Thomas Rolfe Biography

Pocahontas, a Native American, was captured by the English people in 1613, where she somehow managed to safeguard herself by turning to Christianity and even adopting a Christian name Rebecca. She married an ace tobacco businessman and planter, John Rolfe, and gave birth to a son, Thomas Rolfe, on January 30, 1615, in Varina Farms, Virginia. He was named after Virginian governor Thomas Dale and the family made a move to England while Thomas was one year old. At that time, the mortality rate in infants was quite high and a boat ride to the UK was a risky step.

Pocahontas was a woman who was highly respected among the British and they lived in Kent. The Native Americans were known as savages who had no sense of decency and Pocahontas broke that general illusion. Her son Thomas also grew up learning the English ways but unfortunately she died when Thomas was just a kid. Thomas was destroyed emotionally and his father became a distant man post his wife’s death. He made a move to Virginia all alone, leaving Thomas behind in England. Thomas was living in Plymouth by that time in the care of Sir Lewis Stuckly, a close associate of his father.

His guardianship was then transferred to his uncle, Henry Rolfe, and thereafter he never saw his father ever again. Sometime later, his father died due to unknown reasons but by them, Thomas was 21, and old enough to inherit his father’s vast empire, on which his uncle had his eyes since very long. His uncle, being a cunning man, managed to acquire almost half of John’s property, which belonged to Thomas and as a result Thomas returned to Virginia in 1635.

The ongoing war between the British and Indians was turning nasty, and it was a tough choice for Thomas to take sides. When the colony was attacked by the natives in 1645, Thomas fought against his very own people taking the British side. Four forts were built to safeguard the frontiers against the Indians and Thomas was given the charge of one of them. He had to fight against Powhatan, with just six men at his side. Once the war was over, Thomas was given the difficult duty of building a fort at Moysenac and for that, he was given a whopping 400 acres of land.

Being the child of a Native American woman and a white settler, certain aspects of Thomas Rolfe's life were surrounded by controversy. Rolfe, undeterred by colonial laws forbidding such interactions and societal ridicule, pursued efforts to reconnect with his Native American relatives. In 1641, he submitted a petition to the governor seeking permission to visit his "aunt, Cleopatra, and his kinsman Opecanaugh."

Thomas Rolfe married Jane Poythress, the daughter of Captain Francis Poythress, a wealthy landowner in Virginia. The couple had one known child, a daughter named Jane Rolfe, who was born on October 10, 1650, at Varina Plantation in Charles City County, Virginia. There are no records of Thomas Rolfe having any other children or entering into any additional marriages.

Thomas Rolfe’s life was majorly unrecorded and the very last event of his life which has been documented properly in the papers to some extent was in form of a land deed, dated September 16, 1658. There are many sources which confidently say that he died in the year 1680, while some recent and more reliable sources claim that the exact time and year of his death hasn’t been known yet. Some reports do claim that Thomas died in his dearest James City plantation located in Virginia and while it can be believed that this may be true, the lack of documentation is keeping his death a mystery. And if there were any, they would have been destroyed in the fire in 1685.

Many non-native people in USA claim to be the descendants of Pocahontas and likewise, in the UK, there are many claims made by the people about their family history related to Pocahontas. This is partly due to the fact that Thomas and Elizabeth, both happen to be the most common names in Britain and those people must be thinking of another Thomas Rolfe and Elizabeth Washington as their ancestors.