It was in Plymouth. The year was 1630.
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John Billington, his wife Elinor and their two sons, John and Francis, departed on the Mayflower from Plymouth, Devon, England on September 6/16, 1620.
The Billington family appeared a number of times in the accounts of early Plymouth Colony and were reported to be the colony's troublemakers. Francis made squibs and fired a musket in the Mayflower while the ship was anchored off Cape Cod. Francis went exploring soon after their arrival and discovered the body of water now known as Billington Sea.[6]
In March 1621 John Senior challenged Myles Standish's orders for "contempt of the Captain's lawful command with several speeches" and was punished for it. He would do this many times more.[7]
In May 1621 John Billington (the younger) became lost in some woods for several days, eventually being returned home by some natives from Nauset on Cape Cod.[8]
In 1624 John Billington was implicated in the Oldham-Lyford scandal (a revolt against the rule of the Plymouth church), but insisted he was innocent and was never officially punished.[9]
In 1625 Governor Bradford wrote a letter to Robert Cushman saying "Billington still rails against you…he is a knave, and so will live and died."
In 1636, wife Elinor (Eleanor) was sentenced to sit in the stocks and be whipped for slandering John Doane.
In September 1630 John Billington was tried by a jury and hanged for the murder of John Newcomen, whom he saw as an enemy. This was the first such execution in Plymouth colony. Bradford states he was approximately forty years of age. His burial location is unknown.
