09/13/2026
Most people know Jamestown and Plymouth as the first English colonies in America, but almost nobody remembers the Maine settlement that was actually founded the very same year as Jamestown and then vanished within twelve months.
The Popham Colony was established in 1607 at the mouth of the Kennebec River by English colonists hoping to build a permanent settlement and profitable trading post in what is now Maine. The colonists built a small fort and even constructed one of the first English ships built in North America, yet a harsh winter, the death of a key leader, and dwindling supplies led the remaining settlers to abandon the colony and sail back to England after less than a year.
Because the colony failed so quickly and left few lasting structures behind, it faded from popular memory almost entirely, overshadowed by the more famous colonies that came just afterward and actually survived.
Did you know Maine was home to an English colony founded the very same year as Jamestown, one that most people have never heard of? ⚓🌲
