Staggs Family History

BIRTH: 1578, Hertfordshire, England
DEATH: 1628, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA
FATHER: Unknown
MOTHER: Unknown
SPOUSE: Elizabeth Walker (1583-1673)

Richard Warren was born in 1578 in Hertfordshire, England. He married Elizabeth Walker on April 14, 1610, in Great Amwell, Hertfordshire, England. They had seven children in 16 years. He died in 1628 in Plymouth, Massachusetts, at the age of 50, and was buried there.

His story

Born around 1578, likely in Hertfordshire, England, Richard Warren was a man of modest origins and resolute character. He married Elizabeth Walker on 14 April 1610 in Great Amwell, and together they began a family that would span generations and become deeply woven into the fabric of early America.

In 1620, Warren sailed aboard the Mayflower as part of the historic voyage to the New World. He traveled alone, leaving behind his wife and five daughters in England—a decision that reflected both the peril of the journey and the hope of establishing a stable home before their arrival. Upon landing in Plymouth, he signed the Mayflower Compact, helping to lay the foundation for self-governance in the fledgling colony.

Warren survived the colony’s brutal first winter, a time when nearly half of the passengers perished. In 1623, his wife Elizabeth and daughters Mary, Ann, Sarah, Elizabeth, and Abigail joined him in Plymouth aboard the ship Anne. The family received land in the 1623 division, and two sons—Nathaniel and Joseph—were born in Plymouth in the years that followed.

Though Warren did not hold high office or appear frequently in court records, he was a Purchaser in the 1627 agreement that bought out the colony’s joint-stock company, giving him a stake in its future. His name appears in the 1627 cattle division alongside his wife and children, showing a united and growing household.

Richard Warren died in 1628, at about 50 years old. His widow, Elizabeth, lived on for another 45 years, dying in 1673. She never remarried and managed the family’s affairs with strength and independence, raising seven children who produced 56 grandchildren—a testament to the family’s enduring presence in New England.

Richard Warren’s legacy is one of quiet strength and generational impact. Though not as politically prominent as some of his fellow Pilgrims, his descendants include thousands of Americans, and his name is honored by the General Society of Mayflower Descendants.

Legacy of Richard Warren

Parents

Father: Unknown

Mother: Unknown

Married

• Married Elizabeth Walker (1583-1673) in Great Amwell, Hertfordshire, England, April 14, 1610

Children

• Mary Warren (1610-1683) Married Robert Bartlett; had 8 children.
• Anna Warren (1612-1676) Married Thomas Little; had 9 children.
• Sarah Warren (1614-1696) Married John Cooke (son of Francis Cooke); had 5 children.
• Elizabeth Warren (1616-1669) Married Richard Church; had 11 children.
• Abigail Warren (1618-1692) Married Anthony Snow; had 6 children.
• Nathaniel Warren (1624-1667) Married Sarah Walker; had 12 children.
• Joseph Warren (1626-1707) Married Priscilla Faunce; had 6 children.

Documents

• Birth Records
  • U.S., New England Marriages Prior to 1700 > Name: Richard Warren; Gender: Male; Birth Year: About 1578;
• Marriage records
  • England, Select Marriages, 1538-1973 > Name: Richard Warren; Gender: Male; Marriage Date: 14 Apr 1610; Marriage Place: Great Amwell,Hertford,England; Spouse: Elizabeth Wallker; FHL Film Number: 991303
  • U.S., New England Marriages Prior to 1700 > Name: Richard Warren; Gender: Male; Birth Year: About 1578; Marriage Date: About 1609; Death Year: 1628; Spouse: Elizabeth Warren
• Death records
  • Colonial Families of the USA, 1607-1775 > Name: Richard Warren; Death Date: 1628; Death Place: Plymouth, Mass; Spouse: Elizabeth; Page number: 613
  • Find a Grave
  • Burial: Burial Hill, Plymouth, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, USA
• Other
  • Mayflower Increasings – Richard Warren
  • New England, The Great Migration and The Great Migration Begins, 1620-1635 > Name: Richard Warren; Gender: Male; Birth Date: 1578; Origin Place: London; Emigration Year: 1620; First Residence Place: Plymouth, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA; Death Date: 1628; Ship: Mayflower
  • Legends, loves and loyalties of old New England > Chapter XXI. Our Pilgrim ancestry > Richard Warren, arrived on the Mayflower – 1620
  • The Passengers of the Mayflower in 1620 [Plymouth Colony]
  • Signers of the Mayflower Compact > Richard Warren
  • The Mayflower Reader – Mayflower Genealogies-Richard Warren and His Descendants
  • The English Ancestry and Homes of the Pilgram Fathers > Richard Warren

Relation of Richard Warren to Steven Barry Staggs: 11th great-grandfather

Page last updated November 18, 2025

Search the Staggs Family History site

Search