CANNIBALISM at Jamestown: The Starving Time

In the winter of 1609-1610, the settlers of Jamestown, Virginia experienced a devastating period of starvation, now referred to as "The Starving Time."
↓ ↓ More stuff below! ↓ ↓
My video about Colonial Williamsburg: • Touring Colonial Willi...
Link to Jamestown Rediscovery's video about Jane: • Archaeology and forens...
Jamestown Rediscovery's KZbin channel: / jamestownrediscovery
Historic Jamestowne/Jamestown Rediscovery: historicjamestowne.org/
If you're like me and love reading firsthand accounts: www.virtualjamestown.org/fhacc...
A very interesting read regarding Pocahontas allegedly saving John Smith: www.pocahontaslives.com/is-jo...
✨Ways to support the channel✨
Like and share this video!
Patreon (bonus content & more!): / thecuriousworld
Online shop: explorethecurious.com/
Follow me on Instagram: / thecuriousworld

[@monkeypod1]

I have several ancestors that were there. One died in 1610 and probably starved. The other died in 1622 and was likely killed by the Powhatan massacre of 1622. Those were a tough times.

[@crispyy.roseeMUA]

Wow, how did you end up tracking your lineage this far back?

[@eugenebatiste]

No you don't, that would be literally impossible. If your ancestors died, that mean you wouldn't exist. The end of your lineage would've been 1622. Wtf... You can always request the Williamsburg Foundation to sample the DNA from those bones and cross reference it to your own. But you'd be severely disappointed.

[@billbombshiggy9254]

Me too, only mine were the natives. I think my white ancestors got here a few years after the starving time. Meaning all of my ancestors were here all sides, at the latest, by like 1615.

[@billbombshiggy9254]

@@crispyy.roseeMUA it takes a lot of work. This ain't no "im gonna spend a day on ancestry." This is "I've gotta go to libraries, call this historical society, check family records, it's gonna take months" shit.

[@erv993]

I've been to Jamestown during my road trip last year, it's indeed a fascinating story. Thanks for sharing it with us!

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Thanks for watching!

[@latezwilliams1020]

Ive read and heard of this story several times but you tell it so uniquely... the passion and production gives it an entirely different feel. Thanks so much!!!

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Thank you so much : )

[@oldi184]

They should have stayed in England. They came to the new world looking for a better life. They found misery, hunger, and death instead.

[@ethank6575]

Really enjoying your videos. I'm heading to VA this summer to hit Williamsburg, Jamestown and Yorktown with my dog! I hear these are great places to explore with your hound. I love American History! Keep up the good work!

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Thanks so much, hope you have a great time!

[@AngryNegativeHistoryProject]

I want to go there some day too. I wonder if people will get mad if I show up with a shovel

[@lesjones5684]

Pick me up on your way 😅

[@Nikodim571]

that's an amazing tour! Thanks a lot for this story. Keep on making videos. You're the best.

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Thanks so much :)

[@fabiano9277]

Dear Bridget. Thanks for the interesting Video! Keep up the good work.

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Thanks :)

[@alberthenrique3175]

Amazing job ; Thanks for it :D

[@ameliamorton1686]

Thank you!! Such a great video! God bless.

[@Teko_Tekor]

Interesting story as always and beautiful telling. The storyteller is gripping.

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Thanks so much :)

[@lawoull.6581]

Awesome...I would love to see historical places such as...💖

[@Garyvisitshistory]

I just came across your channel, this video made me a subscriber, you did a great job.

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Thank you so much :)

[@Garyvisitshistory]

@@TheCuriousWorld you're very welcome

[@gregorybumgardner2741]

The first endentured servants of 1607 died from some of the things listed but starvation was not one of them. They did have limited rations before the next supply ships arrived.

[@Noctua757]

Im born and raised in Hampton va. My family tree goes back to the original settlers. Thats very cool you did a video out here

[@sunnydayzie1202]

Can you imagine the trauma of those who survived this? It' s like the Donner party. :( Most likely those who were eaten were predeceased. Death was rampant so they really didn't need to kill one another in order to eat them..they just ate the dead. It's really appalling what people used to endure and what we complain about today. I'm descended from Mary Chilton who came over as a 13 year old on the Mayflower. That first year half of them died. These colonists knew full well that to go to a colony brought a high probability of death.

[@alveolate]

what's the classical piece you used for the bgm? i swear i've heard it before but just can't remember the title...

[@TolgaTurann]

Ey Im watching you from Turkey this video is amazing

[@coulie27]

Love it. I've read many early accounts, and Pocahontas is one of my all time favorite people. Great tour, thank you for bringing us along 😀

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Thanks for watching! Pocahontas is such a fascinating person. I spent several HOURS reading about her when learning about Jamestown, haha.

[@coulie27]

@@TheCuriousWorld I wish she had lived to write her story! Wonder whether anyone close to her did.

[@ankurnehru5116]

Pocahontas died of sexual disease after she had become pregnant due to a Jewish rapist of virgins tobacco company. Captain ajit vadakayil has written true history of Pocahontas

[@laman8914]

Nicely told. Sweet voice.

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Thanks!

[@EducatorSharmin]

Really helpful

[@eriks2686]

Thanks well done

[@effeojnedib7208]

We just had our annual "fright fest" at Jamestown. They have pirates handing out candy on the ships and within the re-constructed fort. It's the coolest place for a Halloween party. If you visit here, allow a day each for Jamestown, Colonial Williamsburg, Yorktown and Busch Gardens. Also, Mariners Museum is in nearby Newport News, along with a few other attractions that a tourist could compile into a day. Most of the chain restaurants in Williamsburg/James City County are terrible. So make alternate plans for picnics. Watch out for deer on ALL roads and highways. Especially at night.

[@hlayley]

this is helping for my apush test tmr

[@oteyokwa2544]

all that water and no fish....

[@dlmullins9054]

John Rolfe and Pocahontas were my 10'th great grandparents. Thank you for this video and the way you tell the story.

[@musketbal]

My ancestor, Phillip Conner left London on Jan.2nd., 1634 for Jamestown on the Ship the Bonventre captained by James Rickover. Was a indentured servant to William Burbage for a period of 8 years. He and his wife, Jane Skinner and children moved to Accomack, Virginia. Several years latter the family moved to the Marumska area on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Somerset County. The Conner family still lives in the same area they first settled.

[@johnnyacevedo681]

They probably bought human beings on the block to do their work which was very common for your ancestors to do

[@Simon-xh4hr]

@@johnnyacevedo681 May or may not be true but what's the use in pointing this out? It only creates division and hate. The way forward is working together.

[@ForeverFriendsFamily]

Johnny the world is guilty of slavery, you are only taught this one period and are parroting one divisive narrative. You really should understand and investigate history much more to not sound so uneducated and uninformed.

[@JT-rx1eo]

I was born and raised in Williamsburg Virginia. The majority of my ancestors arrived in Virginia, ALL ancestral lines arrived in the colonies in the 1600's and 1700's, far before the American revolution. IIRC, the earliest ancestor I could find was a woman and her kids who arrived in Jamestown around 1620. It was unusual for an unmarried woman to arrive in Jamestown then, and it's been postulated that her deceased husband was a stakeholder in the Virginia Company, so she was bequeathed that stake. I also have a French Huguenot ancestor who arrived in Virginia in the 1630's IIRC. One of his children is one of my ancestors. Another of his children was an ancestor to an American President: Barack Obama. Noone can guess that.

[@burningsandsexploration3711]

I wonder how things would have turned out if the settlers would have came in peace and respect for the indigenous peoples. I tend to think that the natives would rather have allowed them to co-inhabit the land and share knowledge than they way the settlers came and just took the land and whatever they wanted. How would you feel if you went to the store one day only to come to your home where your family has lived for generations to find squatters there with their feet up on your coffee table, watching your tv, eating your food and telling you that you had to leave because it was their's now. You might tend to shoot an arrow through their heart, too. The natives would have probably been more apt to help them find a suitable place to set up camp and taught the settlers how to survive if the settlers had asked instead of bullying.

[@jeroldparker7766]

You weren't listening, the original settlers were attacked by the Indians by the second week.

[@wingedhussar1453]

​@@jeroldparker7766yea Indians didn't listen to much

[@fleadoggreen9062]

Thanks , do you think Roanoke suffered the same ?

[@jacobdriscoll8276]

I love these glimpses into the dark corners of history. Unthinkably tragic what must've been going through the mind of whoever was chopping at that girl's skull. Thanks for this. Also gotta respect that arm game. Sun's out? Guns out!

[@jasonbrown372]

Guns came out in Nashville yesterday. Happy now?

[@colethewolfboy]

@@jasonbrown372project on deez nuts

[@slesher84]

What an interesting story! It's a pity that I don't understand much

[@kmasters2143]

I watch this because we where learning about it in my humanities class

[@Noctua757]

Oh yes and its a local legend that pocahontas actually was in the Gloucester area which is on the other side of the york river across from yorktown.

[@AngryNegativeHistoryProject]

There's got to be history in every corner of that state. Man I'm jealous. I'm in Chicago area, so it's a ways away

[@fleadoggreen9062]

Fort Dearborn massacre?

[@drexrexx]

00:55 is that smalls hat from the sandlot

[@reginachenevey8766]

My gggggrandfather came to Jamestown in 1619. Dr. John Woodson. He was killed in the 1644 uprising. I think I also have a ggggggrandfather who came over in 1610 but returned to England. Still digging for info on him.

[@royschmidt8526]

My family is said to have both English and Powhatan ancestry from the early Jamestown era. The Powhatan chief was actually an emperor because he was "Chief of Chiefs" and was known to kill any dissenting chiefs or tribal members. The Spanish and English colonizers were dominant forces of their time who went to war between themselves and others for religious and trade dominance. It was an interesting point in time with parallels to our own time.

[@JamesJones-cx5pk]

Canabalism? Nets would catch all of the fish they needed.

[@effeojnedib7208]

I think the same thing. Supposedly there were more fish, crabs and oysters back then too. I can head out with two rods and reels, on the bank of the James when the tide is coming in, and catch enough fish in a few hours, to feed a family of six for the day. Maybe clean drinking water was the actual problem. It's pretty salty right there.

[@fernandobalsecaacosta9221]

She said the Indian people lay a sort of siege, so I think probably the settlers couldn’t be near to the island cost to fish, maybe threatened by Indians with arrows from their boats.

[@georgewilson9121]

you need a fisherman not people off farms inland.....

[@JamesJones-cx5pk]

@@effeojnedib7208 Man cannot live on oysters alone. 🤣

[@TheLazyM]

The first settlers had zero survival skills, many tried to find gold during the time they should have been planting/harvesting. The fact that they missed out on all the seafood, wild game etc seems mind blowing until you realize they were there to get rich and forgot to worry about food since they were counting on a late supply ship that never arrived.

[@barrychandler5250]

My direct Chandler ancestor was in Jamestown in 1609 as a ten year old indentured servant. I hope he did not resort to canibalism , but if he did, it was survival.

[@StevenConstantine-fw2kn]

This is the version I heard

[@massagetherapyforinjuriesf8197]

I am proud of you that we know now that historical event of cannibalism really happened … God will bring back to resurrection to those innocents humans.. thank you

[@Madseason6x9]

Read "The Otherside of History The True story of Pocahontas" written by her tribe from their sacred oral history. Author is Dr Linwood "Little Bear" Custalow and Angela L Daniel. Amazing read. Much darker than the disney version..poor girl had a rough and short life.

[@bigorange2082]

My family didn’t come to america until 1792. They didn’t come over until after the revolution from France.

[@user-tr7jz1kz5p]

👍

[@Sinncere06]

There’s one thing in common I’ve noticed about covering this particular story. People always leave out the fact that this is before they had slaves to do the work for them. Why didn’t they fish? Bc they didn’t know how. Why not hunt? Wasn’t good at it. Why not grow crops? Bc Europeans weren’t a agrarian people.

[@georgewilson9121]

one fisherman as is the same case with the plymouth plantation would have solved the food issue. a sad mistake by the colonists in both cases.

[@jmurray212]

The importance of Chesapeake Bay, through colonial times the most densely populated area. Family friends were caretakers of Yorktown’s Nelson House in the ‘60’s when still in private hands. We’d be down every summer, so I’d be attacking the Brits with the aid of my French allies. Great fun for an Irish kid from The Bronx. Visits to Jamestown & Williamsburg of course - but nothing close to today’s visitor centers with their scholarship and insight. Family friends wound up living and caretaking at the completely run down Carter’s Grove, years before restorations were even planned. Carter’s Grove has a ghost (or two) … I didn’t sleep well until we went home. (What’s that sound … listen!… shh… who is that?…)

[@effeojnedib7208]

I live across the street from Carter's Grove. Lots of history here. I bet it was amazing having access to all those private places !!!! We have to sneak through the woods to get to the river now. Play hide and seek with the security folks. lol

[@charlesthompson8917]

Damn I'm hungry

[@juanmorales5133]

el primer asentamiento en norteamerica fue el imperio Espanol en san Agustin La Florida

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Sí, yo hice un video sobre St Augustine :) kzbin.info/www/bejne/iH2cfnRmeaakn5Isi=ZGNfsUmVWHmX3c-I

[@eancurtis9333]

Brutal times ..death was around every corner

[@coppercoloredmessiah911]

The atrocities of the European 🤦🏿‍♂️

[@user-cq8hw3ni7g]

the blacks

[@JT-rx1eo]

Why was it horrifying for the Virginia indians during the 1607 to 1610 period? There weren't that many settlers. Negligible added pressure on the plentiful food supply in the rivers and forest. The settlers were outnumbered. Again, why horrifying for them during that early period?

[@sct4040]

They are right by the water, why didn't they fish?

[@georgewilson9121]

there is and was literally tons of seafood rite off plymouth plantation as well, similar result of not having a fisherman in the group. a sad mistake, an obvious food not shown be the natives in both cases as well.

[@AngloSaxon-yx8tk]

Hard times sure, but hard times made hard people and that's how they came out on top.

[@sct4040]

They were by the water, why didn't they fish?

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Good question. This page lists some possible reasons: www.nps.gov/jame/faqs.htm (The second question is about fishing!)

[@Jcodeabstruse]

So we just gonna ignore slavery?

[@Shakejunt241]

Which era of slavery? Ancient Egypt? Ancient china? Akkadian empire? Assyria? Babylonia? Persia? Ancient Israel? Ancient Greece? Ancient India? Arab Islamic caliphates and Sunates? Nubia? Sub-Saharan African?

[@billysmith6284]

It’s a sad story… there was no good reason for trying to exterminate each other but they did anyway.. brutally

[@barrymatthews2438]

Damn couldn’t they fish ?

[@TheCuriousWorld]

There are a few possible reasons for this. One of which was that they were under siege. Leaving the fort meant they could be attacked by the Powhatan Indians. There is some more info here (the second question): www.nps.gov/jame/faqs.htm

[@jacobsmall5942]

Why dont they talk much about the Powhatan Indians that killed anyone who left the fort, keeping them in there to starve

[@Peter-yk2hh]

And then skaves

[@Startrekker6231]

Indigenous Algonquians not Indians. They weren’t in Asia.

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Hi, I know they weren't in Asia. Thanks. I did a lot of research to be sure I referred to them appropriately, and what I found is that they refer to themselves as Indians, and it is the preferred term in this case. Here are some resources. pamunkey.org/ americanindian.si.edu/nk360/faq/did-you-know jyfmuseums.org/learn/learning-center/who-were-the-powhatan-indians-and-how-did-they-live-2/ www.nps.gov/jame/learn/historyculture/chronology-of-powhatan-indian-activity.htm

[@carolbarrett6492]

My daughter and I lived with the Apaches (and later the Navajos and Hopis). We asked what they preferred to be called and the answer was that they really did not care, but they guessed that we could say "Indians". @@TheCuriousWorld

[@donlarson2547]

Why have the music overpower the dialogue........ANNOYING!,

[@TheCuriousWorld]

SORRY

[@adamr3028]

so many animals in the woods to eat instead they chose each other.

[@bigorange2082]

They didn’t know how to Fish? To eat clams or crabs? Why didn’t these people know how to prepare food?

[@jwfanatic]

They couldn't leave the fort or the Powhatans would kill them

[@pierremilburn5257]

Hmmmm smh

[@juanmorales5133]

English on Spanish soil???? It was New Spain

[@TheCuriousWorld]

Jamestown was never part of New Spain

[@Higinjhhg1123]

Sounds like they were just sick..cause fishing is easy...

[@zunedog31]

Cannibals make me dinner

[@kyyomilo]

the only critique i can give is your representation of the native peoples. both referring to us as indians and only describing violence from the people. i just wish there was a bit more acknowledgement rather than just calling them violent

[@TheCuriousWorld]

I actually did a lot of research to be sure I referred to them appropriately, and what I found is that the descendants refer to themselves as Indians, and it is the preferred term in this case. Here are some resources. pamunkey.org/ www.nps.gov/jame/learn/historyculture/chronology-of-powhatan-indian-activity.htm (2010 entry) americanindian.si.edu/nk360/faq/did-you-know historicjamestowne.org/history/history-of-jamestown/

[@JoeTigheOnline]

Finger food.

[@kr6484]

At 8:20... looks like a bunch of Donald Trumps. Lol they foretold the future 😂

[@TexasGirl-ei5qm]

Long live native american

[@NathanHassall]

would brains taste like scrambled eggs?

[@vincetrh]

It would taste like hog brain. I've had hog brain since I was a kid

[@interwebtubes]

They were - not Indians ,Indians are from the country of India, They were aboriginals , You need to get your facts straight, GEEZ

[@fincorrigan7139]

All WASPS are descended from Hannibal Lecter...Discuss!!

[@georgewilson9121]

what your bigotry?

[@Peter-yk2hh]

Stolen land

[@jdoe4548]

your country becomes Jamestown when trying communism

[@rosyboa5520]

"...I encourage you to do more research on..." How condescending of you!

[@user-cq8hw3ni7g]

why ?

[@pinchevulpes]

@@user-cq8hw3ni7gKaren doesn’t like the fact her ancestors picked each other’s bones .

[@LGB-2A-BLM]

Lose the mask next time please

[@Jamjars111Jam-np3vq]

Lmaoooooooooooo fucking cannibalism is the wildest shit

[@TedHouk]

180/240 died in 09. Selection is an inevitable phenomenon in Bio. If you aren’t an evangelical you don’t have to bother calling evolution evil. Global warming is next, we will lose at least 2 billion of eight before we bother fixing our androgenic problem with nuclear winter. Anpetuwaśte. Ćetañ Wićemina wauň