persons who were now administering the affairs of the Company soon produced an improvement in the aspect of Jamestown; so many houses were erected, that by 1623 the number to be found there was quadruple the number in existence only five years earlier, and these houses were far superior to the latter in the character of their material and construction. It would appear that an inn had not yet been built, although sawyers had been engaged a short time before the massacre in preparing plank for such a structure. Sawyers had also been employed in securing timber for the construction of a palisade and Court of Guard.[1]
There have survived a number of deeds, recorded during the administration of Governor Wyatt, conveying title to plats of ground in the Corporation of Jamestown, which afford us a glimpse of the different ownerships at that time in the ground on which the town was situated. The residence of Governor Yeardley stood in the most extensive lot, the area within his enclosure being seven acres. There were four acres in the lot of Captain Roger Smith. The lot of Ralph Warnet, a prominent merchant, covered an acre and a half. The immediate neighbors of Warnet were George Menefie, Richard Stevens, and John Chew, who were also engaged in mercantile pursuits. The lot of Captain Ralph Hamor lay some distance from these properties.[2] The houses occupied by these citizens were built entirely of wood. The population of the town and corporation in February, 1623, was calculated at one hundred and eighty-two.[3]
