Foundation replica of a home in New Town on Jamestown Island, Colonial National Historical Park

While people think of Jamestown as a place fixed in the year 1607, its history goes well beyond its initial years of struggle as it became the first successful English settlement in North America. It was a thriving town and the capital of Virginia until 1699 when the capital was moved to Williamsburg. Long before telecommuting, unless you were a farmer, you had to live in or very near to the population centers in order to make a living. Once the capital moved, most of the Jamestown residents moved with it and the town fell into decline. Within twenty years nearly everyone had left, and the island was owned by two families that ran plantations on the land.

While National Park Planner often includes a history essay, the historical scope of Jamestown is much too vast to attempt such an endeavor. Instead, I have included a link to the history section of the Preservation Virginia website. This is the organization that owns the James Fort area of Jamestown. They have excellent information on the history of the settlement. In addition, I have provided links to two documentaries. Unfortunately, just about all documentaries focus on the initial years of the settlement and not on its entire history.

History of Jamestown (Preservation Virginia’s Jamestown Rediscovery web site)