Jamestown Island is a island 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 ...

in Virginia, part of

James City County James City County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 78,254. Although politically separate from the county, the county seat is the adjacent independent city of Williamsburg. Located ...

. It is located off Glasshouse Point, to which it is connected via a

causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet Tra ...

to the Colonial Parkway. Much of the island is wetland, including both

swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

and marsh.

History

Prior to English settlement, the nearby area was home to the Paspahegh people, or Virginia Algonquians. In May 1607, the island (then a

peninsula A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on all ...

) became site of James Fort, the first permanent English settlement in the Americas. The chief of the

Powatan The Powhatan people (; also spelled Powatan) may refer to any of the indigenous Algonquian people that are traditionally from eastern Virginia. All of the Powhatan groups descend from the Powhatan Confederacy The Powhatan people (; a ...

at that time, also named Powhatan, was father of Pocahontas. After Powhatan's death in 1618, hostilities with colonists escalated under his brother, Opechancanough. His large-scale attacks in 1622 and 1644 met strong reprisals by the English, resulting in the near elimination of both the settlement and the tribe. After Bacon's rebellion in 1677, Jamestown lasted until 1699, when it was abandoned in favor of a new site at

Williamsburg Williamsburg may refer to: Places *Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia *Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City *Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California *Williams ...

Significance

By the early 20th century, the isthmus connecting the landform to Glasshouse Point had eroded, making it a proper island. Today, most of the island is a part of Colonial National Historical Park, including

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 ...

. The rediscovery of the James Fort in 1996 by Jamestown Rediscovery has led to significant archaeological discoveries of the early colonial settler period.

References

James River (Virginia) Landforms of James City County, Virginia River islands of Virginia {{Virginia-stub