Tuesday, November 29, 2011

The Pocahontas Wedding Site

The real Pocahontas
According to Yahoo News, recent archeological work at the original site of the Jamestown Colony has uncovered more information about the oldest known Protestant Church in North America. In fact, this church is most probably the same church in which the daughter of Chief Powhatan, the famous Pocahontas, married the Englishman John Rolfe in 1614.

Although, National Geographic had done a story on this church about a year ago, I guess the total layout and size of the building has been uncovered now. You can see what the church would have looked like in this video from Jamestown Rediscovery.
At the front of the church important Anglicans would have been buried. Archeologists found four graves they believe would have marked this spot. It is believed that the exact spot where Pocahontas would have been married is at the front of the church between these important burial sites.

Of course these graves do not mark the burial spot of Pocahontas herself. She died in 1617 while visiting England with her husband and son. The site of her grave is unknown, but a statue honors the area in Kent England.
Pocahontas memorial in Kent
Jamestown, Virginia is a little outside of Yankee territory, but the success of this first permanent English colony paved the way for future Yankee settlements. If I travel through the southern states again in the future, I would absolutely love to stop at this area. Road trip anyone??

1 comment: