Posted on 05/15/2013 3:01:48 PM PDT by presidio9
The Jamestown settlement in Virginia, which officially was started on May 14, 1607, was one of the first European colonies to last in North America, and was historically significant for hosting the first parliamentary assembly in America.
But Jamestown barely survived, as recent headlines about the confirmation of cannibalism at the colony confirm. The adaption to the North American continent by the early Europeans was extremely problematic.
The success of tobacco as an early cash crop helped Jamestown weather the loss of most early colonists to disease, starvation, and attacks by the resident population of Native Americans.
A turning point in Jamestowns fortunes was in 1619, when a General Assembly met at a church on July 30. Two representatives from 11 regions of the area debated the qualifications of membership and other matters for six days. A heat wave ended the session of what would be known as the House of Burgesses.
The session established a government that citizens could address to settle grievances and end legal disputes.
It was a huge step forward, since numerous European attempts to establish any foothold in North America had failed for almost a century.
Spain has tried to establish at least five colonial settlements in North America during the 16th century. It had established footholds in Mexico, the Caribbean, and Peru.
But Spanish efforts failed in Georgia, North Carolina, Florida, and Virginia, in short order.
The settlement of San Miguel de Gualdape in what is now Georgia or South Carolina was built in 1526 with the first use of African slaves in North America. It only lasted three months. The colonists dealt with same problems as the Jamestown residents,
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
John Price, from Wales.
Apologies, though I did qualify "If from England". I still find the history of America and the original colonists fascinating. He probably had a good singing voice.
My pleasure, thanks Pharmboy.
My family can be traced back to before Port Royal was established in 1605. The Catholic Church kept excellent records.
Currie is a very common name in Eastern Canada. Most of Canada’s early settlers were either French or Scottish; most of our English settlers were Loyalists fleeing the American Revolution. Prior to the 18th century most of the English here were transients working the fur trade.
Mine arrived in New France (now Nova Scotia) in the late 1540s so I’ve got you both beat :p
The challenge isn’t building boats, it’s navigation. Without a compass and a reliable timepiece, you can’t safely venture very far from the sight of land.
The Norse settlement was primarily a trading post- they engaged in commerce with the Innu and Inuit, exchanging metal tools for walrus ivory. A similar pattern emerged when the English arrived here, trading manufactured goods for fur. North America’s oldest corporation, the Hudson’s Bay Company, was established by Royal Charter for the specific purpose of supplying Europe with furs.
Not to mention no way of navigating over open water...
I know for a fact that Leif Errikson sailed to Nova Scotia before the compass was introduced to Scandinavia.
> My family was on Godspeed II ;-).....Does your family still love in Virginia?
Sadly, no. They have scattered everywhere.
Fourteen years ago, I visited the Jamestown Settlement and, with the help of a nice woman from the Virginia Society for the Preservation of Antiquities, was able to find my ancestor on a ship’s manifest. I’d read the same manifest but didn’t see the entry. This very sharp lady found it in a heartbeat. The family name had a slightly different spelling that is used today and I just missed it.
You can use natural feldspar stone to find the Sun ~ that's been around for thousands of years (polarized light always gives it away).
For purposes of navigating the Mediterranean, Black Sea and waterways in Asia early man concocted a sort of celestial map ~ principal stars in constellations were related to points on the ground that might be notable landmarks or even oracle sites. That way if you got lost, you'd stop on the shore and ask the locals where such and so was and they'd tell you, then you could relate that to the celestial map and be on your way.
No clock ~ no compass ~ just a map!
Modern navigation aids enable you to travel the most efficient route ~ but without them you can still get to where you are going.
The Vikings supposedly loved this berry and took starts with them wherever they went.
If you want to know where Vikings went in North America, I'd start at Shinnecock.
1565 is a bit earlier.
Actually, Fort Caroline in what is now Jacksonville, was established in 1563/64 by French Huguenots (Protestants). Spanish conquistador Menendez came with a fleet of ships and a thousand men the next year, conquored the Huguenot settlement—and after the battle, when the French civilians refused to convert to Roman Catholicism...SLAUGHTERED THEM ALL. Then Menendez went back and established St. Augustine.
This was before the onset of the religious wars in Europe—where later tens of thousands were killed for their religion—and Menendez’ slaughter shocked even jaded Europeans.
Something around 500 French Protestants were executed by the founder of St. Augustine...
When growing up, my Favorite book was “The Flamingo Feather” by kirk monroe. It was written in 1854 and details the Ft Caroline colony and a boy that was abandoned when the Spanish destroyed the colony. He became Indian royalty.
Recently headed to Florida Keys my wife wanted to go out to Jacksonville Beach. I didn’t want to go but did. On the way out off I 95 she noticed Ft Caroline National Historical Park. To my astonishment it was the site of the plot of the Flamingo Feather. I had poured overmaps at various times for at least 40 years speculating where it was. My thought it was further north at the St Mayr’s river. I didn’t miss the park because it wasn’t there. It is recent, established after my various hunts for the site. It is sort of an NPS diversity effort...... include the French
Any way, there was a fantastic book there for sale. “The Three Voyages” by Rene Laudonniere, a Hugenot. It goes into great detail describing the three voyages the author made in 1562-1565 to Ft Caroline. It has details of the problems internal and external with the Indians and the Spanish. It has great detail and woodcuts of Indian life. It describes expeditions by the colonists to as far away as western NC and possibly east Tennessee.
The book is first hand recounting of the effort and pain required by those tremendously adventurous souls that colonized America. I strongly recommend it and of course The Flamingo Feather
My family were late arrivals...
They didnt arrive in the New World until 1623/24
Jesse De Forest was my 9th great grandfather...he took the Pigeon to Dutch Guinea and died there...son Isaac who arrived in 1637 had the first or one of the first breweries and taverns in NYC...on Brewers/Stone Street..
Another 9th gg Phillippe Du Trieux arrived on the Neiuw Nederlandt to NYC... Jesse De Forest had arranged for the group of 30 Walloon/Huguenot families to come here from Leyden...the first settlers in the area...
3 of the Du Trieux daughters are my ancestors...Maria married Jan Peeke of Peekskill..Sarah married Isaac De Forest...Rebecca married Simon Simonszen Groot...
A peculiar thing happened to the Protestant reformation in Britanny. The rural nobles became Protestant but the city and town nobles stayed Catholic. The peasantry, as ever incredibly conservative, were probably still worshipping the devil on Samhain for all anybody knows, but they were of no help to the Protestants or the Catholics.
One of the stranger things was the Breton liberation movement. They sought to remove French suzerainity and replace it with Spanish (or Hapsburg) suzerainity. In the end, at the end of the religious wars, many Protestant Bretons went to Spain and the Spanish new world while the Catholics sought to pursue an attempt to acquire property in what became Canada.
During the 1500s a great number of Bretons captained or served as officers on board ships plying the trade routes to the Pacific, Indian and South Atlantic destinations. They hopped on the whaling business in the 1700s as well.
They still aren't French!
the “Swedes” there in the early 1500’s were probably Norwegian fishermen. Norwegian and Basque fishermen frequently fished the Grand Banks before Colombus.
And the “proof” of the Vikings settlement is actually a spindlewhorl found in ancient housing. Local Amerindians didn’t use spindlewhorls.
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