''Susan Constant'', possibly ''Sarah Constant'', captained by

Christopher Newport Christopher Newport (1561–1617) was an English seaman and privateer. He is best known as the captain of the ''Susan Constant'', the largest of three ships which carried settlers for the Virginia Company in 1607 on the way to found the settle ...

, was the largest of three ships of the English Virginia Company (the others being ''

Discovery Discovery may refer to: * Discovery (observation), observing or finding something unknown * Discovery (fiction), a character's learning something unknown * Discovery (law), a process in courts of law relating to evidence Discovery, The Discovery ...

'' and '' Godspeed'') on the 1606–1607 voyage that resulted in the founding of Jamestown in the new

Colony of Virginia The Colony of Virginia, chartered in 1606 and settled in 1607, was the first enduring English colonial empire, English colony in North America, following failed attempts at settlement on Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland by Sir Humphrey GilbertG ...

History

''Susan Constant'' was rated at 120 tons. Its keel length is estimated at . The overall length from tip to stern is estimated at . On the 1606–1607 voyage, it carried 71 colonists, all male, including John Smith.Jamestown Settlement & Yorktown Victory Center: Jamestown Settlement Ships
/ref> On June 22, 1607,

sailed back for London with ''Susan Constant'' and ''Godspeed'' carrying a load of supposedly precious minerals, leaving behind the 104 colonists and ''Discovery'' (to be used in exploring the area). ''Susan Constant'', which had been a rental ship that had customarily been used as a freight transport, did not return to Virginia again. She later served as a merchant ship through at least 1615. Her fate is unknown.

Name

The alternative name ''Sarah Constant'' has been cited, and is shown as being the name noted on the earliest document,JSTOR: “The Susan Constant and the Mayflower”, by Minnie G. Cook
/ref> leading to a belief that Samuel PurchasJSTOR: “Sarah versus Susan”, by Gregory Robinson, Robin R. Goodison
/ref> had the name wrong in his ''Pilgrims'' book.Samuel Purchas (1575?-1626): Purchas His Pilgrimes, In Five Books There is growing support for the name ''Sarah Constant''.“Decades of work will see a ship’s story honored today” , HamptonRoads.com , PilotOnline.com
The article that cites ''Sarah Constant'', presumably written by Sir

Walter Raleigh Sir Walter Raleigh (; – 29 October 1618) was an English statesman, soldier, writer and explorer. One of the most notable figures of the Elizabethan era, he played a leading part in English colonisation of North America, suppressed rebellion ...

, is as follows:

Replica

Replicas of ''Susan Constant'' and her sisters, ''Godspeed'' and ''Discovery'', are docked in the

James River The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 to Chesapea ...

Jamestown Settlement Jamestown Settlement is a living history museum operated by the Commonwealth of Virginia, created in 1957 as Jamestown Festival Park for the 350th anniversary celebration. Today it includes a recreation of the original James Fort (c. 1607 to 1614 ...

(formerly Jamestown Festival Park), adjacent to

Historic Jamestown Historic Jamestown is the cultural heritage site that was the location of the 1607 James Fort and the later 17th-century town of Jamestown in America. It is located on Jamestown Island, on the James River at Jamestown, Virginia and operated as ...

In popular culture

''Susan Constant'' is depicted in the 1995 animated film ''

Pocahontas Pocahontas (, ; born Amonute, known as Matoaka, 1596 – March 1617) was a Native American woman, belonging to the Powhatan people, notable for her association with the colonial settlement at Jamestown, Virginia. She was the daughter of ...

'', where its captain was

Governor Ratcliffe John Ratcliffe (born John Sicklemore; 1549 – December 1609) was an early Jamestown colonist, mariner and captain of , the smallest of three ships (the other two being ''Susan Constant'' and '' Godspeed'') that sailed from the Kingdom of ...

(who actually captained ''Discovery''), instead of Christopher Newport. In May 2007, the

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U ...

issued the first 41-cent denomination first-class stamp. The stamp had an image of ''Susan Constant'', ''Godspeed'', and ''Discovery''. ''Susan Constant'' was also depicted on Virginia's coin of the 50 State Quarters, in celebration of the quincentennial of Jamestown. Virginia quarter, reverse side, 2000

History

Name

Replica

In popular culture

See also

References

Further reading