Jamestown

In 1606, Englishmen in London chartered the London Virginia Company, which sponsored the founding of Jamestown. In April 1607, 108 colonists disembarked on Virginia’s shore. Jamestown proved an unwelcoming place. Initial encounters between Native Americans and Englishmen were fraught with conflict, and only in the 1620s would the colony begin to prosper. Indian-Anglo warfare would continue to affect foodways well into the latter half of the seventeenth century.

The English chose Jamestown because they believed that lands between the equator and the pole would possess a moderate climate. Once they arrived, they hoped that by fencing lands and planting crops, they could coax the swampy landscape to become more temperate. Summertime abundance offset worries about food. Colonists found peas, pumpkins, and persimmons, and protein such as fish and fowl. Consequently, they did not make much headway planting corn. Unfortunately, the winters were notably severe, and the drought that prevailed soon became more obvious. Eventually they discovered problems with warm weather, too: when it was hot, low tides produced barely drinkable water. Records of sick and lazy colonists have led historians to speculate that colonists suffered from salt poisoning.