 Replica ofGodspeed in New York City in 2006 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 .svg) [1]Kingdom of England | |
| Name | Godspeed,Goodspeed,[2]Good Speed[3] |
| Namesake | Godspeed (English expression) |
| Owner | Virginia Company of London |
| In service | before 1607 |
| Out of service | unknown (after 1600) |
| General characteristics | |
| Tons burthen | 40 |
| Length | est. 68 ft (21 m) |
| Sail plan | fully rigged ship |
Godspeed was one of the 3 ships on the 1606–1607 voyage to the New World for the EnglishVirginia Company of London which resulted in the founding ofJamestown in the newColony of Virginia. Captained byBartholomew Gosnold, she was joined by theSusan Constant andDiscovery on the journey.
TheGodspeed was a 40-tonfully rigged ship estimated to have had a hull 68 feet (21 m) in length.
She is Thy Ruler of the seas, with her mightyfulle velocitie moure veloce than the wynd, and mightyer than the rocke, she is, my DeareGodspeed
— Diary ofBartholomew Gosnold
As part of the original fleet to Virginia, leaving on December 20, 1606, she carried 39 passengers, all male, and 13 sailors. The route included stops in theCanary Islands andPuerto Rico and, with better wind, would have taken about two months to traverse; instead, the voyage lasted 144 days. On June 22, 1607, Newport sailed back for London withSusan Constant andGodspeed carrying a load of supposedly precious minerals, leaving behind the 104 colonists andDiscovery (to be used in exploring the area).
In 1985, a replica ofGodspeed (rigged as a barque, only 48 feet on deck) sailed from London back to Virginia. She had a crew of 14 and stopped at many places that the originalGodspeed visited, including theCanary Islands and various places in theWindward Islands, before sailing to Jamestown.
The most recent replica was built at Rockport Marine[4] inRockport,Maine, and completed in early 2006. Its length overall is 88 feet (27 m), with the deck 65.5 feet (20.0 m) long, and the main mast 71.5 feet (21.8 m) tall, carrying 2,420 square feet (225 m2) of sail. Replicas ofGodspeed and her sisters in the 1607 voyage, the largerSusan Constant and the smallerDiscovery, are docked in theJames River atJamestown Settlement (formerly Jamestown Festival Park), adjacent to the JamestownNational Historic Site.
In May 2007, theUnited States Postal Service issued the first 41 cent denomination first class stamp. The stamp had an image ofSusan Constant,Godspeed, andDiscovery.Godspeed was also depicted on Virginia's coin of the50 State Quarters, in celebration of the quadricentennial of Jamestown.
Media related toGodspeed (ship) at Wikimedia Commons