on this date in JYF HISTORY 1956

In the 66-year history of Jamestown Settlement, which opened as Jamestown Festival Park, there have been two generations of the Susan Constant, a 100-ton vessel first constructed in Norfolk in 1956 and the second, a 120-ton vessel built along Jamestown Settlement riverfront in 1990, still in use today. The current Susan Constant underwent maintenance this past spring to stabilize wood and paint the ship’s hull, and requests for proposals were recently issued for further repairs to sustain and preserve the flagship of Virginia’s founding fleet.

main topsail. The Discovery, the smallest ship in the fleet, sets three sails — the main course, mizzen and main topsail. The crew of historical interpreters manning the three ships are eager to work the sails with visitors through hands-on demonstrations and opportunities to learn the ropes of a 17th-century mariner.

Kaia Moseley, ships supervisor, enjoys sharing the story of the four-and-ahalf-month journey across the Atlantic and how sailors followed trade winds to navigate to Virginia. “When visitors help us set and trim the sails at the dock, it really helps them make a connection to the skilled work performed by people of the past.”

The original fleet set sail from London on December 20, 1606, with 105 passengers and 39 crew members for a 144-day transatlantic voyage to Virginia. After two weeks in the Chesapeake Bay and exploration of inland waterways, the three merchant vessels arrived at the selected settlement site on May 13, 1607. The expedition was a business venture sponsored by the

Want to support the Jamestown Settlement ships and maritime program? The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, Inc. Annual Fund offers opportunities to designate a gift for specific museum projects, such as ship maintenance and preservation. jyfmuseums.org/donate

In anticipation of the 350th anniversary of Jamestown and the opening of Jamestown Festival Park in 1957, the first re-creation of the Susan Constant takes shape in April of 1956 in a Norfolk, Virginia, shipyard. Image courtesy of The Mariners’ Museum.