The Jamestown Settlement is running an exhibition about early women in Virginia called “Tenacity.” The exhibition, which runs through January 5, 2020, “explores little-known, captivating personal stories of real women in Jamestown and the early Virginia colony and their tenacious spirit and impact on a fledgling society.” The exhibition includes artifacts on display (including items from abroad never before displayed in the U.S.), performances, and a lecture series. The full schedule of events covers the stories of African American and Native American women in early America, as well as topics on witches, “England’s Bartered Brides,” costumery, and “women who survived and thrived in an era when many women lacked property, education and civil rights.”
Angelo, “the first African woman mentioned by name in the historical record at Jamestown,” and Cockacoeske, known as the Queen of the Pamunkey, hold a special place in the exhibition with special programs highlighting the events of their lives. Additionally, a touch-screen interactive display has been set near the original Ferrar Papers, on loan for the first time in America. The Ferrar Papers were compiled by a London merchant and “list the names, references and qualifications of many of the 56 women recruited to go to Virginia in 1621 to become wives of the settlers.” The interactive display allows visitors easy access to the original documents where they can learn more about these early English women settlers.
The exhibition home page can be found here and the full schedule of events is here.