Archaeologist William Kelso is certain he’s discovered the remains of the oldest Protestant church in the US, standing between two holes he insists once held wooden posts.
In 1614, Pocahontas was “married right here, I guarantee,” Dr Kelso said at the Jamestown, Virginia archeological site southeast of the nation’s capital.
Near the James River, on May 14, 1607, a group of about a hundred men landed on commission from England to form the first colony in the Americas.
“It’s fantastically exciting and significant because Jamestown is usually depicted – the whole early settlement depicted – as it was carried out by lazy gentlemen who wanted to get rich quick, and go right back to England.”
The area was carefully excavated to reveal several large post holes two metres deep and the trace remnants of four graves. Two other Protestant churches are thought to have been built before, but left no trace, and remains of a Catholic church were also found in Florida – but Dr Kelso is sure this one is the oldest left.
“Religion played a big role” in the community, Dr Kelso said as he stood near the river where small fluttering flags marked the building’s outline. Settlers “put a lot of work in the building of this big church, and that became very important for the colony.”
Noting the size of the wood post’s holes, said Dr Kelso, the church would have been able to support the mud and stud building’s heavy roof. According to surviving records describing the church kept by the secretary of the colony, what was built matches what can be seen today at the site. “I’m convinced because it’s the right size,” remarked Dr Kelso.
The four graves also match with the four important members of the colony who would have been buried so close to the church. Dr Kelso said there were a knight, two captains and Reverend Robert Hunt, the first cleric to come to the site.
Pointing out where Pocahontas, Chief Powhatan’s favourite daughter, would have stood when she married an Englishman, Dr Kelso marvelled at the event’s place in colonial history, allowing further settlements in what was then foreign, hostile territory for the European settlers.
The Indian princess, well known to American children, was popularised through an animated Walt Disney romance.