn't know the fishing grounds so they could have just been dragging a net over empty ocean.
They came to be farmers, so they had implements to plow and plant, not go native.
The Pilgrims were much like any other urban people, they had more knowledge of growing gardens than modern urban residents, and probably knew native plants in Europe they could eat, but plants are gone in winter and they had no idea what plants were here anyway.
One of my ancestors was in on that little adventure, he survived or I wouldn't be here. Still it was a pretty rough time and they were completely unprepared for what they encountered in part because they had planned on settling in Virginia, not Massachusetts.
It was a tragic perfect storm of doing everything wrong.
The climate of Massachusetts is quite different from that of the south of England. England had no harsh, brutal, winter to deal with and gentle, mild summers--much different from Massachusetts. The soil in England is rich and fertile; the Massachusetts soil is sandy and rocky. The seed the Pilgrims had brought wouldn't grow very well here. It was the Indians who taught them what does grow here: corn, beans, and squash--and gave them the seed. So the growing methods were different due to the poor soil as well as learning to grow different crops.
As previously, described, they landed in the worst possible time of year and then had to endure the unspeakable season of winter. We barely want to venture outside in winter today. Many of them weakened and died that first winter. March was called the dying month--if you made if through winter, you'd die in March.
I think they must have hunted. They came from the wealthy class who probably hunted for pleasure. They hunted wild turkey, deer, all sorts of forest animals. But that first winter much of their time and energy went into merely keeping warm, taking care of the sick, just basic survival.
That first spring must have been quite a challenge. Those who had managed to survive were weak and yet they had to clear the land, plant the unknown seeds that the Indians had given them, plant their own seeds that mostly wouldn't grow in this climate and these soils, mange to water the plants in our unpredictable and drier weather, then keep the plants growing through hot humid conditions that they had never known before, at the same time, harvesting and drying food to put by for the coming winter. It was mostly the Indians, namely Squanto, who kept them from dying. It's a wonder any of them survived.
I read one account where the ship laid anchor a good distance from the shore and it took many days for them to ferry all their stuff to shore. It was storming, and the people had to swim and walk alongside the longboats to guide them to the shore. So when they reached dry ground they were totally wet from the sea froth. It took many days of going back and forth to get all their stuff to shore. All the while they were drenched in sea water.
This probably sounds ignorant, but I'm not talking about gardening/farming which of course would be challenging to get going the first season. But here they are with endless game in the forest; a whole sea of fish to catch; crabs, clams, mussels on the shore.
I was just watching the new series on Netflix about the Pilgrims, so this struck me. And here is the crew of the Mayflower starving onboard for many months---didn't those seafarers FISH??
If no one knew how to fish or hunt, what hope did they have as colonists?
A decent question about fishing while on the ship traveling to the new world..
The open ocean has very little fish,its too deep.
The idea that North America was untouched wilderness when the Europeans found it is a myth. Even the East coast was home to tens of millions of natives.
In other words, the land was already occupied by people who were using the local resources and food was NOT everywhere. Add to that the primitive state of firearms at the time (the Pilgrims only had matchlocks) and the fact they were worn down from a long sea voyage with poor nutrition as it was and it's easy to understand why the pilgrims had a rough time starting out.
The idea that North America was untouched wilderness when the Europeans found it is a myth. Even the East coast was home to tens of millions of natives.
In other words, the land was already occupied by people who were using the local resources and food was NOT everywhere. Add to that the primitive state of firearms at the time (the Pilgrims only had matchlocks) and the fact they were worn down from a long sea voyage with poor nutrition as it was and it's easy to understand why the pilgrims had a rough time starting out.
Actually leptospirosis had done a number on the local Wampanoag tribes virtually clearing what we now call New England area. It even killed Squanto eventually. Look it up. BTW I think your tens f millions is a bit off. Where are you getting your data?
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