Degory Priest

Degory Priest (c.1579 - c.1621) was a member of the Leiden contingent on the historic 1620 voyage of the ship Mayflower. He was a hat maker from London who married Sarah, sister of Pilgrim Isaac Allerton in Leiden. He was a signatory to the Mayflower Compact in November 1620 and died less than two months later.

In some documents of the time, his name was also written as Digory Priest.

According to Banks, the name of Digory Priest or Prust is common in Devon and Cornwall. A family with those names was found residing in Lezant, co. Cornwall.

At the time of the Pilgrim emigration families of this name were living in the London parishes of All Hallows the Great, All Hallows on the Wall, St. Augustine, St. Dunstan-in-the-West and St. Margaret Patten.

There are several depositions in Leiden which make his approximate birth year 1579. The first historic record of Degory Priest is from documentation in Leiden, Holland on October 7, 1611 when he became betrothed to Sarah Vincent, widow of John Vincent of London. At his betrothal Priest was identified as a hat-maker from London. Sarah’s maiden name was Allerton and was a sister of Mayflower passenger Isaac Allerton. Degory and Sarah were married on November 4, 1611, the same day that Sarah’s brother Isaac Allerton married Mary Norris.

Per Banks, “Digory” Priest was credited as one of the “Leyden” contingent and was again identified as a hat-maker from London in Leyden records.

His name appears in many Leiden records of the time, being comparatively active in comparison to other church members. He became a citizen (burgess) of Leiden on November 16, 1615 with guarantors being future Mayflower compatriot Isaac Allerton and Roger Wilson.

Several Leiden incidents in June 1617 are recorded regarding Degory Priest’s involvement in activities that border on assault in one case and adultery in another. On June 28, 1617 Priest requested two tobacco pipe-makers to sign an affidavit that he had not hit John Cripps on June 17, 1617 but only “touched his Jabot” – i.e. the frill on the front of his shirt. The affidavit may have been needed by Priest to document his innocence in what could have been an assault case. And on the next day, June 18, 1617, Priest needed another affidavit, this time also involving John Cripps, card maker, who was rumored to have been in an adulterous relationship with Elizabeth, who was the wife of Leiden woolcomber John Mos.

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