When the Godspeed made its original journey across the Atlantic to the New World in 1607, one of three ships to do so, it was captained by Bartholomew Gosnold. Between crew and colonists, 52 men were one board the 88-foot long, 17-foot wide ship (one of which may have been John Smith). After 144 days, it officially weighed anchor at what would be the Jamestown settlement. The tall masts arrive to a much different landscape today, as the re-creation of the Godspeed is currently docked alongside modern day boats at the City of Alexandria Marina.
Godspeed comes to Alexandria, as part of the Portside in Old Town Festival, captained by Eric Speth of the Jamestown Settlement organization. Godspeed is a “sailing classroom,” say Speth, offering lessons on what life on the ship was like for sailors and passengers, as well as the founding of Virginia and the country. The public will have an opportunity to see and hear about all of that first hand starting today at 3 p.m. and throughout the weekend.
The ship had made its way to Alexandria as part of a series of events the Jamestown Settlement is organizing to commemorate the year of 1619, which marked a number of historical events that would come to shape America. That year saw the first representative legislature take place in America; it saw the largest recruitment of women to come to the New World to help create permanence; the arrival of the first group of Africans; and the first English Thanksgiving in Charles City, Virginia.
The tours will be led by Speth and his crew of costumed interpreters, many of whom are volunteers. While the ship is capable of sailing—it sailed from Jamestown to a previous stop in Baltimore before coming to Alexandria—it will remain docked for the duration of its stay at the Old Town waterfront. However, the ship’s details are incredibly intricate and are a truly accurate representation of what the setting would have been like for those original colonists.
Godspeed will be open for public tours from 3-6 p.m. on Friday, 1-6 p.m. on Saturday and noon-5 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is free. The ship will remain in Alexandria Monday and Tuesday, when it will host local schools for a series of special educational tours. On Wednesday, it will set sail back to Jamestown to its permanent home.
If you are unable to make it out to Old Town to see this bit of living history this weekend, another replica of a historical ship, The Providence, will be permanently located at the planned King Street Park as of the summer of 2019.
