joined the Jamestown expedition not as an investor, but as hired soldier. After setting sail on December 20, 1606, this famous expedition finally reached Virginia in April 1607 after lasting a lengthy voyage of over four months in three tiny ships: the Godspeed, the Sarah Constant and the Discovery. When the sealed box that listed the names of the seven council members who were to govern the colony was opened, Smith's name was on the list. On May 13, 1607, 105 settlers landed at Jamestown ready to begin the task of surviving in a new environment.

The very first buildings that they build were: a fort, a church, and huts with roofs of thatch. The major wish of their's was to found gold, dig gold, wash gold, refine gold, and load it to the ships for shipping to England. Unfortunately they didn't find any gold. There were a lot of mighty forests that surrounded them and supplied thousands of staves, and these were cut and shipped to England. They discovered many different plants in Jamestown territory. They found the sweet-smelling sassafras, also used widely as a drug. They found both Spanish potato (or sweet potatoes) and the Virginia potato (or Irish potatoes.) The persimmon tree was everywhere, its fully-grown fruit was eaten, and persimmon beer, recommended to the Jamestown colonists by the Indians was sometimes substituted for more delicious drinks if these were not available. They found mulberry trees in great quantity, the leaves of which were used as a food for silk worms. They had high hopes of manufacturing silk at Jamestown, but this dream was soon shattered. There were glass makers among those who settled at Jamestown. Fuel, potash, and glass were plentiful. The art of making glass was a secret limited to a small association, and a few Venetian families were the greatest artisans. The harsh winter, lack of fresh water, and the spread of disease made life in Jamestown difficult for the settlers. Attacks by the native Algonquian Indians made life almost impossible. The Indians, hoping that the settlers would give up and leave, raided their camps, stealing pistols, gunpowder, and other necessary supplies. Half of men died by the end of 1608, leaving a plain fifty-three emaciated survivors. Since John Smith was one who knew how to help them, he