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U.S. President George W. Bush is related to Pocahontas – in two ways!
The President's 8th great-grandfather Robert Bolling was married twice. His first wife, Jane Rolfe, was Pocahontas’ only grandchild. Bush descends from Robert Bolling through his second marriage to Ann Stith.
In addition, Bush's 8th great-aunt Mary Kennon married Pocahontas' great-grandson, John Bolling. (Interestingly John Bolling was the son of Robert Bolling and his first wife, Jane Rolfe)
Through these two links, President Bush is related to most - if not all - of Pocahontas' living descendants. See the President Bush-Pocahontas family tree.
VIEW THE BUSH-POCAHONTAS TREE >
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In May 1607, 108 settlers established the first permanent English settlement in America; more settlers arrived over the next few years. They were expected to bring back gold and other treasures to England. Instead, they encountered disease-infested swampland, poor management of the settlement and disputes with native tribes in the region.
Only 60 of these original settlers survived the winter of 1609, what came to be known as “The Starving Time.” As settlement life improved in the 1610s, more settlers arrived, pushing out into the Virginia wilderness and establishing other settlements. Jamestown would soon find its economic stability – exporting tobacco.
RICHARD HENRY LEE
Known as Richard Lee the Immigrant, Richard Lee arrived at Jamestown about 1639. In 1642 Lee obtained 1,000 acres near the York River just north of Jamestown where he planted tobacco and traded with the native tribes. When he died, Lee owned more than 15,000 acres in Virginia and Maryland.
His descendants include:
• Declaration of Independence signers Francis Lightfoot Lee and Richard Henry Lee
• U.S. President Zachary Taylor
• Confederate Army General Robert E. Lee
• Oscar-winning actor Lee Marvin
JOHN CARTER
John Carter arrived in Virginia in 1635. In the 1650s he moved to Lancaster County north of Jamestown, where he established the Corotoman Plantation. His son Robert Carter inherited the plantation and eventually became one of the richest men in America, earning him the nickname “King Carter.”
His descendants include:
• Declaration of Independence signers Carter Braxton and Benjamin Harrison
• U.S. Presidents William Henry Harrison and Benjamin Harrison
RALEIGH CROSHAW
Raleigh Croshaw arrived at Jamestown in September 1608 as part of the Second Supply arriving from England. Raleigh became a trader, also serving in the town’s leadership. In the early 1620s he was given 500 acres of land. Raleigh died about 1628.
Helen Keller is his 8th great-granddaughter.
*Family relationships discovered from facts in U.S. Federal Census documents, accepted family histories and biographies, and other historical records available on Ancestry.com
December 1606 – The Virginia Company comprised of more than 100 English settlers set sail for Virginia with the intent of establishing a new colony, discovering gold and finding a water route to the Orient.
May 14, 1607 – The Virginia Company lands at Jamestown Island in Virginia, establishing Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in America.
January 1608 – The First Supply arrives from England, bringing food, supplies and more settlers.
September 1609 – An injury forces John Smith to return to England. He would never come back to Virginia.
Winter 1609-10 – Known as the “The Starving Time,” only 60 of the original 214 settlers survive.
1612 – John Rolfe exports his first tobacco to England; tobacco becomes the main export and economic stability of Jamestown settlement.
April 1614 – John Rolfe marries Pocahontas, daughter of Powhatan the Algonquian Indian chief. Relations with the native tribes become more peaceful.
1616 – Pocahontas visits England with her husband and their only son. She dies there in March 1617.
1619 – The first representative assembly in America convenes in a Jamestown church with goals "to establish one equal and uniform government over all Virginia" that will provide "just laws for the happy guiding and governing of the people there inhabiting."
1620 – The Mayflower arrives in America. Puritans establish Plymouth Colony.
1622 – Algonquian Indians attack plantations surrounding the Jamestown settlement, killing 300 settlers.
1624 – King James revokes the Virginia Charter and Virginia becomes a crown colony.
1698 – The capital of Virginia is moved from Jamestown to Williamsburg.