Virginia

Virginia or Virginia of Sagadahoc was a pinnace built in 1607 and 1608 by English colonists at the Popham Colony. The ship was a project of the Plymouth Company, branch of the proprietary Virginia Company, on land England claimed as belonging to the Virginia Colony. She was the first English ocean-going vessel built in the New World, and a demonstration of the new colony's ability to build ships. The second and third "local" pinnaces (Deliverance and Patience) were built soon afterwards in Bermuda following the loss of Sea Venture during the Third Supply. Virginia was built at the mouth of the Kennebec River in what is now Phippsburg, Maine. Little is known about the details of her architecture, but written accounts of the colony and historical records of similar ships suggest that Virginia was a pinnace that displaced about 30 tons and measured somewhat less than long, with a beam of . She had a flush main deck, drew about fully loaded, and had a freeboard of less than . Background The Popham Colony, also known as the Sagadahoc Colony, was established in 1607 by the Plymouth Company. It was situated in the present town of Phippsburg, Maine at the mouth of the Sagadahoc River, now the Kennebec River. The mission was to establish an English presence in North Virginia, explore the area for gold and other valuable commodities, find the Northwest Passage, establish relations and trade with the native people (primarily for fur), and show that the area could supply all of the resources necessary to build ships.