Jamestown, town, St. Helena

Jamestown, town, port, and capital (1998 pop. 864) of Saint Helena, in the S Atlantic. Once a busy coaling station on the East India route, it lost its importance after the opening of the Suez Canal, although it still supplies water to passing vessels.

Jamestown, cities, United States

Jamestown.

1 City (1990 pop. 34,681), Chautauqua co., W N.Y., on Chautauqua Lake; founded c.1806, inc. as a city 1886. It is the business and financial center of a dairy, livestock, and vineyard area. The chief industries are food processing and furniture and machine manufacture. Nearby are Allegany State Park and the Chautauqua Institution, a cultural and recreational center on the lake. Lucille Ball Ball, Lucille, 1911–89, American actress and producer, b. Celoron, N.Y. At first promoted by Hollywood as another glamorous movie star, Ball was often cast as a spunky sidekick in second features.
..... Click the link for more information. was born in the city.

2 City (1990 pop. 15,571), seat of Stutsman co., SE N.Dak., on the James River, in a farm area; founded 1871 when Fort Seward was established to protect railroad workers, inc. 1896. It is the trade and processing center for an agricultural area where grain and flour are produced and sunflowers and livestock are raised. Processed food, ordnance, and construction materials are manufactured. Jamestown College is in the city. Fort Seward Historic Site and a restored frontier village lie on the outskirts.

3 Former village, SE Va., first permanent English settlement in America; est. May 14, 1607, by the London Company London Company, corporation composed of stockholders residing in and about London, which, together with the Plymouth Company (see Virginia Company ), was granted (1606) a charter by King James I to found colonies in America.
..... Click the link for more information. on a marshy peninsula (now an island) in the James River and named for the reigning English monarch, James I. Disease, starvation, and Native American attacks wiped out most of the colony, but the London Company continually sent more men and supplies, and John Smith Smith, John, c.1580–1631, English colonist in America, b. Willoughby, Lincolnshire, England. A merchant's apprentice until his father's death in 1596, he thereafter lived an adventurous life, traveling, fighting in wars against the Turks in Transylvania and
..... Click the link for more information. briefly provided efficient leadership (he returned to England in 1609 for treatment of an injury). After the severe winter of 1609–10 (the "starving time"), the survivors prepared to return to England but were stopped by the timely arrival of Lord De la Warr with supplies. John Rolfe Rolfe, John (rŏlf), 1585–1622, English colonist in Virginia.
..... Click the link for more information. cultivated the first tobacco there in 1612, introducing a successful source of livelihood; in 1614 he assured peace with the local Native Americans by marrying Pocahontas Pocahontas (pōkəhŏn`təs), c.1595–1617, Native North American woman, daughter of Chief Powhatan .
..... Click the link for more information. , daughter of chief Powhatan. In 1619 the first representative government in the New World met at Jamestown, which remained the capital of Virginia throughout the 17th cent. The village was almost entirely destroyed during Bacon's Rebellion Bacon's Rebellion, popular revolt in colonial Virginia in 1676, led by Nathaniel Bacon . High taxes, low prices for tobacco, and resentment against special privileges given those close to the governor, Sir William Berkeley , provided the background for the uprising,
..... Click the link for more information. ; it was partially rebuilt but fell into decay with the removal of the capital to Williamsburg (1698–1700).

Of the 17th-century settlement, only the old church tower (built c.1639) and a few gravestones were visible when National Park Service excavations began in 1934. Today, most of Jamestown Island is owned by the U.S. government and is included in Colonial National Historical Park (see National Parks and Monuments National Parks and Monuments

National Parks
Name Type¹ Location Year authorized Size

acres (hectares)

Description
Acadia NP SE Maine 1919 48,419 (19,603) Mountain and coast scenery.
..... Click the link for more information. , table); a small portion comprises the Jamestown National Historic Site, which is owned by the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities. A tercentenary celebration was held in 1907, and in 1957 the Jamestown Festival Park was built to commemorate the 350th anniversary. The park contains exhibit pavilions and replicas of the first fort, the three ships that brought the first settlers, and a Native American lodge.

Bibliography

See report by the Celebration Commission, The 350th Anniversary of Jamestown, 1607–1957 (1958); C. Bridenbaugh, Jamestown, 1544–1699 (1980); D. A. Price, Love and Hate in Jamestown (2003).

Jamestown