First Permanent English Settlement in America: Jamestown, Virginia

The first permanent English settlement in North America was established at Jamestown, Virginia, on May 14, 1607 by the Virginia Company of London.

Earlier attempts (Roanoke, 1587) failed. Jamestown endured extreme hardship—starvation, disease, conflict with Powhatan Confederacy—but survived, becoming the capital of the Virginia Colony and the foothold for English expansion on the continent.