John Rolfe

John Rolfe (ca 1585 - 1622) was one of the early British settlers of North America.

Related Topics:
1585 - 1622 - British - North America

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Rolfe was born in Heacham, Norfolk, England. Rolfe settled in Jamestown, Virginia in 1609. He later established Varina Farms, a plantation on the James River about 30 miles upstream from the Jamestown Settlement, and across the river from Henricus.

Related Topics:
Heacham - Norfolk - England - Jamestown, Virginia - 1609 - Varina Farms - Plantation - James River - Jamestown Settlement - Henricus

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On this land in 1612, John Rolfe is credited with being the first to commercially cultivate Nicotiana tabacum tobacco plants in North America; export of the tobacco helped turn the Virginia Colony into a profitable venture. In 1614 Rolfe married Pocahontas, daughter of the local Native American leader Chief Powhatan (whose proper name was Wahunsunacock). The estate at Varina Farms was the home of John Rolfe and Pocahontas for two years following their marriage, and was the birthplace of their son, Thomas Rolfe.

Related Topics:
1612 - John Rolfe - Cultivate - Tobacco - North America - Virginia Colony - 1614 - Married - Pocahontas - Native American - Chief Powhatan - Wahunsunacock - Thomas Rolfe

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Rolfe's plantation at Varina Farms was named for a mild variety of the tobacco from Spain, similar to the strain from Bermuda that helped make the colony profitable.

Related Topics:
Spain - Bermuda

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Pocahontas died after he brought her to England in 1616, but their young son Thomas Rolfe survived. John Rolfe may have been killed by the Powhatan Confederacy during the Indian Massacre of 1622; it is known with certainty he died suddenly in 1622, a year of warfare between the colonists and the tribes. Thomas Rolfe later returned to Virginia, and was accepted by the Powhatan. The marriage between John Rolfe and Pocahontas thus helped bring peace between the tribes and the British settlers of Virginia for a generation. Many of the prominent early families of Virginia trace their lineage to descendants of Thomas Rolfe.

Related Topics:
England - 1616 - Thomas Rolfe - Powhatan Confederacy - Indian Massacre of 1622

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Virginia State Highway 31 is named the John Rolfe Highway. It links Williamsburg with Jamestown, the southern entrance to the Colonial Parkway, and via the Jamestown Ferry leads to the rich farming area of Surry County and Sussex County, ending in Wakefield, Virginia.

Related Topics:
Virginia State Highway 31 - Williamsburg - Jamestown - Colonial Parkway - Jamestown Ferry - Surry County - Sussex County - Wakefield, Virginia

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John Rolfe Middle School, in Henrico County, Virginia, one of Virginia's eight original shires of 1634, is named for him. Varina magisterial district in Henrico County is named for Rolfe's Varina Farms plantation, which was also the first county seat from 1634 to 1752.

Related Topics:
Henrico County, Virginia - 1634 - County seat - 1752

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Further reading: Sloan, Samuel H. The Slave Children of Thomas Jefferson, Kiseido, 1998.

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