Historic Jamestowne

1. Historic Jamestowne An Introduction to the buildings and sites of the first permanent English settlement in North America

2. Voyage to Jamestown • On May 13th 1607 three ships, the Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery, carrying 104 settlers arrived at what became Jamestown • It became the first permanent English settlement in North America

3. Jamestown Island • The site was selected because it provided a strong defense against possible Spanish attacks. • Sailing from the east, Jamestown was located at the narrowest point of the James River, which provided a visual vantage point and screen against enemy ships.

4. The James River • Looking east down the James River toward the Chesapeake Bay, which is approximately 40 miles away. • Jamestown Island is about sixty miles inland from the Atlantic Ocean.

5. The Jamestown Fort • By June 15, 1607 the settlers had constructed a fort shaped in the form of a triangle and made of wooden posts which were placed in the ground, upright and side by side.

6. Convergence of Cultures

7. The Powhatans and the English • The Powhatan Indians, who had inhabited the tidewater region of present-day Virginia for hundreds of years, were an established society ruled by a paramount chief named Wahunsenacawh, also known to history as Powhatan.

8. The Powhatans • The Powhatan paramount chiefdom consisted of approximately 30 named tribes with a population of about 14,000 people, and was named Tsenacomoco, which may have meant “our place.” • The Powhatans had a sustained society with a structured government, economy, religion, language and intricate social institutions.

9. Trade Between the Two Cultures • Trade for food with the Powhatans enabled the colonists to survive during the early years of the settlement’s history. • English trade goods consisted of: copper, blue-glass beads, various iron tools, and even toys.