In 1620, the Mayflower set sail from the south coast of England. Bound for the ‘New World’, on board was a group of Brownist Puritans, or religious separatists, who would go on to be memorialised as the ‘Pilgrim Fathers’. In the centuries since, a vibrant culture of art, literature and commemoration has built up around these men (and women too). For Americans, or at least those with a New England background, the genealogical origins of their great nation can be traced back to these pious and persecuted adventurers. Many villages, towns and cities in England are proud of their connection to the story as well – whether because they were the original home of a Pilgrim, or a port of departure for the ship. Southampton, from where the Mayflower first attempted to reach the Colony of Virginia, is one such place. In this article, I trace the romantic afterlife of the voyage in the city all the way from the mid-nineteenth century to the present day. In Victorian paintings, Edwardian monuments, post-World War One re-enactments, and 1970s commemorations, the story of the Mayflower captured the imagination of both Sotonians and many visitors too. Tied up in this cultural memory was not just a rumination on historical events of long ago, however, but understandings of the very identity of contemporary Southampton itself.