Showing posts with label Jamestown Virginia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jamestown Virginia. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Cannibalism at Jamestown

I know many of my American pioneer ancestors had been guilty of some pretty outrageous behaviors, but this one is new to me. In today's news:

"Scientists said Wednesday that they have found the first solid archaeological evidence that some of the earliest American colonists at Jamestown, Va., survived harsh conditions by turning to cannibalism."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/01/cannibalism-jamestown-archaeological-evidence_n_3193947.html

Apparently this took place during the 1609-1610 "Starving Time," but could have extended up to 1625. I had a number of ancestors at Jamestown and I know at least one of them was there in 1610 and several others arrived within the following decade.

When I toured Jamestown in 1973 (and kept the card you see here) we knew the settlers had it rough, but Jeeeeez.