From Private User
Please read the e-book about the life and times of our family in the pilgrim years.
pay particular attention to the period of time they were in holland. This book has been verified to be accurate given the information available and to the authors best knowledge
Bellow is part of that period where the author (one of our uncles) researched and validated the following. Basically Isaac (who never made it to America) is John's brother and Robert Carver of the plymouth Colony is Isaac's son It also makes mention of John and Isaac's Parents James and Catherine.
It appears that in middle life, John Carver (our collateral
kinsman) a merchant and landowner, migrated from Norwich
(England) to Middleburgh, Holland in 1591, to Naarden in
1592, to Amsterdam in 1596 and to Leyden in 1596 where, a
few years later happening upon the Separatists he joined them.
Shortly after this he married Mrs. Catherine (White) Leggatt,
a widow of George Leggatt and daughter of Alexander White
of Sturton-le-Steeple, on the River Trent, of North Notting¬
hamshire. He was living at Leyden in 1609 when the records
show that he buried a child there in July 1609. They apparently
had no issue other than the child referred to above despite
erroneous statements to the contrary. His wife’s sister, Bridget,
became the wife of John Robinson, Pastor of the Pilgrim
Church and spiritual leader of the Leyden Colony. In Leyden,
the Carvers lived first on Widdleberg, and, after 1617, on
Middelgracet. And here it appears that the nephew Robert
Carver, joined John Carver, for in one of the Leyden records,
Robert Carver is referred to as the grandson of Katharine
Carver (the wife of James Carver and mother of Isaac and
John). In the Genealogical and Family History of the State of
Maine, compiled by Little, the statement is made that Isaac
Carver, father of Robert and brother of John died at Leyden
which leads one to believe he too had followed his brother there.
As both are mentioned in various records as “merchants” it is
to be presumed that they were originally drawn to Holland by
commerce rather than religion!