What Month Did Most European Ships Sail To America?

On August 3, 1492, Christopher Columbus and his crew set sail from Spain in three ships: the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. They made landfall on San Salvador, likely in the Bahamas, not in the East Indies as Columbus assumed. The ships set sail for America around August 5, but Speedwell sprang another leak shortly after, necessitating the ships return to Dartmouth for repairs. After the repairs, they made a new start, but more than 200 miles beyond Lands End at the southwestern tip of England, Speedwell sprang a third leak.

The Mayflower set sail from Plymouth, England, bound for North America on August 15, 1620, carrying Pilgrims from the Mayflower. Before they set foot on the Mayflower, a group of men, women, and children sailed from Holland in the first step of their pioneering voyage to America. After convincing the King and Queen of Spain to finance his voyage, Columbus departed mainland Spain on August 3, 1492, and made port in the Canary Islands for a final restocking. The westerlies prevailing in the Azores had defeated previous attempts to sail to the west, but in the Canaries, the three ships could pick up the northeast trade winds.

The age of steam changed the time to cross the Atlantic Ocean, with 17th and 18th-century crossings subject to changes. The earliest surviving issues date from January 1741 and were published daily from 1837. Transatlantic crossings were passages of passengers and cargo across the Atlantic Ocean between Europe or Africa and the Americas, with the majority of passenger ships being American-owned. The era of sail saw a wide range of ships plying the emigrant trade, with Vikings sailing to North America around 1000 years ago.