Hello and welcome to a history of the United States.

Episode 3, James Town, The Settlement. Remember that this is a listener-supported

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On April 26, 1607, three ships sailed into Chesapeake Bay in Virginia. These were the Susan Constant,

the Godspeed, and the discovery, and they had just traveled across the ocean to found a colony.

The captain of the flagship, the Susan Constant, won Christopher Newport, decided that they would disembark and get

the lay of the land. He went with Wingfield, Gosnold, and a few dozen others, including George

Percy, one of our sources for the expedition. They explored the coast and country, and liked what

they saw. Before returning to the ships, as night fell.

I'm now going to quote Percy's description of what happened next. At night when we were going

aboard, there came the savages creeping upon all four, from the hills like bears, with their

bows in their mouths, charged us very desperately

in the faces, heard Captain Gabriel Archer in both his hands, and a sailor in two places of the

body very dangerous. After they had spent their arrows, and felt the sharpness of our shot,

they retired into the woods with a great noise, and so left us. End quote.

The story of the United States starts with Jamestown, but that doesn't mean there wasn't

anything going on before the colonists arrived. As I've said a couple of times now, I am going to

have a full series of episodes covering Native American history, but that isn't our task for the moment of times now, I am going to have a full series of episodes covering Native American

history, but that isn't our task for the moment. Right now, I want to introduce the Powhatan

...