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Long-hidden family scandal in Jamestown colony revealed 400 years later by ancient DNA

2024-08-24 09:33:00, Kuriozitete CNA

Long-hidden family scandal in Jamestown colony revealed 400 years later by

An investigation of human skeletons from the 17th-century British settlement of Jamestown, Virginia, has uncovered a long-hidden scandal in the family of the colony's first governor.

Thomas West became the leader of Jamestown in 1610; there he was joined by three of his brothers and several other male relatives. Recently, DNA analysis of two skeletons from unmarked graves in a Jamestown church revealed that both men were associated with the West. DNA also showed that the men were related by common maternal descent. This connection led researchers to documents proving that one of the men - Captain William West - was illegitimate, born to Thomas West's spinster aunt Elizabeth.

Although Captain West was raised as part of the high-status West family in England, the details of his birth were deliberately omitted from the family's genealogical records, and persistent whispers of scandal may have been one of the factors that led him to seek wealth in the American colony, researchers reported on August 13 in the journal Antiquity.

The findings show how genetic data in combination with other historical evidence "can help bring to light narratives that were forbidden or shameful in the past," said Dr. Christine Lee, an assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Mississippi, in an email.

"This in turn gives us a better understanding of how individuals circumvent social rules," said Lee, who was not involved in the research.

Unmarked Burial in Colonial Jamestown

Researchers found four unmarked graves in Jamestown in 2014, in an Anglican church that the colonists used from 1608 to 1616. The high craftsmanship of the two coffins suggested that the people they carried were important members of the colony. One was also buried with a military sash wrapped in silver fringe.

These burial details, along with age estimates for the two skeletons and historical documents, indicated that the remains in the coffins were those of Captain West, who died in his early 20s, and Sir Ferdinando Wenman, who died aged 34. year. The Jamestown records named both as relatives of the governor, but only Wenman's status — as the governor's first cousin — was described, according to the study. The relationship between Wenman and West was also unknown.

Matrilineal records reveal a mystery

Degraded over four centuries, the ancient DNA was in poor shape, so the only definitive results were in the mitochondrial haplogroup, a matrilineal part of the genome, said study co-author Dr. Éadaoin Harney, a professor of human evolutionary biology at Harvard University. While there was not enough DNA to show immediate family ties, Wenman and Captain West both shared the H10e haplogroup. This commonality indicated that they were likely close relatives on the mother's side, which surprised the study authors who analyzed the genetic data.

"They had assumed that since Captain William West's last name was 'West' and that 'West' was the last name of Ferdinando Wenman's mother, that their relationship would have been on the paternal line," Harney said. "Ancient DNA gave anthropologists a direction to start looking."

This discovery led researchers to documents that mentioned female relatives of Captain West, which led them to a previously overlooked court case from 1616 regarding the beneficiary of West's will. He had left his belongings (including the family jewels) to Mary Blount, another aunt of the Jamestown governor. In legal documents, the researchers found their evidence: court records said Mary Blount had raised Captain West "on behalf of her unmarried, deceased sister, Elizabeth," the authors reported. "The coded language and lack of official documentary recognition of Captain West as her son supports the illegitimate nature of his birth," the researchers wrote.

Although the ancient DNA was incomplete, "it provided enough evidence to show an unexpected relationship — through their female lines," Bruwelheide said. "That led to a really deep investigation into other family members, which led to the court case and the discovery of the illegality."

Their findings confirmed that Captain West, Governor Thomas West and Ferdinando Wenman were all cousins. Illuminating this family secret adds another layer to the history of Jamestown, the oldest English settlement in North America, said study co-author Michael Lavin, director of collections and conservation at the Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation.

"People who came here to make a new life for themselves had family secrets and interpersonal drama just like us," Lavin said in an email. "The fact that we can uncover those secrets more than 400 years later is an incredible feat by the historical and scientific community."/ CNA