7. Why did Virginia grow slowly?

Jamestown was the first English settlement in Virginia, but the English did not stay confined in James Fort for very long. Within a few years, other settlements had been established by the Virginia Company. In the years 1611 to 1613, protected settlements were started at healthier locations up and down the James River—Kecoughtan at the mouth of the James, and Henrico and Bermuda Hundred upriver close to the fall line. At certain periods during those years, the population was larger in those “towns” than at the capital in Jamestown. By 1616, John Rolfe listed five areas of settlement along the James River and one on the Eastern Shore.

all persons entering into t

he employment of the compan

y, are considered as engaged

for twelve months, and those who leave

sooner, or do not comply with all these

regulations, will not be entitled

to a regular discharge.