Historic Travel Guide to Ripley County: Ripley County History Series, #1

Origin of the County Form of Government

The county form of local organization originated in England. English counties, called shires, came into being as local units of government organizations in the Ninth Century. The word shire derives from the Old High German word scira and means care or official charge. A shire is a unit of local government control with a sheriff, appointed by the king, as the principal executive authority. The word county originated from the Old French word, conté which denoted a governmental division under the sovereignty of a count, or viscount. When the Normans of France conquered England in 1066, they brought the word with them. In England, county and shire have become synonymous. When the English began colonizing North America they began organizing shires, or counties, as they spread inland. In the United States, and Canada, the county evolved as a local unit of government that originally used geographic features, such as creeks and rivers, as boundaries. These units typically have local officials, such as sheriffs and trustees, to govern them. Each county is subdivided into smaller divisions known as townships.

Counties in Indiana

Indiana has 92 counties, each with its own county seat, or capital, and local governing officials. The first county organized in what is now Indiana was Knox County, established when Indiana was still part of the Northwest Territory. Knox County, organized on June 20, 1790 included the current states, or parts of, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, and Ohio. The last county organized in Indiana was Newton County, created by the state legislature on December 8, 1859. The oldest counties, in general, are in the southern part of the state along the Ohio River. Most modern counties were separated from either the original Knox County or other later counties. Most Indiana counties were named after either United States Founding Fathers or Revolutionary War heroes. Most have little or no connection to the county whose name they honor.

County Seat

In general, county seats, the seat of a county's government, are located near the geographic center of the county. The county court house is located in the county seat. During the early phase of the state's history, various towns within a county competed fiercely for the county seat. The seat, as the center of county government, attracted settlers in greater numbers and all citizens in the county had to visit the county seat periodically to pay taxes, obtain marriage licenses, file land deeds and other official tasks. Thus, businesses located in county seats had more traffic than businesses in outlying towns. Property values were usually higher and there was higher prestige in having the county seat located in a particular town. Many county seats have been moved at least once and sometimes several times. These moves sometimes created conflicts, both legal, and physical, over the relocation. Shots have been fired over relocations and more than one time county records had to be moved secretly in the middle of the night to stave off conflicts.

Here is an alphabetical list of Indiana counties:

Adams

Allen

Bartholomew

Benton

Blackford

Boone

Brown

Carroll

Cass

Clark

Clay

Clinton

Crawford

Daviess

Dearborn

Decatur

De Kalb

Delaware

Dubois

Elkhart

Fayette

Floyd

Fountain

Franklin

Fulton

Gibson

Grant

Greene

Hamilton

Hancock

Harrison

Hendricks

Henry

Howard

Huntington

Jackson

Jasper

Jay

Jefferson

Jennings

Johnson

Knox

Kosciusko

La Porte

Lagrange

Lake

Lawrence

Madison

Marion

Marshall

Martin

Miami

Monroe

Montgomery

Morgan

Newton

Noble

Ohio

Orange

Owen

Parke

Perry

Pike

Porter

Posey

Pulaski

Putnam

Randolph

Ripley

Rush

St. Joseph

Scott

Shelby

Spencer

Starke

Steuben

Sullivan

Switzerland

Tippecanoe

Tipton

Union

Vanderburgh

Vermillion

Vigo

Wabash

Warren

Warrick

Washington

Wayne

Wells

White

Whitley

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Local Government Organization in Indiana

Local governments within counties in Indiana consist of townships and incorporated towns and cities.

Townships

Townships are smaller governing units within a county. A Township Trustee, elected by voters within their township, represents those voters in the township, which also elects a three-member Township Board to assist the Trustee.

Incorporated Towns and Cities

Incorporated towns and cities elect their own representatives independent of the township. These officials include the mayor and the city or town council. Depending upon the organization of the local government, there may be other elected officials.

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Powers of Indiana Counties

The United States Constitution leaves the organization and function of county government to the individual states, thus organization and powers of county government can vary from state to state. Article 6, Section 2 of the Indiana Constitution establishes specific county offices. Article 6, Section 3 allows the General Assembly to create new offices for counties and townships as it sees fit. Article 6, Section 8 the Constitution gives the General Assembly the power of impeachment of county officials and the mechanism to fill county official vacancies that may occur after the General Election. Article 9, Section 3 gives the counties the power to create farms to care for individuals that, due to age, infirmity or misfortune to care for these individuals and see to their welfare. In general, counties have powers to legislate as long as the proposed statute is not expressly forbidden by the state constitution or not within the state's jurisdiction. Legislative powers of counties can be confusing and a further discussion of their powers is beyond the author's scope of understanding. If the reader has further questions about the county's powers, it is best to consult with an attorney.

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County Finances

County Sources of Revenue

Property Taxes

Income Taxes

State Funding

Federal Funding

Investment Income

Debt Funding

Miscellaneous Revenue

Property Taxes

All property within a county is subject to property tax, unless the property has been specifically declared exempt. The county assessor is responsible for setting property values, based upon rates set by the County Commissioners. Property tax valuation is a complicated procedure. For more information, contact your county assessor or commissioner.

Income Taxes

The State of Indiana permits counties to collect income taxes. These taxes are collected as a part of withholding with the Indiana Department of Revenue collecting them and distributing the revenue to the county. The county has multiple options for imposing this tax.

State Funding

The state distributes revenue collected from various taxes collected at the state level. These include aircraft, boat and taxes on financial institutions. This is not an all-inclusive list, as the list also includes funds from inheritance taxes, alcoholic beverage fees and many other taxes and fees.

Federal Funding

The federal government also provides funding in the form of grants and other financial bequests.

Investment Income

Counties and localities are permitted to invest in certain Federal investments like Treasury bonds and the like. The interest collected on these investments can provide addition county funding.

Debt Funding

County and local governments are permitted to borrow money for specific projects. This can include short-term loans, long-term loans, bond issues and other forms of borrowing.

Miscellaneous Revenue

The State permits counties to impose several different types of special taxes, including motor vehicle excise surtaxes, innkeeper taxes, food and beverage taxes and special benefit taxes.

Note:

It is beyond the scope of this work to go into the complex system of county and local taxation. The author's intent is only to provide a general outline of a county's sources of revenue for informational purposes. For more information, contact your county commissioner or trustee.

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Meetings and Records

The Indiana Constitution provides that county officials meet periodically and requires public notices of such meetings and that the officials keep records of the proceedings.

County Commissioners

Indiana Statute requires that county commissioners meet monthly. They may meet oftener, if need arises. The county auditor acts as the clerk of the board of commissioners and must keep records of all proceedings in the Auditor's office.

County Council

Indiana Statute requires that the Council meet only three times a year. The Council may meet oftener provided they give a forty-eight hour public notice. The council must keep minutes that are available to the public. The State of Indiana may deem certain records too sensitive for public scrutiny.

The state has devised a system that defines what records are available to the public and how those records are kept. To find a detailed account of this procedure and to see the public records of your county, go to your county's web site where they will be links to them. Optionally, go to the courthouse and inquire.

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Native Tribes

As far as historians and archeologists can determine, the Shawnee Indian Tribe occupied sites in the region that would become Ripley County at or near the time of settlement.

Shawnees in Indiana

The Shawnee name derives from the Shawnee word shawanwa, which means southerner in the native language. The tribe speaks a form of Algonquian, which makes the tribe akin to the Delaware, Illiniwek, Kickapoo, Menominee, Miami, and Sauk and Fox tribes.

Range

Shawnee Lifestyle

The Shawnee were a semi-nomadic tribe and lived in villages scattered over a large area in the Ohio River Valley, Pennsylvania and originally in the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia. Conflict with the Iroquois tribes in the Ohio River Valley drove them off for a number of years. The Iroquois did not live in the Ohio River Valley permenantly; however, they wanted the region because it was a prime hunting area. The Iroquois wanted the abundant fur supply to trade with the Europeans. The Iroquois' power began declining, and the Shawnee were able to migrate back into the Ohio River Valley, Kentucky and central Ohio. During the middle years of the 1700’s, they had settled into three main areas in Indiana, the southwestern, southeastern and the northeast region around Fort Wayne. Some bands also moved into the White and Mississinewa rivers region.

Shawnee Dress

Both men and women wore leggings. Men wore breechclouts while women wore skirts over the leggings. Neither sex wore shirts, but wore ponchos in cold weather. Some of the men wore a beaded headband with one or two feathers stuck in the back. They did not wear headdresses. Warriors would sometimes shave their heads.

Shawnee Lifestyle

The Shawnee men did the hunting. They also were the warriors that fought both white encroachment and other tribes to protect their hunting lands, or gain lands from other tribes. The women took care of the children, did the cooking and tended the crops. Both sexes engaged in storytelling, an important part of their culture. During the summer, the people lived in villages where they tended their garden crops. In winter, these villages would split up into smaller groups to live in hunting camps. The Shawnee constructed dugout canoes to travel over water and used dogs to transport goods overland. Prior to the European arrival, the natives did not have horses.

Shawnee Villages

The Shawnee lived in a bark-covered structure called a wikkum, or wigwam. These structures were easy to build, but were not portable. Most families would build a new one each season when they moved into their seasonal winter camps or summer villages. The structure consisted of wooden poles covered with bark or grass. They used rope or strips of bark to hold the covering in place. These wigwams were usually eight to ten feet tall and could be cone shaped, round or rectangular. A village typically had a larger council house.

Shawnee Agriculture

Maize was the most important crop, and most tribes grew some. If they did not grow it, they traded for it. They also grew beans, squash, pumpkins, sunflowers and probably potatoes. They also gathered honey, nuts, berries and other fruits. Tribes tried to grow or gather enough food to dry for storage over the winter.

Shawnee Hunting

The Shawnee diet was largely meat based. The men hunted the forests for deer and wild turkeys with bow and arrow. They also fished in the streams and sometimes used traps and snares to catch smaller game like rabbit and squirrel.

Shawnee Meals

Most of the meals were simple to prepare. They would eat corn on the cob when fresh maize was available. They also popped the corn and ground it into meal to make into cornbread or hominy. They used clay ovens to bake the cornbread. They roasted meat over the fire or on heated stones. Usually they had water with their meals.

Shawnee Politics

Each village had its own chief. The village chief could be a man or a woman. They chose their war chief based on his bravery and skill in battle. The war chief was always a male. A principal chief held sway over several villages and was always a male. Chiefs had considerable power, but held it only as long as they had the support of their people. If they grew unpopular, the people could replace them.

The Shawnee Tribe

P.O. Box 189

29 S Hwy 69A

Miami OK 74355

918-542-2441

http://www.shawnee-tribe.com/

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Colonial American Time Line – A Brief History

August 3, 1492 - Christopher Columbus Sets Sail On His First Voyage

Seven years of patient lobbying finally paid off for Christopher Columbus. On August 3, 1492, he set out with three ships from Palos os de la Frontera, Spain on his first voyage of exploration.

A New Trade Route

Columbus and the monarchs had signed the contract promising support for Columbus' voyage on April 17, 1492. The thrust of the voyage was to find a sea route to the spices and silks of the East Indies and China. All the nations of Europe coveted this trade, which the Muslims had interrupted with their conquests in Asia Minor. These disruptions had made the old Silk Road route dangerous and unstable. The route around the Horn of Africa was long and tedious. Columbus believed that a route straight across the ocean would lead to Asia. He was right, but never dreamed there was a continent in the way. Once they signed the contract, Columbus bent to the task of organizing his voyage. The Spanish town of Palos os de la Frontera would serve as the springboard for Columbus' historic voyage.

Palos os de la Frontera

King Alfonso XI of Castile granted Alonso Carro and his wife Berenguela Gómez the land Palos would occupy in 1322. That year is the town's official founding year. Paleolithic, Tartessian, Roman, Visigothic, and Muslim peoples may have occupied the site previously. The inhabitants of the town were mostly fishermen. Queen Isabella required the inhabitants to contribute to Columbus' effort.

The Men Involved

Martín Alonso Pinzón and his younger brother Vicente Yáñez Pinzón assisted Columbus. Martin would command the Pinta and Viceente would command the Nina. Columbus would captain the Santa Maria. Juan Niño of Moguer owned the Nina, while Juan de la Cosa owned the Santa Maria. Cristobal Quintero owned the Pinta that was nicknamed "The Pint, The Look, or The Spotted One." Many members of the crews of the ships came from Palos and the surrounding area. The combined crews of the ships numbered eighty-seven. Masters and pilots were paid 2000 maravedis per month. Able seamen received 1000 maravedis per month. Ordinary seamen and ship's boys were paid 666 maravedis per month. At the time of Columbus' voyage gold was worth 3000 maravedis per ounce and silver 100 maravedis per ounce.

The Ships

La Santa María de la Inmaculada Concepción (Santa Maria) was the largest of the three ships. Built in Pontevedra, Galicia, the ship was a type of ship called a carrack. A carrack is a three or four masted square-rigged ship used for longer voyages by the Spanish and Portuguese. The Santa Maria would have been about fifty-eight feet long and approximately 100 tons. It would have been about eighteen feet wide and drawn about ten feet of water. The crew would have numbered around forty sailors. Merchants typically used carracks for trade. The Pinta was a type of ship called a caravel and it was Columbus' fastest ship. The Portuguese developed caravels in the Fifteenth Century. They were small, maneuverable two-masted ships used mostly for exploration. The Pinta was about fifty-six feet long, seventeen feet wide and about seventy tons. It had a draught of about eight feet of water. The crew would have been twenty-six. The Nina was also a caravel and its name was Spanish for "Little Girl." The Nina became Columbus' favorite ship. It would have been about fifty feet long, sixteen feet wide and about sixty tons. It had a draught of about seven feet and carried a crew of twenty-four.

Three Months of Planning

On the evening of August 3, 1492, Christopher Columbus and his crews set off from the minor Spanish port Palos os de la Frontera. It was on a voyage of major consequences. Spain and all of Europe would change completely because of the voyage. The natives of the new lands Columbus discovered would suffer major consequences, as well. But on that evening long ago, the sailors were uncertain about their destination and their fates. However, their place in history was secure.

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October 12, 1492 - Columbus Arrives In the Bahamas

Columbus and his three crews departed the Canary Islands on September 6, 1492 after getting the broken rudder on the Pinta fixed. They would spend five long weeks sailing west over open ocean.

Measuring the Distance Sailed

Columbus recorded the distance the ships sailed each day using two different measurements. Historians at first believed that he recorded the distance this way to deceive the crew. They thought he reported the shorter distance to the crew to quell their fears about sailing so far west and kept the longer, true, distance secret. However, historians have determined that recording two distances was normal for Columbus. One set, indicating longer miles, was in his standard fashion. The shorter set he used the shorter Portuguese leagues to which his crew was accustomed.

Magnetic Declination

By mid-September, on the Thirteenth, Columbus noted that his compass no longer pointed north. He had discovered the phenomenon of magnetic declination. A compass points to magnetic north, not true north. The difference of the angle between the two can vary at different points on the earth and can change over time. No one in Europe had seen the phenomenon until Columbus. Columbus at first did not inform his crew of the variation, afraid the knowledge would spark fears in them. When they did learn of it, he calmed then by telling them that the compass did not point to the North Star, which was the ancient method of determining true north. A compass instead pointed towards some point on the earth's surface, and that something was interfering with it. His reputation calmed the crew and the incident passed.

Signs of Land

By late September the crew noticed floating vegetation on the surface of the sea. All the sailors took this to mean that land was nearby. On October 7, the crew sighted large flocks of birds. They managed to trap a few and determined that they were field birds of some sort. This allayed their fears somewhat, but not altogether. Columbus changed the course of the ships to follow the flights of the birds.

Mutiny

By October 10, the fears returned. Food and water were getting short. They had gone five long weeks with no sign of land. The winds had turned cantankerous and supplies were running low. The sailors feared that they would run out of food and water before they could return to Spain. This was a not anunreasonable fear. Columbus quieted his crew by telling them that if they did not sight land in two days, he would turn the ships around and return.

Land

On October 12, 1492, at two o'clock in the morning a crewman, Rodrigo de Triana on the Pinta, gave the cry. Land. A feeling of relief flooded the crew. They had made it. They were in Asia. Historians still dispute which island it was, but they do know it was in the Bahamas. The leading candidates for his landing are Samana Cay, Plana Cays, Grand Turk, and San Salvador Island. San Salvador Island received its current name in 1925 from those that believe it is the spot of Columbus' landing. Many also call this island Watlings Island, after a famous pirate. Columbus spent little time on the island. He was anxious to reach Cipangu (Japan). He raised the banner of the Spanish king and claimed the island for Spain, naming it San Salvador, or Holy Savior. he then continued his explorations.

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July 29, 1588 - Spanish Armada Defeated and Scattered By English Defenders

Disbursed by English fire ships and driven by adverse winds the Invincible Spanish Armada scattered. The Battle of Gravelines ended with a stunning English victory and a humiliating Spanish defeat.

After Midnight

The sea battle between Spain and England raged for seven days. The Spanish ships included wares of torture in their holds. Racks, pulleys, thumbscrews, iron virgins and iron gridirons waited on the ships. With them Jesuit priests stood ready to inflict God's punishment on the heretics of England. As the Spanish fleet anchored off Calais, the wind shifted in favor of the English. As the clocks in England ticked past midnight, flaming ships of fire advanced out of the night. The winds drove them toward the Spanish formation.

Fire Ships

During the era of wooden ships, one favorite weapon was the fire ship. The ships used for this were generally old, worn out ships that were close to the end of their service. Sometimes cheaply built ships were constructed expressly for this purpose. It was common practice to load these ships with combustible items. Then the defenders would either steer or allow favorable winds to drive them into the midst of an enemy fleet to set its ships on fire. The English sent eight fire ships into the middle of the Spanish Armada. The Spanish panicked and disbursed, breaking formation.

New Tactics

The English had captured some Spanish ships and learned from them. They knew that the Spanish sailors had difficulty reloading their cannons after firing them. The English would approach close to the Spanish ships, keeping just out of range of the powerful cannon. This provoked the Spaniards to fire. The English would use the forced delay to their advantage. With the Spanish guns reloading, the English ships would close in. At close range, they could unload a devastating volley, then retreat.

Favorable Winds

The wind cooperated with the English by driving the Armada's ships into shallow water off Gravelines. This Spanish port was in the Netherlands, close to its border with France. The shallow water limited their maneuverability. The English ships already had an advantage with their smaller, more maneuverable ships. The fighting began to take a toll on the Spanish ships. By late afternoon, both fleets ran out of ammunition. The English began loading chains and anything else they could cram in a cannon barrel. They continued inflicting damage on the Spanish fleet. After losing five ships and having many more severely damaged, the Armada broke formation and fled. The Battle of Gravelines was over.

After the Battle

The Spanish did manage to regroup. But strong southwest winds drove them north with the smaller, nimbler English ships in close pursuit. The Armada fled north into the English Channel. Then severe North Atlantic storms finished the English fleet’s work. The stormy seas and fierce winds wrecked many of the Spanish ships on the coasts of Scotland and Ireland. The Spanish had lost over 2000 dead and many more wounded during the fighting. The English had lost around fifty. The 130 ship Armada had lost over a third of its ships. It was a humiliating defeat for Phillip II of Spain. The invigorating victory infused confidence in what had been a small, weak English nation. The defeat of the Armada left England with the means and confidence to rise to a powerful world power. It used that power to establish its colonies in the New World.

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December 20, 1606 - English Colonists Sail From London to Found Jamestown

On December 20, 1606, three ships departed England, bound for North America. The three wooden ships were the Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery.

The Ships

The 120 ton Susan Constant also has references that is was really the Sarah Constant. Historians are unsure which the proper name is. At 116 feet long, she was the largest of the three ships and she carried 71 of the 104 colonists. At fifty tons, the Godspeed carried thirty-three passengers and thirteen crewmen. She would have been about sixty-eight feet long. The twenty-ton Discovery carried no passengers. Her purpose was to carry some of the cargo and navigate the shallower rivers after the colonists arrived. Replicas of all three ships reside at Jamestown National Historic Site.

The Voyage

The passage from England to the Virginia shores took 144 days, an unusually long voyage. The ships spent six weeks lolling in the English Channel as they waited for favorable winds that would blow them south. They arrived at Cape Henry on April 26, 1607.

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April 26, 1607 - First British to Establish an American Colony Land At Cape Henry VA

On December 20, 1606, three ships departed England, bound for North America. The three wooden ships were the Susan Constant, the Godspeed, and the Discovery. On April 26, 1607, they dropped anchor in the early morning hours. Several of the 102 passengers boarded a small boat and rowed ashore. As the boat touched the shore, the men emerged onto the shore. Thus began the first permanent British occupation of North America, Jamestown.

First Election in the New World English Colonies

The first act of the new colonists was for the Reverend Robert Hunt to lead them in prayer for the safe passage across the seas. Then an exploring party ventured forth to explore the area. In the afternoon, the party encountered an Amerindian band. A skirmish ensued in which two of the colonists received wounds. After the fight, the men returned to the beach. There, they opened a wooden box that they had carried from England. The box contained the names of the men that would form the governing council. The document inside named the seven men that would serve as the council, but there was no mention of a leader. The men then held the first vote under English common law. They chose Edward Maria Wingfield to serve as president for a one-year term. The Virginia Company had chosen Newport to serve as the commander until the colonists went ashore. The men explored the area for several days before moving on to delve deeper into Chesapeake Bay.

Cape Henry

The Cape takes its name from the eldest son of King James I, Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales. It is on the southern bank of Chesapeake Bay. Virginal has established a state park on the site, commemorating the First Landing. The 2,888-acre park has camping, cabins, picnicking, a beach and hiking.

Jamestown National Historic Site

1368 Colonial Pkwy

Jamestown, VA 23081

Hours Daily 9 AM to 5 PM, except Thanksgiving, Dec. 25 and Jan. 1

(757) 856-125

First Landing State Park

2500 Shore Dr.

Virginia Beach

VA 23451

Phone: 757-412-2300;

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May 14, 1607 - English Colonists Land Near James River in Virginia

Their initial landing on April 26, accomplished, the English colonists searched for a site to settle. If successful, they would be the first permanent English settlement in North America. At length, the president they chose to lead them, Captain Edward Maria Wingfield, decided on a spot. It was on a marshy spit of land on the north shore of the James River. They arrived on the spot on May 13, 1607 and went ashore on May 14.

Captain Edward Maria Wingfield (1550–1631)

Born to Thomas Maria Wingfield and Margaret Kay, near Stoneley Priory, England Edward Wingfield entered military service early in life. Taken a prisoner of war in the Protestant Dutch Republic’s war against Spanish Catholics, he gained his release on 1589. After a brief retirement and stint in Parliament, he returned to military service, fighing next in Ireland. Once again, he retired from the military.

At the invitation of his cousin, Bartholomew Gosnold, he joined the new Virginia Company. The Company was just beginning to organize its colonization efforts in the New World. Through his efforts, about forty of the original settlers joined the expedition. At the conclusion of the voyage, the settlers chose him to serve as president for a one-year term.

The Site

The Virginia Company leaders had given them some specific qualities that they wanted in a colony. It had to have deep-water access for the large ships to anchor. Because the Spanish were active in the area, the site had to be hard for patrolling Spanish ships to see. It needed to be upstream far enough that the colonists would be alerted to them before any attack. The site he chose proved to be a good choice in one respect, but bad in many others. The local Amerindian tribes did not use the site, deeming it too poor to raise crops. Thus, an English settlement there posed no immediate threat to them and they largely left it alone. It also had bad qualities. It was low, marshy ground well stocked with disease carrying mosquitoes. There was a serious shortage of fresh water. The early settlers drank water poisoned by salt, causing many deaths due to salt poisoning. Many historians feel the first quality balanced out the other two. If they had chosen a spot used by the local tribes, they may have attacked them and wiped them out.

Jamestown

After they chose the site, they began clearing land and building structures. They called it Jamestown, in honor of King James I of England.

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July 30, 1619 – Virginia Company Formed First Elective Colonial Governing Body

The concept of representative government in the United States is rooted in the beginnings of colonization.

Limited Monarchy

The representative government tradition runs deeper in the English settled regions of North America than in the French and Spanish regions. That stems from the types of monarchies that ruled the colonizing nations that controlled those regions. Both France and Spain had unlimited, absolute monarchies. All political power rested in the king or queen. In England, a limited monarchy existed since the times of the Magna Carta in 1215. This concept of elected government rooted firmly in Colonial soil.

Formed to Encourage Settlement

The Virginia Company was a private enterprise that owned a charter to colonize the area known as Virginia. The king had granted the company the charter, and the company ruled the colony through an appointed council. The company needed to encourage skilled craftsmen and others with valuable skills to immigrate to the New World. To encourage settlement, the Company drew up a charter. This charter endowed each colonist that paid their own way to the colony with fifty acres. They established the House of Burgesses. They bestowed the right to vote for representatives to this House on landowners over twenty-one years old. Thus, colonists not only had title to land upon arrival, but a voice in the government of the colony as well.

Unicameral House

The House of Burgesses was a unicameral, or one chamber, body. It met in conjunction with the governor of the colony and his council. The governor could veto its legislation, if he wanted. The Virginia Company had ultimate control over both the governor and the House. But through their representatives, the landowners could make their voice heard. The first meeting was in the Jamestown church and lasted six days. There were twenty-two representatives. The House accomplished little at this session as a malaria outbreak cut it short. It was important, though, as it established the tradition of elected assemblies. After the Virginia Company formed the House, the other colonies demanded their own assemblies when they formed. By 1776, 157 years later, the colonies were well versed in elected self-government. They were ready for the next step.

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August 15, 1620 – The Pilgrims Set Sail From England

The Pilgrims arrived in Southampton on the Speedwell from their refuge in Leiden, Holland. In Southampton, they were to rendezvous with the Mayflower and some other settlers. The Pilgrims planned to sail to the New World on the two ships. These two ships departed Southampton, England around August 5. The Speedwell created the first of what were many problems by springing a leak. The ships put in at Dartmouth to repair the ship.

Speedwell

By 1620, the Speedwell was forty-three years old. It was a ship called a full rigged pinnace and was a smaller ship than the Mayflower. The Speedwell was about sixty tons. It would have carried around ten guns. The ship's construction in 1577 was in response to the threat of a war with Spain. Her name at the time of construction was Swiftsure. The ship saw service against the Spanish Armada in 1588. Then it served as Sir Gelli Meyrick's ship during Earl of Essex's Azores expedition in 1596. When the Spanish threat ended in 1605, the Swiftsure was decommissioned.

The Pilgrims purchased the Swiftsure in 1620 and renamed it Speedwell. They refitted the ship in Leiden, Holland before departure with two new masts. Shipbuilding experts theorize that the crew using a mast that was too big for the ship caused the ship’s problems. After the Pilgrims abandoned the ship, the owner refitted it and sent it on several profitable voyages afterwards.

Mayflower

Because of the name's popularity, historians know little about her early history. There were over twenty ships registered with that name during that period. She likely saw her maiden voyage before 1609 and was near the end of its useful life by the time the Pilgrims departed for the New World on her. Historians know little about her construction and layout. They can surmise that she was about 102 feet long with a beam of about twenty-five feet and drew about eighteen feet of water. She was a cargo ship with a capacity of about 180 tons. She was square rigged and had three masts and three main levels. These levels were the main deck, the gun deck and the cargo hold. There was also a poop deck, formed by the roof of a cabin in the rear of the ship. The poop cabin resided on the poop deck and provided the crew with an observation area during the voyage. Her construction would have made her passage against the westerlies difficult. This played a key role in the length of the voyage across the ocean. Mostly the ship had transported casks of wine and carried about ten cannon as protection against piracy. The cargo holds would have stored the tools, clothing, bedding, food and weapons. They settlers would need these essential items in their new home. The cargo hold did not have windows, to prevent water seeping in and ruining the cargo. The holds had low ceilings and were dark, cold and damp.

Cramped Quarters

The Captain of the ship had the best quarters, in the rear of the ship, the driest part. The crew, about thirty, lived in the forecastle, at the front of the ship. Since it was at the front, the forecastle was the wettest and coldest, as the waves constantly beat against it. The Pilgrims would have slept in the poop house and gun deck with some possibly sleeping in the hold. There was no latrine, so people did their business in a bucket secured by ropes or over the side of the ship.

Departure and Return

The ships departed Dartmouth on August 15, 1620. They did not get far. The Speedwell developed more problems with leaks. After traveling between two to three hundred miles out to sea, the ships turned around and sailed back to Plymouth, England. Now they had to decide whether to go on, or go back to their homes.

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September 06, 1620 - Pilgrims set sail from Plymouth, England to the New World

The Pilgrims had intended to sail to the New World on two ships, the Mayflower and