sir walter raleigh – 1585 – set up a colony of 108 people on roanoke – an island off the coast...
TRANSCRIPT
English Exploration
First English Colony – Roanoke 1585
Sir Walter Raleigh – 1585 – set up a colony of 108 people on Roanoke – an island off the coast of North Carolina
Problems: A. Arrived to late to plant
crops B. Colonists upset
local Indians C. Went home in
1586
Roanoke Tried again in 1587 A. This time women
and children came over
Their leader, John White, had to return to England for more supplies and was gone for three years
When he returned, the colony had vanished
Still remains a mystery today
Jamestown – Chesapeake Colonies Jamestown (located in Virginia) 20 years after the Roanoke
Colony Investors raised money to fund
a settlement in the New World called it a joint stock company – a company in which a number of people purchase ownership of the company
King James I granted them a charter for land
1. 1607 – arrived in Virginia with 105 men and boys
2. Built a small post on the James River
3. Did not get off to a good start
A. the men spent most of their time looking for gold
Malaria (disease spread by mosquitoes) infected many
During the first year more than half of the settlers died
Captain John Smith Arrives
Imposed strict discipline
If you did not work, you did not eat
“Starving Time” In 1609, Smith had to return to England
The winter was very harsh
They ate….
Tobacco John Rolfe learned how
to grow a better tobacco plant in Jamestown
Tobacco became a cash crop – a product that can be grown in quantity and sold at a profit
They began to grow tobacco everywhere – sold it back to England for a profit
Virginia House of Burgesses
Made up of elected representatives to make decisions – first one in the New World
Gave the colonists a voice in the government
The Puritans (Pilgrims)
Puritans Wanted to “purify” the Church of England by getting rid of ALL Catholic practices
Those Puritans that wanted to completely separate from the Church of England were called Separatists
Puritans in England They were persecuted during the
reigns of James I and Charles I So they left to go to the Netherlands
(Holland) (Dutch) However, their children were
becoming more Dutch than English and the Puritans did not like this
They asked the Virginia Company for a charter of land in the New World
Voyage They left England in September 1620 in the Mayflower
Went through stormy weather most of the trip
Landed far north of Virginia in Massachusetts
Reasons: a. storm blew them off course b. wanted a piece of land all
to themselves
Mayflower Compact Before they left
the ship, they signed the Mayflower Compact
This document formed their government
Survival During the first
several months, half of the colonists died
Local Indians showed them how to hunt, fish and farm – Squanto and Massosoit
First Thanksgiving When the Puritans had their first
harvest, they invited the Indians for a feast
More Indians came than expected, so the Indians had to supply most of the food
The feast lasted for three days
Puritans came to North America for religious freedom!!