1607 to 1619: An Examination of Change over Time at James Fort

Summary

Within the first few weeks of landing on Jamestown Island in the spring of 1607 the colonists set about constructing a triangular palisaded fort. At first tents served to house the colonists, and to shelter their place of worship. Slowly but surely with the first public buildings, the storehouse and the church, more permanent structures began to rise. The interior of the fort would see many changes during these years, both reflected in the documentary record as well as the archaeological record. This presentation attempts to set forth a chronology of the structures that have been identified archaeologically at the James Fort site by drawing on both the material evidence as well as the primary records.  James Fort would start by housing the elite as well as the commoners, but near the end of its existence would only house the governor and his councilors along with the town’s public buildings.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• From Fort to Port: Examining the Legacies of 1619 at Jamestown   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2018

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 914