the 1600-20 period.

In 1953, Sgt. Floyd E. Painter found an English siege helmet (1600-40
period) 4 miles down the river from Jamestown Island.

[Illustration: A JAMESTOWN SENTRY ON DUTY SHOULDERING HIS HEAVY
MATCHLOCK MUSKET. (Conjectural sketch by Sidney E. King.)]

[Illustration: EARLY MUSKET BARREL AND GUN PARTS EXCAVATED AT
JAMESTOWN.]

[Illustration: BREASTPLATE FROM A LIGHT SUIT OF ARMOR FOUND IN A REFUSE
PIT. THIS WAS ONE TYPE USED BETWEEN 1600 AND 1640.]

[Illustration: A HEAVY SIEGE HELMET FOUND 4 MILES DOWNRIVER FROM
JAMESTOWN. WEIGHING OVER 8 POUNDS, IT WAS ONE TYPE USED IN EUROPE DURING
THE EARLY YEARS OF THE 17TH CENTURY.]

[Illustration: THE EARLY JAMESTOWN SETTLERS WERE ADVISED TO EQUIP
THEMSELVES WITH "ONE ARMOUR COMPLEAT, LIGHT." (Conjectural sketch by
Sidney E. King.)]

Farming

The first settlers brought seeds from England, and planted wheat 2 weeks
after landing at Jamestown.

The early Virginians successfully grew many kinds of crops: grains
(wheat, Indian corn, barley, oats, and rye), vegetables (peas, beans,
turnips, parsley, onions, potatoes, cabbage, cauliflower, carrots,
parsnips, lettuce, and others), and fruits (apples, peaches, apricots,
quince, figs, grapes, and melons).

The colonists planted Indian corn as early as 1609, and cultivated many
other Indian foods, including pumpkins, beans, and squash. They
cultivated tobacco (an Indian plant) as early as 1612, and during the
remainder of the century it was the most profitable crop grown. For many
years it was the economic salvation of the struggling colony.

Attempts were made by the early colonists to grow other crops which, for
various reasons, did not thrive at Jamestown. Some plants, like bananas,
pineapple, citrus fruits, and pomegranates, could not withstand the cold
Virginia winters. Other plants, including rice, cotton, indigo,
sugarcane, flax, hemp, and olives, did not grow vigorously for one
reason or another, and repeated efforts to cultivate them usually
resulted in failure. Mulberry trees grew well at Jamestown (the leaves
were used to feed silk worms), but attempts to make silk were not
successful commercially.

[Illustration: TOOLS USED IN THE CULTIVATION OF TOBACCO OVER 300 YEARS
AGO. THESE TOOLS--HOE, BILLHOOK, AND CUTTING KNIVES--WERE EXCAVATED AT
JAMESTOWN.]

[Illustration: CULTIVATING A SMALL GARDEN IN VIRGINIA. (Conjectural
sketch by Sidney E. King.)]

[Illustration: A FEW FARM TOOLS USED BY AN EAR