Jamestown, Virginia: The Townsite and Its Story

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Stewart L. Udall, Secretary
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE Conrad L. Wirth, Director
HISTORICAL HANDBOOK NUMBER TWO
This publication is one of a series of handbooks describing the historical and archeological areas in the National Park System administered by the National Park Service of the United States Department of the Interior. It is printed by the Government Printing Office and may be purchased from the Superintendent of Documents, Washington 25, D. C. Price 25 cents.
By Charles E. Hatch, Jr.
The Seal of “His Majesties Council of Virginia”
The National Park Service cooperating with The Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE HISTORICAL HANDBOOK SERIES NO. 2 Washington, D. C., 1949 (Revised 1957)
This publication relates to Jamestown Island, Va. A portion of Jamestown Island is included in Colonial National Historical Park and is administered by the National Park Service of the United States Department of the Interior. Jamestown National Historic Site, the other portion of the island, is administered by the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities. A cooperative agreement between the Association and the Department of the Interior has been in effect since 1940 providing for a unified program of development for the whole Jamestown Island area.
The Memorial Cross at Cape Henry which marks the approximate site of the first landing of the Jamestown colonists on American soil, April 26, 1607.
Jamestown is the site of the first permanent English settlement in America {1607}, the point at which the first representative legislative assembly convened {1619} to set a pattern for self-government in America, the locale of stirring events in Bacon’s Rebellion {1676-77}, and the capital of the Colony of Virginia for 92 years {1607-99}.
The first permanent settlement in America by the English at Jamestown was a visible manifestation of the determination of that nation to establish itself in the New World. The overthrow of Spanish seapower during the reign of Queen Elizabeth paved the way for English colonization ventures. Enterprising Britons had already established their influence in India, the Near East, and Russia. Sir Walter Raleigh had made several unsuccessful attempts to establish an enduring settlement along the Carolina coast at Roanoke Island, events now commemorated by Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, and Sir Humphrey Gilbert had tried, to no avail, to make a settlement in Newfoundland.