May
14 commemorates the landing of English colonists to
what would become Jamestown, the first English settlement in the New World, in 1607. Tampa
Bay Times said on May 12 that this marks the 409th anniversary of the Jamestown landing.
Here are free printable American history lessons on the Jamestown settlement and its
settlers. The story starts back in England. The year is 1606. King James I of England grants a charter (document
giving permission to do something) to the Virginia Company. The Virginia Company owned merchant boats that traded with
other nations. The Virginia Company merchants had heard that there were riches
in the New World. The company sponsored (paid for) a group of 104 entrepreneurs
(people who start businesses) to go to the New World to start a settlement for
trade.Visit the links for free printable American history lessons on the Virginia
Compnay and its preservation.
On
May 14, 1607, after a difficult ocean voyage the settlers landed in the
Chesapeake area of North America. They named the establishment they founded Jamestown in honor of King James. Unfortunately most
Virginia Company travelers were men and gentlemen at that. Gentlemen didn't
mean what it means today--really nice guys. It meant they didn't do manual
labor. They were accustomed to having servants do their work. Not only did the
settlers know very little about farming and homesteading, they didn't want to
spend their time doing those boring farm jobs. They wanted to hunt for the gold
and treasure.
However
there was work to be done. The Jamestown settlers needed to find a safe place
to set up camp. The Jamestown settlers needed to build shelter from the harsh
weather and wild animals. They had to learn about local wildlife, to hunt and
forage for survival. They had to plant crops for food. The Jamestown settlers
were pretty much clueless about how to do any of those things. They also had do
deal with unpleasant things like being shot at by Spanish ships. They were
attacked by Algonquin Native
American Indians who saw them as a
threat. The Jamestown settlers weren't farmers nor soldiers. They were
helpless.
Imagine
the headaches for their leader Captain John Smith! Here are free printable American history lessons showing all the things the Jamestown settlers
had to deal with. In fairness to everyone in the Jamestown settlement, Captain John Smith made a rule; "If a man will not work,
he will not eat." You can play a settlement simulation game using the free
printable American history lessons at National Geographic Kids to learn how
Captain John Smith organized the work. Finally, the settlers managed to build a
small small fort surrounded by a wooden palisade (wall). It helped that thePowhatan Indians helped the Jamestown settlers by trading
food for tools and beads. Chief Powhatan's daughter Pocahontas befriended
Captain John Smith and brought the settlers food. But when Captain John Smith
returned to England in 1609 for treatment of a leg injury, Pocahontas ceased to
visit. The Jamestown settlement suffered through the "Starving Time" that
winter. Only 60 of the original settlers survived. When Captain John Smith
returned on 38 of the 104 were left. Visit the links for free printable
American history lessons on the Jamestown settlers' relationships with various
native American Indian groups.
