Remains Thought to be Jamestown Leader By JUSTIN BERGMAN Associated Press Writer Published February 12, 2003 Archaeologists believe they may have discovered the skeleton of the man considered to be the main force behind the first permanent English settlement in America. He also is an ancestor to thousands of present-day Americans. Archeologists digging inside the location of the 17th-century Jamestown fort uncovered the skeleton a few weeks ago. Given its placement and the ceremonial artifacts found alongside the body, researchers believe that it is the skeleton of Capt. Bartholomew Gosnold. Using modern-day high-tech techniques, the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities hopes to prove or disprove that assumption. The association, which began excavating the fort area in 1994, is arranging DNA tests to compare the remains to the DNA of Gosnold's descendants. A native of Suffolk, England, Gosnold pushed the English to send out another group of explorers and settlers after the disappearance of the Roanoke colony sometime around 1587 in what is now North Carolina's Outer Banks. In 1602, Gosnold led an expedition to the Maine and Massachusetts coasts, where he discovered and named Cape Cod for the fish found there, and Martha s Vineyard, for his infant daughter. As commander of the "Godspeed," he was second-in-command in the three-ship fleet that landed the 107 Virginia Company settlers at Jamestown in May of 1607. He helped design the triangular fort where they lived. Capt. John Smith, credited with leading and ultimately saving the colony, described Gosnold as "the prime mover behind the settlement." Gosnold died in August of 1607 after three weeks of illness. About two-thirds of the settlers died that summer. Sally Rolls Pavia Sun City, AZ [email protected] List Owner: [email protected] "Without genealogy, the study of history is lifeless." All incoming and outgoing email checked by Norton Anti-Virus 2002 .