The Starving Time took place in the winter of 1609 -1610. The colonists were hit with disease and starvation. Only 60 of the 500 colonists survived. During the time period the colonists ran out of food and there water brackish (salty) so some of the colonists got dehydrated. They also resorted to cannibalism, because they had not planned on having to grow all of their food through the winter. The reason that there was not enough food was because John Smith was stranded in england with no way of getting back to the colonists. The colonists had to rely on the powhatan indians throughout the winter. It got so bad that the survivors went to Chesapeake Bay

Source: John Smith, The Generall Historie of Virginia, New England & The Summer Isles (Glasgow, Scotland: James MacLehose and Sons, 1907), Vol. (Primary Source)

Significant Events- Starving Times