Christopher Newport
A sketch of a Christopher Newport.
Christopher Newport was born in 1561 in England. He grew up in Limehouse, England. As a young boy, Newport worked on ships, and by the time he was a teenager, he was living and working on large sailing ships. In 1580, Newport left England and sailed as a privateer. A privateer is someone who has his government's permission to attack enemy ships and take their treasure. Newport was brave and strong, and very familiar with sailing and navigation. He knew all the sailing routes across the Atlantic Ocean to the New World. Newport joined the Virginia Company of London, whose job was to bring settlers to the New World. Newport was appointed Admiral, this means that he was in "sole charge and command" of the journey to Virginia in 1606. This trip included 120 men and boys. They sailed on three English ships: the Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery. The explorers arrived in the Chesapeake Bay in April 1607. They built James Fort on the edge of the James River in what is now part of Virginia. James Fort, also know as "Jamestown," was the first English settlement in the New World.
Source: Boykin, A. W. (2003). Christopher Newport. Virginia: Foxhound Publishing, LLC.
Source: Boykin, A. W. (2003). Christopher Newport. Virginia: Foxhound Publishing, LLC.