Did You Know? Christianizing Virginia's Indians was a priority with King James and the Virginia Company. A college was chartered at Henricus to teach Indian children useful trades and to train them to be missionaries among their people. But it was not to be. The Indians proved ''very loathe upon any tearmes to part with theire children,'' Governor George Yeardley reported.

The hardships of weather, disease and famine at Jamestown led the English settlers to seek a more suitable place to live. In 1610, Sir Thomas Dale went in search of that place. He wrote, ''Eighty miles up our river from Jamestown I have surveyed a convenient, strong, healthie and sweete site to plan a new Towne in.''

Citie of Henricus
The Citie of Henricus was established in 1611 at the site Dale had found on the James River in what is today Chesterfield County. It was named in honor of Prince Henry, heir to the English throne and a supporter of the Virginia Colony.

It was here that tobacco crops were first grown and cultivated for sale in Europe. The large, self-sustaining plantations that defined early Virginia got their start here. The first university was chartered and the first English hospital, Mt. Malady, was built and operated. Henricus pioneered private land ownership, making it the birthplace of the American system of free enterprise.

Pocahontas
Pocahontas, daughter of Chief Powhatan, spent much of her life near Henricus. In 1613 she was kidnapped by colonists in the hope of ransoming her for the return of some English prisoners, stolen weapons and tools. A year-long standoff ensued.

While captive at Henricus, an English minister instructed Pocahontas in Christianity. She was baptized and her name was changed to Rebecca. In 1614 she rebuked her father for valuing her ''less than old swords, pieces, or axes'' and declared that she preferred to live with the English.

John Rolfe
While at Henricus, Pocahontas met John Rolfe, a farmer and widower whose experiments with a new strain of tobacco became the colony's economic salvation. They fell in love, were married on April 5, 1614 and Pocahontas was christened Lady Rebecca. A son, Thomas, was born on January 30, 1615.

Admission fee charged. Gift shop on site. Open Tuesday thru Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Last ticket sold at 4:00 p.m. Closed Mondays and major holidays. Visit our web site to view our calendar. 251 Henricus Park Road Chester, VA 23836 804-748-1613 www.henricus.org

In an effort to promote the Virginia colony, the Rolfes traveled to England in 1616. Pocahontas was presented to King James I, the royal family and the best of English society. She died seven months later at Gravesend just before a planned return to Virginia. John Rolfe returned, remarried and continued to raise tobacco until his death in 1622.

Henricus Historical Park
Located on a bluff overlooking one of the most scenic areas of the James River, the 32-acre living history museum transports you back to the days of Pocahontas, John Rolfe and the early English Settlers.

A re-created Arrohateck Indian village demonstrates how native people lived before contact with the English settlers. Enter several ''long houses'' to learn how families cooked food, made tools and survived the Virginia weather. See demonstrations of techniques for building canoes and making clothing, leather goods and other necessities of daily life.

The Citie Center is a re-creation of the original English fort, complete with examples of early ''wattle and daub'' homes and demonstrations of cooking and gardening. Meet the costumed interpreters to learn about the daily lives of English soldiers, their military weapons and the role that the fort played in the settlers' lives.

The Plantation Area outside the fort demonstrates how tobacco, corn and other crops sustained the settlement. Visit a planter's home and tobacco barn to learn about its cultivation. And visit a re-creation of Mount Malady, the first English speaking hospital built in the New World to learn about early medical care.