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First In The World

The first written constitution in the world by which a government was created was the Mayflower Compact. The date of the Compact was November 11, 1620, by the Old Style calendar.

Forty-one members of the adult company of the ship Mayflower, in which the Pilgrims had arrived at Provincetown and Plymouth, stood about, waiting their turns to pen their names to it. The Bas relief on Bradford Street in Provincetown, commemorates the signing of the Mayflower Compact in Provincetown harbor.

This memorial stone is erected by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to commemorate the Compact, or Constitution of Government signed by the Pilgrims on board the Mayflower in Provincetown harbor November 11 1620 (old style)

It reflected the opinion of those times regarding “the place of women” in the affairs of the world. Not a single one of the many women aboard the ship was permitted to affix her signature to the Compact.

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