Journey to the New World: London 1606 to Virginia 1607

24 October 2006

A new exhibition Journey to the New World: London 1606 to Virginia 1607 marks the 400th anniversary of the first permanent English settlement in America at Jamestown, Virginia.

The Virginia Company of London established the colony in 1607 and London financiers and merchants secured the funds, ships, supplies and personnel.

The exhibition takes place between 23 November 2006 to 13 May 2007 at Museum of Docklands. It tells a story of hope and despair, conflict and failure, tragedy and triumph, and shows how ordinary and extraordinary men, women and children helped to create an emerging nation - a New World for the English and the American Indians.

The story begins in London, 1606, when the Virginia Company received a charter from James I to ‘make habitation, plantation and … deduce a colony of sundry of our people’ in a vast tract of North America between the French occupied lands to the north of the St Lawrence river and Spanish territories in Florida.

Eight months later, the Virginia Company of London’s ships left Blackwall on the Isle of Dogs, East London, in three small merchant ships: the Susan Constant, Godspeed and Discovery. After an eventful voyage the ships arrived in Virginia, and on 13th May 1607, 104 men and boys landed to begin work on a fortified trading outpost called James Towne, the first permanent English settlement in America.

The English settlement at Jamestown occupies a central place in early American and British colonial history.  It provided the springboard for the development of the English North American colonies and the helped to form English colonial policy.

It was the first important transference of English personnel and stock to a foreign shore, and the contributions and experiences of its early settlers provided the foundations for many of the enduring social, economic and political ideals of the American nation.

A whole series of exhibitions and celebratory events will take place in the Commonwealth of Virginia and throughout the United States, but this will be the only exhibition on this side of the Atlantic to use material from the unrivalled collections of the Museum in Docklands alongside recently excavated 17th century finds from Jamestown which have never been exhibited before.

London goldsmiths and metallurgists were sent to Virginia to search for gold and other precious metals which the investors hoped would make them a quick profit. ‘Virginia lotteries’ were set up in London to raise cash for the venture and a Lottery House was built near St Paul’s Cathedral.

The Company tried to whip up support for their venture and enlist new recruits, by promoting accounts of the riches of the New World.  It was one of the first concerted advertising campaigns in English history.

Without a constant supply of people to cultivate crops, assist in the home and provide skills for the colony, the settlement was doomed to failure. The Virginia Company set up a system of indentured servitude to feed the demand for labour.

Vagrant children and orphans were swept from the streets, and the poorest families were induced to hand over their children. Londoners’ contrived to get rid of their ‘superfluous multitude’ by transporting idle beggars and those without means of support, although they grumbled as taxes were levied to cover the costs.

The settlers traded with the native Algonquian tribes for food. Captain John Smith, one of the first leaders of the colony, noted that the Indians were ‘generally covetous of beads…and other trifling Jewels’ and so cheap knives, shears, bells and other knick knacks from London shops were offered in exchange for fish, game, corn and even people. When Jane Dickenson was kidnapped by the Powhatan in 1622, she was ransomed for 2lbs worth of glass beads.

The Virginia Company hoped to find mineral wealth, and other sources of revenue, but in the event the only product to make a profit was tobacco. John Rolfe introduced the new species -Virginia tobacco - to London, and when the first shipment arrived in 1614 Londoners’ realized that there was money to be made from smoke.

Hazel Forsyth, curator of the exhibition comments that, ‘the Museum in Docklands is uniquely placed to demonstrate the fundamental and intimate links between England and the New World. Our exhibition, a stone’s throw from the original departure point in 1606, will show that Londoners played a crucial role in the founding of what was to become the United States of America.’

Freedom and prosperity for some brought enslavement for others. The legacy of the successful venture for the English came at a high price for the American Indians and resulted in the destruction of many aspects of their life and culture.

It could be asked, did the first permanent English settlement create a recognizable American psyche and what impact did British culture have on the Native American peoples? Journey to the New World alerts visitors to many crucial questions about the nature and origin of American democracy, and highlights London’s pivotal role in the birth of a nation.

Journey to the New World: London 1606 - Virginia 1607
23 November 2006 - 13 May 2007
Museum in Docklands
West India Quay
London E14 4AL
Admission to the exhibition is free
Admission to the Museum £5 adult, concs £3 (over 60s, unwaged), with free re-entry for a year.
Open Daily 10am - 6pm
Last admission 5.30pm
www.museumindocklands.org.uk

Note to editors

Download the Journey to the New World press pack (PDF 1.1mb)

• For press enquiries please contact Marian Williams on 020 7814 5502/ 020 7814 5607 or email mwilliams@museumindocklands.org.uk
• A replica of the Discovery, the smallest vessel which carried the settlers from London to Virginia in 1606, will be moored in the West India Quay outside Museum in Docklands for visitors to explore. The ship has been specially brought over from America for the 400th anniversary celebrations.
• We have given the Indians of Virginia the opportunity to contribute to the exhibition and are delighted that Chief Anne of the Rappahannock, has written the section on the culture clash between the first English settlers and the Powhatan people. This is a unique collaboration and one which we are most grateful for.
• The Jamestown Yorktown Foundation was set up to educate and to promote understanding and awareness of Virginia’s role in the creation of the United States of America through film, artefact filled Galleries and outdoor living history. Experience the story of America’s beginnings at Jamestown Settlement and the Yorktown Victory Centre. For more information visit www.jamestown-yorktown.state.va.us
• The Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities (APVA) is dedicated to preserving and promoting the state's irreplaceable historic structures, landscapes, collections, communities and archaeological sites. APVA are responsible for the excavation of the Jamestown site. www.apva.org
• 400 years of American heritage has its roots in English soil and mark the 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown by English settlers, new travel itineraries offer Americans a chance to take their own journey of discovery. Visitors to www.beginyouradventure.co.uk can retrace those roots across East England from Lincolnshire in the north and Kent in the south.
• The Jamestown British Committee are co-ordinating UK involvement in the 400th anniversary commemorations with an exciting wide range of events to be held throughout the year - www.kent.gov.uk or www.visitbritain.com
• www.virtualjamestown.org The Virtual Jamestown Archive is a digital research, teaching and learning project that explores the legacies of the Jamestown settlement.
• http://powhatan.wm.edu The village of Werowocomoco was the seat of the Algonquin chief Powhatan and the political centre of the Powhatan chiefdom during the early 1600s
• http://indians.vipnet.org The Virginia Council on Indians is an advisory board to the Governor and the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The site contains much useful information on the Indian tribes and their history and culture.
• Museum in Docklands is housed in a converted Georgian warehouse on West India Quay, next to Canary Wharf. Its displays explore London's connections with the rest of the world through the 2000 year history of the river, port and its people.