''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 sett ...

, 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 Discove ...

'' 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 colony in North America, following failed attempts at settlement on Newfoundland by Sir Humphrey GilbertGilbert (Saunders Family), Sir Humphrey" (histor ...

History

''Susan Constant'' was rated at 120

tons Tons can refer to: * Tons River, a major river in India * Tamsa River, locally called Tons in its lower parts (Allahabad district, Uttar pradesh, India). * the plural of ton, a unit of mass, force, volume, energy or power :* short ton, 2,000 poun ...

. 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 rebelli ...

, 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 Chesap ...

at Jamestown Settlement (formerly Jamestown Festival Park), adjacent to Historic Jamestown.

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 (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 ...

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