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| After 5 months at sea, the English colonists finally see what they will call Jamestown |
Our trip so far has been very educational and enlightening to say the least. Not only is my geography improving, (Dave may say otherwise...), so has my understanding of American history. Last year I told my yoga students that I saw a movie about Christopher Columbus and I was surprised that he didn't sail over on the Mayflower... (okay, so you get an idea of the extent of what this Cdn knows about US history)... Well, while traveling to Virginia I discovered the Mayflower wasn't the first ship of "pilgrims", and Plymouth, Massachusetts wasn't the first permanent settlement ...welcome to Jamestown, VA.
It felt like we were in Marty McFly's time travelling DeLorean when we arrived at Historic Jamestowne (they use an "e" on the end of the city's name when referring to old stuff), the date was May 14, 1607. The passengers onboard the arriving ships were not what you'd expect for a group of first settlers. Instead of sending farmers, hunters, laborers, military & medical personnel, over three quarters of the crew were gentlemen and their man servants. Greed, ambition, and being the first to discover new things or stake a claim on precious commodities was more of a priority than what it takes to create a thriving settlement.
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| The site of the original fort |
In fact, this is the break down of what types of people were onboard the 3 ships that arrived into Jamestown, (the Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery):
| Occupation | # | % |
| Barber | 1 | 1% |
| Blacksmith | 1 | 1% |
| Drum | 1 | 1% |
| Mason | 1 | 1% |
| Preacher | 1 | 1% |
| Sailer | 1 | 1% |
| Surgeon | 1 | 1% |
| Taylor | 1 | 1% |
| Bricklayers | 2 | 2% |
| Carpenters | 6 | 6% |
| Labourers | 12 | 11% |
| 28 | 27% | |
| Boys | 4 | 4% |
| Councell | 6 | 6% |
| misc (most likely manservants) | 19 | 18% |
| Gentlemen | 48 | 46% |
| 77 | 73% |
All I could think was "what if the surgeon wanted a day off, who would be his replacement?" Fortunately the Powhatan Indians were numerous, established in the area, and their leader was very influential and ruled over 30 tribes in the area (Pocahontas' father, Chief Powhatan, or Wahunsenacawh). But as you can guess, this new friendship with the Indians was rather one sided and the Indians began to resent the needy, always hungry (it didn't help that Jamestown was in the middle of a 7 year drought at the time), and unmotivated group that could not sustain themselves for they had no skills and did not care for hard labor. The result, after a few months of landing; 51 died.
Other supply ships began arriving bringing food, more people (and yes, more Gentlemen) but also women as well. By 1609, the population of Jamestown rose to over 500 people, but as the drought & decimating Indian relations continued, by the end of 1610, only 61 people remained.
Peace with the natives was achieved in part through the kidnapping of Pocahontas in 1613, who later was married to colonist & tobacco tycoon, John Rolfe in 1614. Unfortunately for Pocahontas, she died 3 yrs later while visiting England.
With the passing of time, the population grew. By the 1620's (when the Mayflower was pulling into Plymouth), over 3,000 colonists were thriving & surviving.
WILLIAMSBURG, A LIVING HISTORY:
Just down the road from Jamestown is Williamsburg. A popular destination for people who want to turn back time and see what life was like in the 18th century, when Williamsburg was the capital of Virginia. Colonial Williamsburg comes complete with actors who roam the streets and provide tours of buildings giving you a first hand view of what life was like.
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| The courthouse: actors, volunteers & audience! |
We stopped in the courthouse to witness typical cases of the day. One interesting case was a soon to be married couple requesting a prenup. The judge explained that although prenups were not common, they are allowed in the courts and he went on to reaffirm both parties fully understood what it entailed. To agree to a prenup, a woman must give up her husband's legal protection. She relinquishes all duties that he must provide for her. For example, under Virginia law at the time, if a woman is found guilty of slandering someone, her husband must normally pay the penalty for her actions. In effect, the husband is a guardian & responsible for all of his wife's actions with the exception of murder (she would have to stand trial for it, not him!).
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| "Hey, I didn't sign a prenup!" |
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| "That's more like it!" :) |
We listened to people who talked about George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Patrick Henry. We also toured a manor house that described life as a typical slave. At the end of our touring I came to the conclusion that I definitely would not want to live in those times!
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| On board the US Wisconsin, check out them guns!!! |
OTHER SITES:
We went to Norfolk and the Nauticus Museum to tour the naval yard & the battleship on display. The US Wisconsin was one of the largest and last battleships ever built by the US Navy. Serving for over 55 years, the Wisconsin had seen a lot of activity to say the least.
The boat tour of the present day navy yard was 2 hrs long. Our captain talked non stop throughout the voyage relaying facts & figures of all the vessels in port. My brain was very full by the end of it!
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| Naval ship tour |
Closer to home we dusted off the bikes and cycled the 6 mile bike loop around our campsite.
One section was on the border of the archery range with signs posted to not come any closer... even I peddled faster at that point...
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| Sunset views from the ferry heading back after dinner |
The drive to the ferry was scenic, we even managed to catch the ferry just before it left (although they run continuous every 20 min or so). There we found the restaurant and before even having my dinner, I ordered dessert. Why don't people do that more often? You spend less time worrying if you have room and get to enjoy the meal to it's fullest. The pie looked like a pecan pie but with peanuts & raisins. It tasted great, I asked for the recipe and the owner just laughed at me..."good one"... what???
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| and Dave didn't get a bite..... |
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| The ferry |
With our brains and belly's full, we are now heading West. The Shenandoah Mountains beckon....
OMG Avril, you are soo funny!! Every once in a while Paul and I blow off dinner and have dessert instead.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about information overload. With those kinds of historical places, we can only take in so much information. Then the question becomes what to write about, because we can't write about EVERYthing we see.
Oh, and as for your question about rallies- try looking at the Keystone or Raptor forums. they should have info about all the rallies. Mobile Suites and Escapees both have forums, so thats how I find out about them.