Program Information

In late April 1607 after 6000 miles and over four months at sea, a little flotilla bearing 104 settlers and the hopes of English investors, rounded Cape Henry beginning the grand adventure that became Virginia. "Jamestown: A Fruitful Soil" provides a historical overview of the people and events of 17th-century Virginia.

Transcript

In late April 1607 after 6000 miles and over four months at sea, a little flotilla bearing 104 settlers and the hopes of English investors, rounded Cape Henry beginning the grand adventure that became Virginia.

I’m Steve Clark with Jamestown: A Fruitful Soil, a celebration of Virginia’s Quadricentennial sponsored by Jamestown Settlement, a living history museum in the Williamsburg area of Virginia.

Transatlantic travel in the early 17th century was risky. The Spanish had been doing it regularly for over a century, and although still dangerous, conditions had improved. Ships were larger and better constructed. Maps were more accurate. Navigational tools accurately told a mariner the latitude, or his position north and south, but finding the longitude was still largely guesswork.

The Virginia Company’s first expedition sailed on three ships, Susan Constant, Godspeed, and Discovery. With a compliment of 144 men and boys, it left England on December 20, 1606. After a maddening six weeks awaiting favorable winds off the English coast the ships headed south to the Canary Islands to take on fresh water and to pick up westbound currents and trade winds.

During the voyage the 39 crewmen stayed busy working four hour shifts, but the passengers remained below deck mostly, filling the long dull hours sleeping, reading, gambling, playing board games or making music.

The only fatality on the voyage was Edward Brookes who died of heat stroke on the island of Mona, one of several stops made in the West Indies. After heading north and enduring a severe storm, they finally sighted the Virginia coast on April 26th, 1607. George Percy wrote that he saw, “fair meadows and goodly tall trees, with such fresh waters running through the woods as I was almost ravished at the first sight thereof.”

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