A short biography of William Bradford, William Bradford (c.1590 – c.1657), English Separatist leader in Leiden, Holland and in Plymouth Colony. He was a signatory to the Mayflower Compact and served as Plymouth Colony Governor five times covering about thirty years between 1621 and 1657. His journal 'Of Plymouth Plantation' covering the period from 1620 to 1657 in Plymouth Colony is an important historic document.