John Smith who established a colony in Jamestown, Virginia, first encountered and was impressed with the talents of Polish craftsmen when he traveled through Poland in 1602, fleeing the Turks who had imprisoned him. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was then the largest kingdom of Europe, covering the present territory of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Belarus, Ukraine, Moldavia and parts of Russia.

Early in Jamestown's history, Smith and the Virginia Company began recruiting workers from mainland Europe to come to their new colony.The first of these foreign workers came with the second group of settlers who arrived in the colony in 1608; two of these workers would later save Smith's life in an attack by Native Americans as noted in Smith's writings. Contemporary historical accounts refer to this first group of foreign craftsmen as Dutchmen and Poles.

The foreign craftsmen began producing glassware, pitch, and potash soon after their arrival (which was October 1,1608). These goods were used in the colony, but were also important as they were the first goods exported from the colony to Europe. Later more skilled workers arrived and continued to produce tar, resin, and turpentine, and clapboard and frankincense as well.

Who were the first comers to this new colony, not Englishmen, they were: Michał Łowicki, Zbigniew Stefański, Jur Mata, Jan Bogdan, Karol Źrenica and Stanisław Sadowski, and all came to America 12 years before the Mayflower.

Who were they really? Arthur L Waldo provides us with the following descriptions:

Michał Łowicki - of London, a Polish nobleman, industry and business organizer, the leader of the group

Zbigniew Stefański - of Wloclawek, glass production specialist; saved Smith's life

Jan Mata or Jur Mata - of Krakow, a prominent soap producer

Stanisław Sadowski - of Radom, lumber and clapboard production organizer

Jan Bogdan - of Kolomyja, pitch and tar, a ship-building expert; along with Stefanski he saved Smith's life.

This group departed with Smith in 1609.

In the article written by Philip L. Barbour "The Identity of the First Poles in America" he writes:

"Since 1608 every ship was bringing more Poles to Virginia:

Karol Zrenica

Ignacy Machowski with his English wife Sarah

Tomasz Mietus of Lwow (Captain Thomas Mewtis or Meautus has served under Vere in Holland)

Gwidon Stojka or "GoodmanStoike" and his wife Florence

Jan Kulawy or John Cullaway

Albertus Malaszko or Wojciech Malaszko (recorded as Molasco the Polander)

Mateusz Gramza and others

"The colonists viewed the Poles as hard-working and respectful. The Poles first impressions of Jamestown were not very positive. Stefanski observed, "Seldom has one seen such lack of resourcefulness as we found in Virginia. Not even a spoonful of drinking water (…) the people here marveled when we dug a well and presented it to them (…)". That water well provided a regular source of drinking water, stopping the spread of dysentery and other related illnesses and death due to the drinking of swamp water. The Poles also set up sawmills and began cutting up beams and lumber without rest, earning them respect throughout the colony. Stefanski and Bogdan would later go on to save Captain John Smith’s life when Smith was attacked by several Indians.

Among major accomplishments of the first Poles was the building of a glass furnace, the first factory in America and the beginning of an industry. The goods produced in these factories became the first "made in America" goods to be exported to England. When the Mary and Margaret was ready to sail back to England, the Polish settlers sent back a full line of glassware samples they were prepared to turn out in commercial quantities as well as a cargo of pitch distilled from Virginia’s pine trees.

The colonists respected the Poles for their quality of work and other accomplishments. For instance, the Pole Lawrence (Wawrzyniec) Bohun was the first doctor in Jamestown colony. Moreover, the work done by the original group proved valuable enough to allow them to repay the Virginia Company for their passage to America, and this in turn allowed them to later become free citizens of the colony. Within a few years, there were fifty Poles living in Jamestown. Also important was the example these Poles set for the colonists. As the former President of the College of William and Mary Admiral Alvin Chandler stated in 1953, "It took the example of the Polish glassmakers to demonstrate to the colonists that the treasures of Virginia were in its soil, not in nuggets to be had for picking."

On June 30, 1619, when the Jamestown Legislative Assembly instituted a representative form of government, rules stated that only colonists of English descent would be given the right to vote. This denied Poles the right to governmental representation in a colony they helped to sustain and grow. As a result they organized what became the first labor strike in American history. Their slogan was "No vote. No work".

Facing angry and influential politicians in England, within a few weeks the Jamestown government bowed to the demands of Poles, granting them the same rights given to all workers within the colony. It is important to note that this event was not a strike against unfair employers or work place practices, but a battle for civil rights and inclusion in the political process. As Admiral Chandler stated: "…practically all of the profits realized by the London Company came from the resale of the products of the Polish industries. The Jamestown government quickly realized that if it sent empty ships back to England, the consequences could be very unpleasant". These Polish craftsmen used the economic power they had acquired through their labor to engineer an equal footing as citizens for themselves.

While the history of Jamestown itself proves to be a tragic one in the end, the tradition, practices and actions of these original settlers lives on. Despite early setbacks (in 1610 John Smith left the colony as a result of a grave injury and only 65 colonists survived the next two winters) the colony gave rise to similar establishments and taught valuable lessons. Because of tragic events the Virginia Company lost its charter in 1624, the Pamunkee Indian tribe devastated the colony in 1644 and in 1676 Jamestown was burned to the ground in Bacon’s Rebellion, destroying one of America’s first great settlements. By 1698, the surviving colonists had moved closer to the land now known as Williamsburg. The significance of Jamestown lies in its strategic timing and success. As Louis B. Wright, Professor of American History stated, "If Jamestown had failed, Spain and France ultimately might have divided all of North America between them and the United States might never have come into being."

The Polish contribution to Jamestown and the fabric of early America makes it a cornerstone of the American experience. The saving of Jamestown after its first disastrous year was due in large part to the efforts of those original Poles. Fresh water from the well, the beginnings of industry, even the saving of the life of the Jamestown hero Captain John Smith all resulted from the actions of these men. The example they showed by their industrious work ethic and their efforts to gain and retain their own individual freedom provided a model for generations of later colonists and Americans. Their labor strike for political freedom foreshadowed the events of the Revolutionary War, when colonists would unite to stand up for the freedom of a Nation of People."

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1619_Jamestown_craftsmen_strike

Jamestown Colony: A Political, Social, and Cultural History, by Frank E. Grizzard, Frank E. Grizzard, Jr., D. Boyd Smith

First Poles in America 1608-1958 by Arthur L. Waldo.

The Role and Accomplishments of Polish Pioneers in the Jamestown Colony - By Joshua D. Holshouser, Lucyna Brylinska-Padney, Katarzyna Kielbasa, July 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20150724124454/http://pac1944.org/james...

http://www.poles.org/Jamestown_Marker/index.html

"The Identity of the First Poles in America" - Philip L. Barbour

https://www.jstor.org/stable/1923357

https://ampolinstitute.com/history-of-polonia/

http://spuscizna.org/spuscizna/history-usa1.html

https://ampoleagle.com/polishamerican-timeline-p8269-124.htm

Kapitan John Smith, Anglik, założyciel pierwszej kolonii w Ameryce w Jamestowne, Wirginia, pierwszy raz natrafił na Polskich rzemieślników kiedy podróżował przez Polskę w 1602 uciekając przez Turkami przez których był wcześniej więziony. Najjaśniejsza Rzeczpospolita Polska była wtedy największym księstwem w europie rozprzestrzenionym na terytoriach Polski, Litwy, Lotwy, Estonii, Białorusi, Ukrainy i Mołdawii, a także części Rosji.

We początkowej historii Jamestown, Smith wraz z Virginia Company rozpoczął rekrutację pracowników Europejskich do pracy w nowej kolonii. Pierwszymi z tych pracowników byli zagraniczni pracownicy którzy przybyli w drugiej grupie osiadających kolonię w 1608. W późniejszym okresie dwóch Polaków którzy tam pracowali uratowali mu życie kiedy został zaatakowany przez Amerykańskich Indian. Współczesni historycy nadmieniają że wczesnymi rzemieślnikami byli Holendrzy i Polacy. Wcześni rzemieślnicy którzy przybyli w 1608 zajmowali się produkcją szkła, smoły, i potażu. Te produkty były produkowane dla kolonii i także na eksport.

Kim byli ci pierwsi przybysze, nie byli to Anglicy, natomiast byl to: Michał Łowicki, Zbigniew Stefański, Jur Mata, Jan Bogdan, Karol Źrenica i Stanisław Sadowski, i przybyli do Ameryki 12 lat przed Mayflower.

Dodatkowi Polacy przybyli do kolonii w 1619 i zajmowali się produkcją smoły, potażu, żywicy i terpentyny do produkcji statków.

Źródła:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1619_Jamestown_craftsmen_strike

Jamestown Colony: A Political, Social, and Cultural History, by Frank E. Grizzard, Frank E. Grizzard, Jr., D. Boyd Smith