John - was the only one of the three HOWLAND brothers to come on the Mayflower, the other two brothers came over in 1624.

His was the 13th name of 41 persons who signed the memorable compact in the cabin of the Mayflower in "Cape Cod Harbor" in Nov 1620. He signed on as a manservant Mr. John Carver. "A profitable instrument of good; the last man that was left of those that came over on the ship called the May Flower..." - Plymouth Col. Recs.

From "One Hundred and Sixty Allied Families" by John Osborne Austin - 'A lusty young man ‎(called John Howland)‎ coming upon some occasion above the grating was with a seele ‎(Sail)‎ of the ship thrown into the sea, but it pleased God that he caught hold of the topsail halyards which hung overboard, an ran out at length, yet he held his hold ‎(though he was sundry fathoms under water)‎ till he was hauled up by the same rope to the brim of the water, and then with a boat hook and other means got into the ship again.'

When the Mayflower was yet in Cape Cod Harbor, ten of her "principal men", including John, were sent out in a boat, manned by eight sailors, to select a place to establish a longed-for home for the weary band. A storm drove them into Plymouth harbor, and Plymouth was selected as the place of settlement.

http­://­www­.­renderplus­.­com­/­hartgen­/­htm­/­howland­.­htm­

John Howland came on the Mayflower in 1620 as a servant of John Carver. A signer of the Mayflower Compact, he is best remembered for having fallen off the Mayflower during a mighty storm, as recorded by William Bradford:

In sundry of these storms the winds were so fierce and the
seas so high, as they could not bear a know of sail, but were
forced to hull for divers days together. And in one of them, as
they thus lay at hull in a mighty storm, a lusty young man
called John Howland, coming upon some occasion above the
gratings was, with a seele of the ship, thrown into the sea; but
it pleased God that he caught hold of the topsail halyards which
hung overboard and ran out at length. Yet he held his hold
‎(though he was sundry fathoms under water)‎ till he was hauled
up by the same rope to the brim of the water, and then with boat
hook and other means got into the ship again and his life saved.
And though he was something ill with it, yet he lived many years
after and became a profitable member both in church and
commonwealth.

John Howland is an ancestor to President George Bush, and to First Lady Edith ‎(Carrow)‎ Roosevelt ‎(Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt)‎. Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford are descendants of John Howland's brother Henry. Winston Churchill is descended from John Howland's brother Arthur.
‎[woodward.FTW]‎