The Overview

     The colonialization of Virginia at Jamestown is often found in most social studies textbooks. However, the textbooks’ account compared to the counter-narrative often gives students misleading and false information. While textbooks portray a friendly and mutually beneficial relationship between the Virginians and Powhatan people, this information is hardly true. Textbooks neglect to share the maltreatment shown to Native Americans by the Virginian colonists as well as the importance the Native Americans played in the survival of Jamestown.

     In settling in the new world, many colonists had to fight off Native American groups who already resided in those areas. This was also true in the case of Jamestown, where settlers took over the Powhatans’ native lands. After colonists settled in Jamestown, the people struggled to grow crops and many fell victim to disease. As a result, many colonists died, leaving Jamestown in peril. To ensure the survival of its people, the colonists began to trade with the Powhatan people. John Smith, the leader of Jamestown, hoped that this trade would produce a slave-like relationship between the two people where the Native Americans would supply Jamestown all of its needs (The Colonial Settlement Timeline). Furthermore, the relationship between the Powhatan’s and colonists deteriorated and the two groups grew to have many conflicts, some of which resulted in death. These stories of Jamestown are often neglected in social studies textbooks, yet are important to the history of our nation. While some may see Jamestown as a story of resilience and bravery by the colonists, it was actually a time where Native Americans were taken advantage in order to secure the survival of Jamestown and its settlers.

     This counter-narrative juxtaposes the English-Native American relationship that’s described by many elementary textbooks. In entirely omitting how Jamestown was initially formed, textbooks do not share how English setters overthrew Native American lands to form one of the first colonies. For example, in its simplistic language, The United States social studies textbook by Foresman states that settlers looked “for an area that would be easy to defend, they chose to unload their ships on a peninsula in the river. They called this spot Jamestown” (2005). Foresman omits how this region already belonged to the Powhatan people, leading students to believe that settlers colonized unclaimed land. This textbook then goes onto share about the trade that took place between the English and Native Americans and how “corn from the Powhatan helped keep the colonists alive” (Foresman, 2005). Students may believe that the relationship between these two communities was mutually beneficial, yet history shares a different story. From the Takaki text, we are aware of the forceful treatment by the colonists, where Native Americans were forced to hand over their food. This is stated by Takaki as he states that colonists “tried to force the Powhatans to give them food by attacking them and burning their villages” (2012). The clashes didn’t stop there, as the Native Americans “tried to drive out the intruders” and the English “decided to… take over the Indian’s towns and farms” (Takaki, 2012). The United States textbook entirely negates the important history of conflict between these two groups, where English settlers overtook Native American lands and forced the Powhatan to give over food to ensure the survival of Jamestown.

     Compared to the true historic events, social studies textbooks focus on the white settlers and refuse to tell the stories of the Powhatan people. Authors do not share the mistreatment the Powhatan’s faced from the English settlers. Because of this, students may see this as a time of resilience and perseverance by the English settlers, instead of a time where Native Americans were overthrown and taken advantage of in order to advance the colonization of America. As educators, it is important the we are relaying truth to our students. I hope you find this website helpful in presenting the Jamestown counter-narrative to your students.