Early Jamestown Dbq Essay

Looking back to the 1500s, the English had been situating settlements in Ireland and used a familiar model in the New World. The early years of Jamestown were difficult for the settlers. The land was hot, humid, and mosquito-infested, and the settlers were mostly aristocrats and artisans that spent much of their time searching for gold. Those who didn’t die on the trip, died once they arrived from diseases and starvation. In 1607, about 3 ships-each holding more than 100 English passengers, arrived on the Chesapeake Bay region of Virginia. Settlers were excited, given that they would be the first permanent colony in the New World. Most settlers were in search for riches and others in search of a new home. Settlers ranged from the ages of 17 to 35 years old. The first years for the English settlers were harsh and devastating. By 1611, two-thirds of the settlement had died and all hope was lost for the settlers. The 3 main circumstances that caused a majority of English colonists at Jamestown to lose their lives were the environment, the social and religious conflicts with the Natives, and the lack of survival skills.

The environment the colonist chose to settle in wasn’t

In Document C, it shows the Jamestown ship list of 1607 and 1608. Out of the approximate 230 settlers, 82 settlers had known occupations. None of the settlers on the ship from either groups were female. The highest known occupation for both groups was a gentlemen. “A gentlemen was a person of wealth who was not used to working with his hands.” This shows that there were less settlers cooperating to help the colony strive. In Document E, the list of May 1607 didn’t include apothecaries, which means they didn’t have medicine nor people to heal the settlers when they got sick during the changes in weather. Not having useful people meant that the settlement wouldn’t survive and they would all