Jamestown Settlement vs Historic Jamestowne: Which Should you Visit?

Perched on the bank of the James River, in a quiet and unremarkable location, sit the remains of the Jamestown Fort at Historic Jamestowne, the site of the first English colony in what is now the State of Virginia. Nearby, at Jamestown Settlement, you will find a town recreation, replica ships of those that brought the original settlers, and a state-of-the-art visitor center. So the question is, which should you visit? Jamestown Settlement or Historic Jamestowne?

When we were visiting nearby Williamsburg, we knew we wanted to see Jamestown too, but weren’t sure which one would be a better experience, especially with kids. So, I decided to visit both and break it down to help you decide.

History of Jamestown Settlement

First, let’s look at the history of Jamestown so you can see why a visit is relevant. In May of 1607, Captain Christopher Newport arrived from England on the Susan Constant, Godspeed, and Discovery to establish the colony of “James Cittie” for the Virginia Company of London. After first landing in the Chesapeake Bay, they followed their charter to move upriver to an island that they could secure, which they found at Jamestown.

From the beginning, the colonists were beleaguered by the lack of fresh water, disease, and attacks from the native Powhatan nation. While Newport headed home with mineral samples that they hoped contained gold and would make the colony as rich as the Spaniards, Captain John Smith traveled upriver in search of food and was captured by Opechancanough, brother of Chief Powhatan.

It was then that the Chief’s daughter, Pocahontas, intervened and saved Smith’s life. But unlike in the Disney fairytale, Pocahontas and Smith don’t fall in love and ultimately live happily ever after.

As a matter of fact, Smith returns to England in 1609, after leading the colony for a time, never to again step foot in the New World. Pocahontas on the other hand, married settler John Rolfe in 1614 after being held prisoner by the English and eventually converting to Christianity.

She then took the name of Rebecca, meaning “mother of two peoples” after her peace-making marriage. Rolfe, Pocahontas, and their son journeyed to England in 1616 and, unfortunately, Pocahontas dies before ever returning to her homeland.

The colony struggled for its survival through multiple starving periods, cannibalism, disease, attacks from Native Americans, and in-fighting. The colony’s numbers dropped as low as 38 at one time, despite new boats of settlers arriving over the years.

Ultimately, it was John Rolfe’s experimentation with tobacco that turned the tide and provided the settlers with a good to trade and the ability to prosper through the work of enslaved people. In 1619, the arrival of the first enslaved Africans enabled this new industry to grow — and therefore dug the roots of slavery so deep into the Virginia soil that only a civil war could uproot them.

Yet despite the growth of the New Towne around Jamestown, and Virginia being made a Royal Colony in 1624, today we associate early American Colonial history with Jamestown’s nearby neighbor of Williamsburg.

While the hordes descend on Williamsburg, I strongly encourage you to take a day and explore its neighbor of Jamestown. Of course, even when you plan a day in Jamestown, you are still faced with the confusing question of whether to visit Jamestown Settlement vs. Historic Jamestowne. Located right down the street from each other, it isn’t immediately apparent what the differences are between the two, or the whether or not you should visit them both. So let me give you the inside scoop…

Jamestown Settlement

Note: We were provided complimentary admission to Jamestown Settlement and Historic Jamestowne on behalf of Visit Williamsburg. All opinions are our own.

The Jamestown Settlement is a perfect place to start with your exploration of Jamestown. The important thing to recognize is that this 46-acre site is a living history museum with recreations of the Jamestown Fort, Powhatan Indian Village, and three ships — not the actual site of the original settlement.

The actual historic site can be found just down the road at Historic Jamestowne. However, if you are visiting with kids, the Jamestown Settlement is more visual and hands-on and provides a great introduction to the area’s history.

Jamestown Settlement chronicles the history of America’s first English colony from its beginnings in the Old World through its first century of existence — including the Powhatan, English, and west central African cultures that converged there.

Start at the Visitor Center

You can begin with the indoor theater and gallery exhibits. The theater shows the film, “1607: A Nation Takes Root,” which gives an overview of the first two decades of Jamestown. It traces the evolution of the Virginia Company that sponsored the Jamestown Colony, examines the relationship between the English colonists and the Powhatan Indians, and chronicles the arrival of the first recorded enslaved Africans in 1619. This is shown every 30 minutes in the museum theater.

There is also a 4-D multi-sensory, multi-layered projection theater that tells the story of “Bacon’s Rebellion,” the story of a 1676 armed rebellion of Virginia colonists at Jamestown that was led by Nathaniel Bacon against the rule of Governor William Berkeley. This is shown every 20 minutes.

The museum exhibits then walk through a timeline from 1600 to 1699, when the capital of Virginia moved to Williamsburg, using very well-designed displays and more than 500 artifacts. The museum received a $10.6 million enhancement of the 30,000-square-foot exhibition space in 2019. Today, there are expansive galleries that incorporate new historical research and use innovative technology to connect visitors with an expanded storyline of early Virginia. Families can enjoy discovering personal stories displayed on monitors, life-size screens, and projections in re-created settings.

When we visited, we headed outside first, as rain was threatening and we wanted to see the outdoor exhibits before it rained. When we headed back inside, we ended up moving through the museum in reverse chronological order, which made the museum much harder to take in. I’d recommend starting with the film and museum first, and then exploring outside at your leisure.

Get Hands on at Paspahegh Town

As impressed as we were with the museum, the real highlight of the Jamestown Settlement is outside at the living history museum. Because the Native American village was our favorite at Plimouth Pawtuxet Museums in Plymouth, Massachusetts, we headed first for Paspahegh Town.

The Paspahegh were one of the 30-plus Algonquian-speaking tribal groups that belonged to the Powhatan paramount chiefdom. The village was designed based on archeological findings along the James River, oral tradition’s from Virginia’s state and federally recognized tribes, and descriptions recorded by the English colonists in the 17th century.

We were able to explore several reed-covered houses and the household items inside, like mats, animal hides, arrows, tools, and pottery to learn more about the traditional culture of Indigenous men, women, and children in Tsenacommacah, the Powhatan name for this land.

Throughout Paspahegh Town, costumed historical interpreters discuss and demonstrate traditional Powhatan cultural activities, such as hunting, fishing, gathering, growing and preparing food, processing animal hides, making pottery, and weaving with natural fibers. Historical interpreters demonstrate how a dugout canoe was made using Powhatan techniques and the craft of feather weaving to create a warm garment.

The historical interpreters are dressed in period dress and were happy to explain the Powhatan customs and gave us a chance to learn by doing. Hannah was able to weave a basket, carve a fishing hook, and grind corn. We had so much fun in this area, it was hard to move on, which is why it is easy to spend at least half a day at the Jamestown Settlement.

View the Ships at Jamestown Settlement

Following a path out of the village, we made our way down to a pier on the James River, where we found replicas of the Susan Constant, Godspeed, and Discovery ships, which brought the original Jamestown colonists in 1607. Here we climbed aboard each ship and asked questions of the interpreters about the ship, cargo, and the journey from England.

We learned more about what shipboard life was like for the first 104 men and boys to arrive in Jamestown on the four-and-a-half-month voyage from England in December 1606 to Jamestown in May 1607. The ships sometimes sail up the river to participate in commemorative and community events or host maritime outreach educational programs for students, but most of the time all three can be seen at the museum.

The Susan Constant was constructed in 1990 and is the largest of the three re-created ships at Jamestown Settlement and typically the most popular and has been around for more than 30 years.

James Fort

Our last stop outside was the re-created James Fort. The Fort recreates life in Jamestown from 1610-1614, a few years after the original fort was built. We looked inside the fort’s buildings, including dwellings, an Anglican church, a storehouse, a merchant’s house, and a governor’s house.

Since the Settlement offers special demonstrations throughout the day, like the making of a dugout canoe, ships artillery, woodworking, and more, we were able to see musket demonstrations and watch metal objects being formed at the blacksmith’s forge (always a favorite!) There was even armor to try on for size.

We spent about three hours exploring the Jamestown Settlement and could have easily stayed longer, so plan on at least a half day. If you want to take a meal break, the cafe at the Visitor’s Center offers some tasty options, including chicken pot pie, cornbread, and other colonial favorites, in addition to traditional fare like pizza, hamburgers, and sandwiches.

If you have young children, they will definitely get more out of a visit to Jamestown Settlement than Historic Jamestowne. For older children, I’d recommend a stop at both.

Jamestown Settlement is located at 2110 Jamestown Road, Williamsburg, VA

Historic Jamestowne

Just a few minutes down the road from the Jamestown Settlement, you will find Historic Jamestowne. Run by both the National Park Service and the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Historic Jamestowne is the actual site of the original Jamestown fort and town.

While not as interactive and visually captivating as the exhibits at the Jamestown Settlement, Historic Jamestowne is where you go if you really want to see history being unearthed before your eyes. Literally.

In 2010, student archaeologists began probing the center of the historic James Fort near a slice of land located next to the statue of Captain John Smith. Soon, they uncovered postholes, partially revealing the church, built in 1608, where Pocahontas married John Rolfe in 1614.

When we visited, they had not only outlined the entire church, but they had also discovered the graves of settlers which were known to have been buried inside.

Jamestown’s history is pretty gruesome, as starvation, disease, and raids from Native Americans threatened the colony. The brave men and women survived by any means possible, including cannibalism.

Archeologists recently unearthed a partial skull and tibia of “Jane,” an estimated 14-year-old girl that was a victim of survival cannibalism, as indicated by the chips to the cranium and cuts on the jaw and cheekbones.

As horrifying as this piece of history is, it is also fascinating that they were able to discover that “Jane” has consumed a European diet of wheat and meat and the layer in which she was found indicates that she arrived in Jamestown in August of 1609, just before the worst “starving time.”

While there isn’t much to see at Historic Jamestowne outside of archeology digs and crumbling structures to engage younger kids, older children, and students of history will no doubt be fascinated by this violent and tragic history.

Take a history and archeology tour

I’d highly recommend you join in on one of the daily archaeology tours (free with admission) to get the most out of your visit. We arrived a bit late to join in but we still found a docent inside the church and she spent at least 20 minutes with us, providing the background, showing us the active archeology digs, and filling us in on the history.

Walking tours include an introduction to Jamestown and offer insights into 17th-century Jamestown. Visitors can also get an overview of the archaeology of James Fort, or take a trip back in time with a living history interpreter. The tour offerings vary, so be sure to check the calendar to see what is being offered during your visit.

See archeology in action

If you are an Indiana Jones fan or your kid is into archeology, you will enjoy getting to see archeologists at work. The archaeology team is still uncovering new information about early Jamestown and you can watch the excavations in progress outside the fort from behind the safety ropes.

Become a Junior Ranger

The National Park Service’s Historic Jamestowne Junior Ranger programs are designed for three age groups: 5–7, 8–10, and 11 and up. To become a Junior Ranger, pick up a booklet in the Visitor Center and complete the required activities, which usually takes about two hours, to earn a badge and have an official “swearing in” ceremony. Don’t forget to bring your National Parks Passport to stamp!

Visit the Archaearium Museum

The Archaearium (pronounced “Ark-ee-air-ee-um”) houses more than 1,000 artifacts that have been discovered over the last 20 years of archaeological excavations. These artifacts have re-shaped understanding of life in James Fort, how the first English settlers fashioned a new American society in a foreign land, and their relationships with the Native peoples.

This award-winning archaeology museum brings to life the stories of the Colonists and the struggles they endured through the objects they left behind. Objects on display include arms and armor, tools, coins, trade goods, personal items, religious objects, and food remains.

Enjoy nature and a picnic

After absorbing all that history, kids will enjoy a walk on the trails to observe bald eagles, turtles and other indigenous wildlife. Afterwards, you can pick up lunch at the Dale House Café and set up a picnic in the designated areas outside with the best views along the James River for miles around!

Once kids have gotten excited about the archeology digs taking place, they can follow along online with the Jamestown Rediscovery Project.

Historic Jamestowne is located at 1368 Colonial Pkwy, Jamestown, VA 23081

Read before you go

Note: This post may contain affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, I may receive a small commission. All opinions are my own.

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To get your kids ready for a visit to Jamestown, you may want to check out some of the following books from your library before you go.

1. Pocahontas, by Joseph Bruchac
2. The True Story of Pocahontas (Step-into-Reading, Step 3), by Lucille Rech Penner
3. Pocahontas and the Powhatan Dilemma: The American Portrait Series, by Camilla Townsend
4. My America: Our Strange New Land: Elizabeth’s Jamestown Colony Diary, by Patricia Hermes
5. My America: The Starving Time: Elizabeth’s Jamestown Colony Diary, by Patricia Hermes

Where to Stay near Jamestown

Visiting Virginia? Read more:

• Historic Jamestowne makes a great addition to a Northeast History Road Trip!
• Find out how to visit Colonial Williamsburg in 1 day
• Read these Watercountry USA tips
• See things to do in Hampton and Newport News
• Plan a Viriginia road trip with kids

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