Temperance Flowerdew

Temperance Flowerdew, Lady Yeardley (1590 – 1628) was an early settler of the Jamestown Colony and a key member of the Flowerdew family, significant participants in the history of Jamestown. Temperance Flowerdew was wife of two Governors of Virginia, sister of another early colonist, aunt to a representative at the first General Assembly and "cousin-german" (first cousin) to the Secretary to the Colony. Flowerdew was one of the few survivors of the winter of 1609–10, known as the "Starving Time", which killed almost ninety percent of Jamestown's inhabitants. Later, upon the death of her second husband, George Yeardley, Flowerdew became one of the wealthiest women in Virginia. Upon her death, the estate was transferred to her children despite the efforts of her third husband to claim it. Flowerdew was named one of the Virginia Women in History by the Library of Virginia in 2018. Sea voyage Mrs. Temperance Barrow sailed for Jamestown aboard the Falcon, commanded by Captain John Martin, in May 1609 in a convoy of nine ships as part of the Virginia Company of London's Third Supply Mission. Whether she was accompanied by her husband, Richard Barrow, is not of record. The flagship of the convoy, the Sea Venture, had the new leaders for Jamestown aboard, including George Yeardley. During the trip, the convoy encountered a severe storm which was quite likely a hurricane. The Sea Venture became separated from the rest of the convoy, ultimately coming aground on the island of Bermuda, where it was stranded for months. The Falcon continued on, reaching Jamestown in August 1609.