(baptized Jan. 6, 1580, Willoughby, Lincolnshire, Eng.
died June 1631, London) English explorer.
After a period as a military adventurer, he joined an English group preparing to establish a colony in North America. After the London Co. received its charter, the group set sail and arrived at Chesapeake Bay (1607), establishing the first permanent English settlement in North America at Jamestown , of which Smith became the leader. On a river voyage to explore the surrounding region, he was captured by Indians of the Powhatan Confederacy; he was saved from death by Pocahontas . As president of the Jamestown colony, he oversaw its expansion. An injury forced his return to England in 1609. Eager for further exploration, he made contact with the Plymouth Co. and sailed in 1614 to the area he named New England. He mapped the coast and wrote descriptions of Virginia and New England that encouraged others to colonize.
John Smith, engraving by Simon van de Passe, 1616
By courtesy of the trustees of the British Museum; photograph, J.R. Freeman & Co. Ltd.