University of Virginia Library

XLVIII. Ferdinando Yate. "The Voyage * * * to Verginia 1619"
1619

I §was§ wished by mr Georg thorpe to take a note of everie daies travil
vpon the seas; which I haue performe in a true Collection althouge not in
so good form as I could §wish§ it were therfor I hope you will exceept §of it§
as it is; not looking for anie greater mater in soe mean a scoller the seas
wer trublsum and manie occation at sea hapeneth to hinder a man from
his studie and now wee are ashore wee haue worke enuf to follow our
daiely husbandtrie sum to clering ground for cor§ne§ and toback sum to
building housses sum to plant vines and mulberie trees and all these must
be seen vnto otherwise they will not follow their busines therfor I hope
§you will consider§ of vs in whom the charge §doth§ light vpon

A short noote of or time spent at sea and the varietie and change of wind
and wether and the extremities that seamen endure and the mercies of
allmighttie god to support them in all disstreses

To worshipfull gentlemen of gloucs Georg Thorp of wanswell essquier
and John smith of nibly essquier wishing you all maner of p̳speritie and
espesially in this honorable attempt of planting in this cuntrie which I

make noe doubt with gode assistance, wilbe a benifit to your selves and
posterie; a good to the common welth of eingland; and in time, a meanes
to convert these poore faithles Indeans

The. 16. day of September anno dom .1619. this .16. day by the assistance
of the allmigtie god our Captaine Capt John woodlefe being sett foorth by
the worthy and worshipfull gentlemen of Glous Sr william Throgmarton
knight and barannet Richard barkeley Essquier Gorge thorpe Essquier
John smith Essquier and or Capt Essquier and partner with those gentle
men this day abouementioned at .8. of the clocke orther aboute we sett
§saile§ in kingrod in a barke of bristow caled the margrett the winde being
southwarly we could not make anie great speede one or quorse the seventh
day in the morning the wind god bethanked came sumwhat faierer with
a smal gale and verie faier wether and with gode assistance proseeded on
or quorse about ten of the clocke this day we lost the sight of lundie and
about .2. a clock of the same daie the wind rose a litle and blue a faier
gale at southwest and the wether faier the which I pray god §to§ make vs
thankfull for it: the—18th day wee prosseed one or quorse the wind being
faier but a verie smalle gale and with gode assistance wee recovered to
the southward of ir§eir§land this night we were becalmed but only now and
then with vncertain winde contrarie to our quors thus waiting vpon the
mercies of the allmigtie god and wavering vpon the wide Seas with vncer-
taine winde vntle it shall plese god god to send vs wether to bring vs to or
expected port. the .19. day being the first saboath day in or viage we were
becalmed as the daie night before but only with a smale gale §at§ norwest
about .2. a clocke of this daie it pleased god to send vs a faier gale at
norwest and soe we held or quors to the sowwest the .20. day we lickwise
proseeded on or quors the wind houlding with a strong gale as the day
before this day about .2 a clocke the wind came at north with a verie
strong gale in so much that when the night came we were driven to strike
or topsailes then the wind shifted that estnorthest and so the .21. day
with the same wind wee held our qurs at west sowwest according to or
desier and praing to the allmightie god to continue so faier a wind, the
.22. day we had the wind southest and held or quors as the day before
Runing with a strong gale as much as our smale ship is able to bere towarde

Or expected port thus ver depending vpon the mercies of the all
mightie god and desiering him allwais to continue his favorable hand of
cumpassion towarde vs without the which §we cannot§ long continue the
.23. daie the wind God bethanke held as the day before and we continued
or quors at westsouwest which we hould to be §the direct§ poynt for or port
this .23 day at night wee had a shroud storme out of the southest both of
wind and raigne which did both annoy mariners and pasengers for the
time the .24. day in the morning it pleased god to send vs calme wether
but §the§ wind vncertaine then about ten a clocke we had a faier gale at est
and by south and we held or quorse at westsouwest the .25 day wee had
the wind estnorthest and helld or quors as the §daie before§ .26. the wind
held at southest and wee held or quors at souwest an by west this day in
the after noone wee had stormes and gustes out of the est and the night
following proued verie tempestuous both with wind and raigne the 27
daie we had faier wether and the wind at estsouthest the .28. daie in the
morning we had the wether faier and the wind at southest the .29. daie
we had the wind a sousouwest contrarie to or quors the .30 day the wind
held contrie as the daie before the first day of october we were becalmed
with verie faier wether [and about] the .2. day god be thanked we had
the §wind at§ sousouthest and directed or quors at souwest and by west the
.3. daie we had a verie great storm from the estsouthest which held from
saturday night vntle morndad morning the .4. day it pleased god we
had the wether faier but the wind contrie at souwest the .5. daie we had
the §winde§ southwardly the .6. daie we had the §wind§ at north west
the .7. day we had the §wind at§ south and south an by west and in the
afternoone blew so much wind that we could hardly bear anie saile the 8
day we were becalmed this night about midnit we had a faier gale at est
which held .2. or .3. houres and as the morning came the wind shifted the .9. day
the storme grew soe extrem that we were licke to cutte or
maine mast by the bord and then it plesed god to favor vs in slakeing the
wind a litle which cased vs to stay o hande and so by the helpe of the all-
mightie we enduered the storm all that day and night the tenth day we
had the wind at norwest and soe proseeded one or quors as nere as wee
could the .11. day wee had the wind as the daie before and verie faier
wether the .12. daie we had the wind at south and foule wether full of

mist and fog this night about midnit the wind came northwardly the .13.
day we had the wind at north and by est with a verie strong gale the
which we praied god to continue to his will and plesur the .14. day we
had the wind faier but shifted to the southest and towarde night shrunke
away to souwest with foule wether the .15. day §we§ had the wind con-
trarie as the daie before and towarde the evening the wind came a litle
northwardly the .16. day we had the wind at west and by north the .17.
day wee had faier wether and calme that we coulnot make anie way one
our viage in the evening we had a litle fresh gale at west and the wind
increased that night the .18. daie we had a verie great storm which cased
vs to strike or sailes and topmast and toward night the storm ceased a
litle and then wee sett or maine quors the .19 day we had the wind faier
the .20. daie the §wind§ blue at west norwest the .21. daie we had the wind
lick wise as the daie before and we held or quors at west and by south
the .22. daie we had faier weth and the wind northwardly but a vrie
smale gale the .23. day was faier and calme and the wind at north and
by est the .24. day the wind blue as the daie before with a faier gale
the .25 day wee had the wind and wether faier luckewise the .26. day we
had the wind and wether faier lickewise with a good full gale and we held
our quors at west and by north proseeding one our viag as opertunitie
serueth the .27. we had the wind sanct and in the afternoone fel away
westward contrarie to our quors
the .28. day the wind was faier and wee held our quors fitt for or portt
the .29. day we had the wind at est and a verie strong gale and we sailed
away afor the wind the .30. daie §we had§ the wind faier at north est with
a smal gale the .31. daie we had a shroud storm at norwest with wind and
raigne and we struke or sailes and topmastes, the first daie of novenber
we §had§ the wether faier and the wind at north an by est and we sett or
mast and sailes the .2. daie §we had§ the wind and wether §faier§ at south
with a strong gale the .3. daie foule wether and the wind at south the 4
daie we had the wind at north and resonable faier wether the .5. daie wee
had the wind estandbynorth with a faier gale the .6. day the wind shifted
to the west contrari to or quors and in the after noone we had a shroud
storm and we struck or sailes and topmaste and in the evening the wind
cam faier at north and by est and so the storm cesed and we set or maigne
quors halfe mast hie the 7. daie was faier wether and the wind at southest
the 8 daie the wind came at south and we held our quorse at north an by west
the .9. day we had the wind at est with a faier strong gale and continued
most part of the neight and a storm cam and the wind shefted at west
the tenth day wee strucke sailes and topmastes and the storme continued
all that day in the evening the storm cessed a litle and we set or maigne
quors and continued that neight the .11. day in the morning we had faier
wether and held the same quors at westsouwest with a verie small gale
and sumtimes a calme the .12. day we had a rufe §gale§ from the norwest
the .13. day we had faier wether and becalmed the .14. daie we had a
storm at west contrarie to our quors and we strucke or saieles and top
mastes and huld away befor the wind. about midnight the storm ceased
the .15. day we had §the§ wind at norwest in the evening the wind came
faier at est and continued with a strong gale that night the .16. daie the
wind held as the the daie befor but the wind encreased and continued
with much raigne & foule wether that we strucke or saieles and top mastes
and huld befor the wind about midnight the storm cesed both of wind
and raigne
the .17. daie we had the wind faier in the morning and about .9. of the
clocke we had a storm out of the est at .12. a clocke faier wether and a good
obcervation and the wind came againe at est with a faier gale and we set or sailes and topmast and befor night it turned to a storm that we struck
* * * §sailes§ againe and huld befor the wind with gret extremitie of
wether the .18. daie the storm held as the daie before with as much extremitie
and about noone wee strucke or fortopmast thus remaining acording to
the plesur * * * of the allmightie god in the surging and overgroune
seas in which daingers the lord hath hetherto preserued vs and we lick
pore passenger and pilgreimes depending vpon god mercies and praiing
vnto his maiestie to lend vs such cumfortable wether that may be for our
goode and bring vs to our expected port free from all hurte and dangers and
out of the hande of our enimies the .19. daie in the morning the storm sum
wht a bated and a bout .6. a clocke we sett saile and proseeded on or quors as opertunitie serueth the .20. daie we had the wind faier at northest and pro-
seeded one or quors the .21. day the wind held faier lickwise the .22. daie the wind held faier as the daie before and we held or quors and looked out
for land and sounding often not finding ground & neither discovered
land the 23 d[ay] the wether was veri faier and the wind resonable large
the .24. daie the wind and wether was faier the which we praied god to
continue the .25. daie we had the wind §at south§ and blew a strong gale
and we sterd away west and about .4. a clocke we sounded and had ground
at .16. fathom of water the .26. daie we had the wind at nor west con-
trarie to or quors the .27. daie §the§ wind was contrarie lickewise but the
wether faier and callme this night §the wind cum§ at souwest and we bore
vp at west and by north and sumtimes norwest
the .28. daie being the sabaoth daie we had the wind at souwest, and we
bore vp at west and by nore and in the morning wee sounded and had
lande at at a .11. fathom of water and about §.11.§ a clocke one went vp
in the maine top and desscried land which was noe smale ioy to the
whole cumpanie, and this night we came to an anker in Cheskeak baie the
.29. daie we had a shroud storm and we endevored to waie anker and or
Capston brock, which put vs in great disstreese and so we were driven to
ride it out vntle the next morning the .30. daie we had or Capston
mended and waied anker, and in the evening god bethanked we came to
an anker at kecketan in a good harbore where my Captaine went a shore
to see sum of his frendℯ and my selfe and his mane with him thus
leauing the seas I leave to wright at this time the last of november .1619.

I need not report anie thing of the cuntrie you hauing had soe good enteli-
genc of it by soe manie worthy gentle men: that i should but loose my
labore to wright anie farther, but only this I must need saie, that if I
had the eloquence of Cesero or and the skillfull art of Apellese I could
not pen neither paint out a better praise of the cuntrie then the cuntrie
it selfe deserveth
we are well settled in good land by the means of the Governor of this
cuntrie, and the care and experienc of or Capt
our house is bilt with a stoore convenient
[Indorsed in the handwriting of John Smyth:] The voyage written by ffer-
dinardo Yate to verginia 1619.