Cape Cod, November 11, 1620: The Mayflower Compact
Before they ever set foot ashore, the passengers of the Mayflower put their names to a short agreement. They pledged to “covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil Body Politick” — a promise to live by just and equal laws that they would make together.
The compact is dated plainly at its close: “Cape-Cod the eleventh of November, in the Reign of our Sovereign Lord King James”.
The first names on the list include “Mr. John Carver, Mr. William Bradford, Mr Edward Winslow, Mr. William Brewster.”
Self-government, agreed by the people who would live under it: an American habit that started early.
Source: Avalon Project, Yale Law School, “Mayflower Compact : 1620”, https://avalon.law.yale.edu/17th_century/mayflower.asp (opened Nov 1, 2026).