What was the social and economic status of the first settlers to Jamestown?

History of the Jamestown Settlement (1607–1699)

Jamestown was the first settlement of the Virginia Colony, founded in 1607, and served as capital of Virginia until 1699, when the seat of government was moved to Williamsburg.

Arrival and First Landing

The Virginia Company of London sent an expedition to establish a settlement in the Virginia Colony in December 1606. After an unusually lengthy trip sailing across the Atlantic Ocean from England, the three ships, the Susan Constant (sometimes known as the Sarah Constant), the Godspeed, and the Discovery (smallest of the three) reached the New World at the southern edge of the mouth of what is now known as the Chesapeake Bay. The ships left Blackwall, now part of London, with 105 men and boys and 39 crew-members, by Captain Christopher Newport. The voyage was uncommonly long; one of the passengers was found dead in the Caribbean. From April 6 to 10, 1607, the Godspeed, Susan Constant and the Discovery made four stops in the Spanish colony of Puerto Rico for provisions on their way to the New World. After more than four months, the 104 men and boys, along with the crew-members, finally arrived at their chosen settlement spot in Virginia; there were no women on the first ships.

Exploration, seeking a site

Sealed Orders from the Virginia Company were opened which named Captain John Smith as a member of the governing Council. The same orders also directed them to seek an inland site for their settlement, which would afford protection from enemy ships.

Therefore, the English Colonists re-boarded their three ships and proceeded into the Chesapeake Bay landing again at what is now called Old Point Comfort in the City of Hampton. In the following days, the ships ventured inland upstream along the James River seeking a suitable location for their settlement as defined in their orders. The James River and the initial settlement they sought to establish, Jamestown (originally called "James His Towne") were named in honor of King James I.

Selecting Jamestown

Arriving on May 14, 1607, the colonists chose Jamestown Island for their settlement largely because the Virginia Company advised them to select a location that could be easily defended from ocean-going navies of the other European states that were also establishing New World colonies and were periodically at war with England, notably the Dutch Republic, France, and especially Spain. The island fit the criteria, as it had excellent visibility up and down what is today called the James River, and it was far enough inland to miminimisehe potential of contact and conflict with enemy ships. The water immediately adjacent to the land was deep enough to permit the colonists to anchor their ships yet have an easy and quick departure if necessary. An additional benefit of the site was that the land was not occupied by the Virginia Indians, most of whom in the area were affiliated with the Powhatan Confederacy.

First and Second Supply missions

A week after the initial Fort at Jamestown was completed, Newport sailed back for London in June 1607 on the Susan Constant with a load of pyrite ("fools' gold") and other supposedly precious minerals, leaving behind 104 colonists, and the tiny Discovery for the use of the colonists.

Newport returned twice from England with additional supplies in the following 18 months, leading what was termed the First and Second Supply missions.

The "First Supply" arrived on January 2, 1608. Again, it contained insufficient provisions and more than 70 new colonists. Likewise, Newport's "Second Supply" brought about 70 more settlers, including some craftsmen and "Eight Dutchmen and Poles" hired in Royal Prussia, but added little to the welfare of the colony.

Despite original intentions to grow food and trade with the Virginia Indians, the barely surviving colonists became dependent upon the supply missions.

On October 1, 1608, a company of settlers arrived aboard the English Mary and Margaret with the Second Supply. The journey took roughly three months. Included in the Second Supply were Thomas Forrest, Esq and "Mistress Forrest and Anne Burras her maide." Mistress Forrest and Anne Burras were the first two women known to have come to the Jamestown Colony.

Third supply

With the new supply mission, Governor West, known in modern times as "Lord Delaware", brought additional colonists, a doctor, food, and much-needed supplies. He also was of a strong determination that Jamestown and the colony were not to be abandoned. He turned the departing ships around and brought the entire group back to Jamestown. This was certainly not a popular decision at the time with at least some of the group, but Lord Delaware was to prove a new kind of leader for Virginia.

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