John White (colonist and artist)
John White (c. 1539 – c. 1593) was an English colonial governor, explorer, artist, and cartographer. White was among those who sailed with Richard Grenville in the first attempt to colonize Roanoke Island in 1585, acting as artist and mapmaker to the expedition. He would most famously briefly serve as the governor of the second attempt to found Roanoke Colony on the same island in 1587 and discover the colonists had mysteriously vanished.
For information about other persons with the name John White, see John White (disambiguation).
During his time at Roanoke Island, he made several watercolor sketches of the surrounding landscape and the native Algonkin peoples. These works are significant as they are the most informative illustrations of a Native American society of the Eastern seaboard; the surviving original watercolors are now preserved in the print room of the British Museum.
In 1587, White became governor of Sir Walter Raleigh's failed attempt at a permanent settlement on Roanoke Island, known to history as the "Lost Colony". This was the earliest effort to establish a permanent English colony in the New World. White's granddaughter Virginia Dare was the first English child born in North America. In late 1587, White returned to England for supplies. The return expedition was delayed due to various reasons, including the Spanish Armada. Governor White finally returned to Roanoke Island in August 1590, but found the colony had been long deserted.
After the failure of the colony, White retired to Raleigh's estates in Ireland, reflecting upon the "evils and unfortunate events" which had ruined his hopes in America, though never giving up hope that his daughter and granddaughter were still alive.
Early life[edit]
John White's exact date of birth is unknown but it seems likely he was born sometime in the 1530s–1540s.[1] White is known to have attended church in the parish of St. Martin Ludgate in London.[1] In 1566, he married Tomasyn Cooper; with whom he had a son, Thomas, who died young, and a daughter, Eleanor.[1] Little is known of White's training as an artist but it is possible that he apprenticed as an illustrator under a London master.[1]
Gentleman artist[edit]
In 1585, White had been commissioned to "draw to life" the inhabitants of the New World and their surroundings.[4] During White's time at Roanoke Island, he completed numerous watercolor drawings of the surrounding landscape and native peoples. These works are significant as they are the most informative illustrations of a Native American society of the Eastern Seaboard, and predate the first body of "discovery voyage art" created in the late 18th century by the artists who sailed with Captain James Cook. They represent the sole-surviving visual record of the native inhabitants of America encountered by England's first settlers.[4]
White's enthusiasm for watercolor was unusual – most contemporary painters preferred to use oil-based paints.[5] White's watercolors would soon become a sensation in Europe; it was not long before the watercolors were engraved by the Flemish master engraver Theodor de Bry.[6] Through the medium of print, the illustrations became widely known and distributed; they were published in 1590 under the title America.[6]
Later life[edit]
Little is known of White's life after the failure of the Roanoke Colony. He lived in Plymouth,[37][38] and also owned a house at Newtown, Kylmore (Kilmore, County Cork), Ireland. He appears to have been in Ireland living on the estates of Sir Walter Raleigh, making maps of land for Raleigh's tenants, and reflecting upon the "evils and unfortunate events" which had ruined his hopes in the New World, though never giving up hope that his daughter and granddaughter were still alive.[39]
The last surviving document related to White is a letter he wrote from Ireland in 1593 to the publisher of the prints of his Roanoke drawings. However, a record from May 1606 that Bridget White, who was appointed estate administrator for her brother "John White", may refer to him.
Legacy[edit]
White is chiefly remembered today for his watercolors, which represent a unique record of 16th-century Algonquian society. All of White's surviving works are now in the print room of the British Museum.
In 2007, the British Museum placed the entire group of John White's watercolors on public display under the collection, "A New World: England's First View of America." There are more than seventy watercolors in the travelling exhibit. There were plans to show the collection at the North Carolina Museum of History.[40]
The World War II Liberty ship SS John White was named in his honor.
Watercolour painted by John White
Engraving by Theodor de Bry after a watercolour painted by John White
Clay pot of North Carolina Algonquins used for boiling.
Equipment for curing fish used by the North Carolina Algonquins.
Woman of the Secotan-Indians in North Carolina. Watercolour painted by John White in 1585.
Man of the Secotan Indians in North Carolina. Watercolour painted by John White in 1585.
Mother and child of the Secotan Indians in North Carolina. Watercolour painted by John White in 1585.
Warrior of the Secotan Indians in North Carolina. Watercolour painted by John White in 1585.
Ceremony of Secotan warriors in North Carolina. Watercolour painted by John White in 1585.
Engraving by Theodor de Bry after a watercolour painted by John White
An aged Native man from Pomeiock, full-length portrait, facing front, wearing winter garment; landscape scene with village in the background.
