Virginia Quay Settlers Monument Stele

On a cold December day in 1606, three ships, the Susan Constant, Godspeed, and Discovery, set sail from Blackwall, embarking on a journey that would shape the course of history. Today, the Virginia Quay Settlers Monument stands as a testament to their courage and ambition. The Virginia Quay Settlers Monument commemorates the first English settlers who departed from this very spot to establish the Colony of Virginia. This monument has seen its share of transformations. It began as a plaque in 1928 on the Brunswick Dock master’s house. This plaque detailed the voyage, listing the 105 adventurers, the three ships and their captains. It also highlighted the founding of Jamestown in 1607 and the first democratic assembly in America in 1619. During World War II, the dock master’s house suffered bomb damage, and the plaque was salvaged. In 1951, the plaque was incorporated into a new monument at the Brunswick Wharf Power Station. Designed by Harold Brown, the monument featured rough-hewn granite blocks and a bronze mermaid. The mermaid, sadly, was later stolen. Fast forward to 1999. The power station was demolished, the area redeveloped, and the Virginia Quay Settlers Monument found a new home on the riverbank. Barratt Homes refurbished the monument, adding a granite plinth and replacing the mermaid with a mariner’s astrolabe by Wendy Taylor. Now, the Virginia Quay Settlers Monument, with its astrolabe pointing towards the stars, stands as a reminder of the intrepid voyagers who sailed from Blackwall in search of a new world. Their journey, fraught with peril and hardship, ultimately led to the establishment of Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in America. The Virginia Quay Settlers Monument serves not just as a memorial to these early settlers but also as a symbol of the enduring ties between Britain and the United States.