We’re taking part in the Mayflower 400 celebrations and need your help!
Immingham is located in North East Lincolnshire on the east coast of England. It’s less than 30 minutes away from where I live. It was from the shores of Immingham that a group of separatists fled England in 1608 to start a new life in Holland. The families that fled were escaping religious persecution for their beliefs which were different to the Church of England. After spending 12 years in Holland they heard about the ‘New World’ and decided to organise a ship to take them. The Mayflower 400 celebrations will take place over a 12 month period.
The Mayflower ship set sail from Plymouth in 1620, four hundred years ago. It’s passengers were in search of a new life – some seeking religious freedom, others a fresh start in a different land. They would go on to be known as the Pilgrims and influence the future of the United States of America in a way they could never have imagined.
I’ve been talking with Debs Cooper, trustee of Immingham Museum and we wanted to look at how we could create something to honour the memory of the locals who would have been a part of the voyage and were present right at the beginning of the pilgrim story. We want to create an exhibition piece made from crochet and knitted Mayflowers and that’s where you come in. We’ve set a target of 400, one for each year since the perilous journey and we can’t do it on our own. I’ve recorded a video tutorial of how to crochet 2 different versions of a Mayflower (or Hawthorn blossom) and you can watch it here.
We’d like you to get involved and help us hit our target of 400 Mayflowers. I like to try and avoid rules when crafting but there are just a couple of stipulations. The flowers need to be white, cream or ivory in colour please and then the middles need to be yellow or pink. If crochet isn’t your thing but you are a nifty knitter then just let me know and I can send you the knitting pattern.
Completed flowers can be sent directly to me please, we just ask that you pop them into a plastic/paper bag before you package for posting and please include a little note so we know where in the world it’s come from.
Please post to:
It Started With a Stitch
8 High Street
Waltham
N E Lincolnshire
DN37 0LL
If you have any stories of family links back to the Mayflower and the people who sailed on her then do let us know as we’d love to hear them!
Gem x
This post was written by Gemma
