Ship of the English Virginia Company
|
History
|
Name
| Discovery
|
General characteristics
|
Tons burthen
| 20 tons
|
Length
| 38 ft (12 m) on deck
|
Propulsion
| Sails
|
Discovery
or
Discoverie
was a small 20-
ton
, 38-foot (12 m) long "
fly-boat
" of the
British East India Company
, launched before 1602. It was one of the three ships (along with
Susan Constant
and
Godspeed
) on the 1606?1607 voyage to the New World for the English
Virginia Company of London
. The journey resulted in the founding of
Jamestown
in the new
Colony of Virginia
.
History
[
edit
]
In 1602,
George Weymouth
became the first European to explore what would later be called
Hudson Strait
when he sailed
Discovery
300
nautical miles
(560 km) into the strait. Weymouth's expedition to find the
Northwest Passage
was funded jointly by the East India Company and the
Muscovy Company
.
[1]
[2]
Discovery
, captained by
John Ratcliffe
, was the smallest of three ships that were led by Captain
Christopher Newport
on the voyage that resulted in the founding of
Jamestown
in the new
Colony of Virginia
in 1607. According to a 17th-century source, a total of 21 passengers were aboard during its initial expedition.
[3]
When Captain Newport returned to
London
,
England
, he left
Discovery
behind for the use of the colonists.
In the summer of 1608, in the months between
the first and second supply missions
, Captain
John Smith
left Jamestown on the ship to explore the Chesapeake Bay region and search for badly needed food, covering an estimated 3,000 miles (4,800 km), producing a map that was of great value to explorers for more than a century.
[4]
These explorations were commemorated in the
Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail
, established in 2006.
In 1610, Admiral
Sir George Somers
(of
Sea Venture
fame), proposed a trip to
Bermuda
aboard
Patience
accompanied by Captain
Samuel Argall
on
Discovery
with the intention of gathering more local supplies for Jamestown.
[5]
Blown north towards
Newfoundland
, the ships became separated in fog. Argall attempted fishing before turning back.
She then took part in six expeditions in search of the Northwest Passage. During the 1610?1611 expedition in the Canadian Arctic, the crew of
Discovery
mutinied
, and set their captain
Henry Hudson
adrift in a small boat; he was not seen again, and the crew returned to England.
Replicas
[
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]
Replicas of
Discovery
and her
sister ships
, the larger
Susan Constant
and
Godspeed
, are docked in the
James River
at Jamestown Settlement (formerly
Jamestown Festival Park
), adjacent to the Jamestown
National Historic Site
. A new
Discovery
, built in
Boothbay Harbor
,
Maine
, was launched in September 2006.
The previous replica, built in 1984 in Jamestown, was shipped to the
United Kingdom
for a tour of the UK as part of the celebrations of the 400th anniversary of Virginia's founding. After its tour, which finished in September 2007, the ship was laid up in Ipswich Marina awaiting a move to a more permanent home. On 19 December 2008, 402 years to the day she left London Docks bound for Virginia, she was officially handed to
Westenhanger Castle
in
Kent
by the Jamestown UK Foundation, who had brought the replica vessel to the UK. The ship is currently on permanent display at the castle.
Modern depictions
[
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]
In May 2007, the
United States Postal Service
issued the first 41 cent denomination first class stamp. The stamp had an image of
Susan Constant
,
Godspeed
, and
Discovery
.
Discovery
was also depicted on Virginia's coin of the
50 State Quarters
, in celebration of the quadricentennial of Jamestown.
See also
[
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]
References
[
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]
- ^
Glyn Williams, "Arctic Labyrinth", Toronto: Penguin, 2009, p 45
- ^
Douglas Hunter, "God's Mercies. Rivalry, Betrayal and the Dream of Discovery", Anchor/Random House, 2007, pp 13, 41
- ^
"Jamestown Ships"
(PDF)
.
- ^
Snell 1974
, p. 83, Ch. 4
- ^
Sir George Somers
Accessed 2017-01-18
Works cited
[
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]
External links
[
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]