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IMMIGRANT John Rolfe

IMMIGRANT John Rolfe[1, 2, 3]

Male Est 1585 - 1622  (~ 37 years)

Personal Information    |    Media    |    Notes    |    Sources    |    All    |    PDF

  • Name John Rolfe 
    Title IMMIGRANT 
    Born Est 1585 
    Gender Male 
    Died 1622  Virginia Colony Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Person ID I11192  My Reynolds Line
    Last Modified 18 Jun 2017 

    Family 1 Pocahontas "Rebecca" Rolfe,   b. Est 1588, Virginia Colony Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1617, Parish Church of St. George in Gravesend, England Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age ~ 29 years) 
    Married 5 Apr 1614  Virginia Colony Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Children 
    +1. Thomas Rolfe,   b. Est 1615, Virginia Colony Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 1681, Virginia Colony Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age ~ 66 years)
    Last Modified 3 Jul 2015 
    Family ID F4467  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family 2 Jane Pierce,   b. 1600,   d. 1630, Virginia Colony Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 30 years) 
    Married Abt 1620  Virginia Colony Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Children 
    +1. Elizabeth Rolfe Pierce,   b. 1621, Virginia Colony Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. Yes, date unknown
    Last Modified 18 Jun 2017 
    Family ID F6748  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  • Photos
    John Rolfe and Pocahontas, 'Rebecca' Rolfe
    John Rolfe and Pocahontas, 'Rebecca' Rolfe
    11192-11324Pocahontas_Rolfe.jpg
    Pocahontas 'Rebecca' and John Rolfe
    Pocahontas 'Rebecca' and John Rolfe
    11192-11324Pocahontas-John Rolfe.jpg
    Wedding of John Rolfe and Pocahontas
    Wedding of John Rolfe and Pocahontas
    11192-1134 Wedding of Pocahontas.jpg

    Documents
    Col. Richard Bland
    Col. Richard Bland
    10648 Col Richard Bland.jpg
    John Rolfe Descendants of Three Marriages
    John Rolfe Descendants of Three Marriages
    11192John Rolf Tree.jpg

    Histories
    Virginia Heraldica - A Registry of Virginia Gentry Entitled to Coat Armor with Genealogical Notes of the Families Edited by William Armstrong Crozier, F.R.S., F.G.S.A. Virginia County Record Series Volume V. 1908
    Virginia Heraldica - A Registry of Virginia Gentry Entitled to Coat Armor with Genealogical Notes of the Families Edited by William Armstrong Crozier, F.R.S., F.G.S.A. Virginia County Record Series Volume V. 1908
    virginiaheraldic00croz.pdf
    Pocahontas-Sketch of Her Life
    Pocahontas-Sketch of Her Life
    The Gleaner
    Apr 10, 1807

  • Notes 
    • John Rolfe returned to Virginia and was killed in an Indian massacre in 1622. After an education in England, their son Thomas Rolfe returned to Virginia and became a prominent citizen. John Smith returned to the New World in 1614 to explore the New England coast. On another voyage of exploration in 1614, he was captured by pirates but escaped after three months of captivity. He then returned to England, where he died in 1631.

  • Sources 
    1. [S80] Google Books, https://books.google.com/books?id=9jASAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA191&lpg=PA191&dq=Adcock+Hobson+%2B+Joanna+Lawson&source=bl&ots=nKxGk-8VKw&sig=AYUb-cRJH_a8goPZIhrKl06gHU8&hl=en&sa=X&ei=BMOWVbrMKYKT-QGi1oGgDA&ved=0CEIQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q=Adcock%20Hobson%20%2B%20Joanna%20Lawson&f=false.
      John Bolling, born 1700, died 1757, married Elizabeth Blair, d/o President John Blair, of Williamsburg, and after John Bolling's death his widow married Col. Richard Bland, of Jordan's. John Bolling was the son of Major John Bolling, who married Mary Kennon, and grandson of Robert Bolling, of Charles City County, who married Jane Rolfe, d/o Thomas Rolfe, and granddaughter of John Rolfe and Pocahontas, his wife.

    2. [S100] Internet Source, http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/pocahontas-marries-john-rolfe.
      1614
      Pocahontas marries John Rolfe
      Pocahontas, daughter of the chief of the Powhatan Indian confederacy, marries English tobacco planter John Rolfe in Jamestown, Virginia. The marriage ensured peace between the Jamestown settlers and the Powhatan Indians for several years.

      In May 1607, about 100 English colonists settled along the James River in Virginia to found Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in America. The settlers fared badly because of famine, disease, and Indian attacks, but were aided by 27-year-old English adventurer John Smith, who directed survival efforts and mapped the area. While exploring the Chickahominy River in December 1607, Smith and two colonists were captured by Powhatan warriors. At the time, the Powhatan confederacy consisted of around 30 Tidewater-area tribes led by Chief Wahunsonacock, known as Chief Powhatan to the English. Smith?s companions were killed, but he was spared and released, (according to a 1624 account by Smith) because of the dramatic intercession of Pocahontas, Chief Powhatan?s 13-year-old daughter. Her real name was Matoaka, and Pocahontas was a pet name that has been translated variously as ?playful one? and ?my favorite daughter.?

      In 1608, Smith became president of the Jamestown colony, but the settlement continued to suffer. An accidental fire destroyed much of the town, and hunger, disease, and Indian attacks continued. During this time, Pocahontas often came to Jamestown as an emissary of her father, sometimes bearing gifts of food to help the hard-pressed settlers. She befriended the settlers and became acquainted with English ways. In 1609, Smith was injured from a fire in his gunpowder bag and was forced to return to England.

      After Smith?s departure, relations with the Powhatan deteriorated and many settlers died from famine and disease in the winter of 1609-10. Jamestown was about to be abandoned by its inhabitants when Baron De La Warr (also known as Delaware) arrived in June 1610 with new supplies and rebuilt the settlement?the Delaware River and the colony of Delaware were later named after him. John Rolfe also arrived in Jamestown in 1610 and two years later cultivated the first tobacco there, introducing a successful source of livelihood that would have far-reaching importance for Virginia.

      In the spring of 1613, English Captain Samuel Argall took Pocahontas hostage, hoping to use her to negotiate a permanent peace with her father. Brought to Jamestown, she was put under the custody of Sir Thomas Gates, the marshal of Virginia. Gates treated her as a guest rather than a prisoner and encouraged her to learn English customs. She converted to Christianity and was baptized Lady Rebecca. Powhatan eventually agreed to the terms for her release, but by then she had fallen in love with John Rolfe, who was about 10 years her senior. On April 5, 1614, Pocahontas and John Rolfe married with the blessing of Chief Powhatan and the governor of Virginia.

      Their marriage brought a peace between the English colonists and the Powhatans, and in 1615 Pocahontas gave birth to their first child, Thomas. In 1616, the couple sailed to England. The so-called Indian Princess proved popular with the English gentry, and she was presented at the court of King James I. In March 1617, Pocahontas and Rolfe prepared to sail back to Virginia. However, the day before they were to leave, Pocahontas died, probably of smallpox, and was buried at the parish church of St. George in Gravesend, England.

      John Rolfe returned to Virginia and was killed in an Indian massacre in 1622. After an education in England, their son Thomas Rolfe returned to Virginia and became a prominent citizen. John Smith returned to the New World in 1614 to explore the New England coast. On another voyage of exploration in 1614, he was captured by pirates but escaped after three months of captivity. He then returned to England, where he died in 1631.


    3. [S46] Marriage Record/Certificate, http://www.loc.gov/teachers/classroommaterials/presentationsandactivities/presentations/timeline/colonial/indians/marries.html.
      Pocahontas Marries John Rolfe, 1613