Rotherhithe lies a little less than two miles to the east of Tower Bridge, on a peninsula that juts out into the Thames. (Londoners pronounce that “Suthuk”.) It was a place much favored by sea merchants because of its location on the River Thames, deep enough at this point for large ships to drop anchor and with easy access to the North Sea, into which the Thames flowed, with no intervening bridges to impede the journey. In 1611, Jones moved to Rotherhithe, a parish of Surrey, but now part of the London Borough of Southwark. His small business consortium then ran the Mayflower as a trading vessel. He was Christopher Jones, who lived and was married in Harwich. Along with three business partners, the ship was purchased by the man who became its captain. The Mayflower had been built more than 300 miles from Plymouth, in the North Essex town of Harwich, where it was launched and registered. So, despite its legendary connections with the voyage, the Mayflower might never have had sight of Plymouth had the Speedwell been more seaworthy. The Speedwell’s cargo and many of its passengers were then transferred to the already crowded Mayflower, which set sail for the New World for the third time. This time they returned to Plymouth, which, being west of both Southampton and Dartmouth, made a more convenient port of call. About 300 miles out to sea, the Speedwell once more began to leak. Unfortunately, once at sea, the Speedwell soon began to leak, forcing the two ships to return to Dartmouth for repairs before setting off again. Here, more passengers embarked, and the Mayflower was joined by a sister ship called the Speedwell, which had brought emigrants for the trip from the Netherlands. The ship was contracted and boarded in Rotherhithe, however, from where the Mayflower sailed to Southampton, 150 miles east of Plymouth.
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