Deal marks Kent links to US birth

Political leaders from Kent and Virginia signed the deal

An historic agreement has been signed between Kent and a US state, ahead of a major anniversary of one of the key events in the formation of America.

In December 1606 three ships sailed from Gravesend, heading for America's east coast where they founded the town of Jamestown, in the state of Virginia.

Kent and Virginia plan to mark the settlement's 400th anniversary, hoping for educational and economic benefits.

The leader of Kent County Council has travelled to the US to cement the deal.

The three ships, the Susan Constant, the Discovery and the Godspeed, set off on 20 December 1606, carrying 144 men and were expected to take two months to reach the US.

'Extremely important'

But poor trade winds and variable ocean currents meant the journey took five months, and they arrived on 14 May 1607.

More people sailed to Jamestown in the next few years, with the population rising to 500 by 1609.

Replicas of the three 1607 ships are on show in the River James

When the 300th anniversary of the settlement was marked in 1907, then US president Theodore Roosevelt described Jamestown as marking the "beginning of the history of the United States".

On Friday, Sir Sandy Bruce Lockhart, the leader of Kent County Council, and Virginian State Governor Mark Warner signed a memorandum of understanding in the state capital of Richmond.

It is intended the links between the two areas will see thousands of people travel between Kent and Virginia in future years.

Sir Sandy said: "We hope that tourism will build, it certainly seems like it's working that way.

"We think that it's probably worth £100m or so to Kent.

"But we would like to see the educational links build, we would like to see the trade routes build and links for produce, there are a number of things we're talking about with Virginia.

More than 700,000 artefacts from Jamestown have been found

"It's all extremely important for Kent."

The original site of the Jamestown settlement had been thought lost but about 10 years ago archaeologists discovered it and since then have unearthed what is considered one of American archaeology's most significant finds.

More than 700,000 artefacts have been unearthed, most dating back to the early 17th Century, and they are on show in a museum called the Jamestown Rediscovery Project.

Curator Bly Straube said: "It represents the start of our nation, it's where our country was born."