DATE: Wednesday, July 23, 1997 TAG: 9707230660 SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL SOURCE: BY ERIKA REIF, STAFF WRITER DATELINE: JAMESTOWN LENGTH: 83 lines
In the flesh, the young man stood 5 foot 5. He stepped off a ship in Jamestown in 1607 with a complexion bearded and ruddy, and looked with blue eyes into the coastal cypress and pine trees.
The 19-year-old ensign was a ``gentleman,'' making a living and yearning for military rank because someone else had dibs on the family inheritance.
But before the enterpriser could make his mark, he bled to death from a gunshot wound - only three months after his arrival in the New World.
Exhumed, his status might finally be rising. The Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities is circulating a photo of his restored face here and in England, seeking help in confirming his identity.
The face belongs to a skeleton discovered 10 months ago in Jamestown, the site of America's first permanent English settlement. Archaeologists found the skeleton around the same time they uncovered the remains of the original Jamestown fort, which is being excavated.
William Kelso, director of archaeology for the preservation group, said his organization is speculating that the skeleton is what is left of Jeremy Alcock, a junior military officer.
One indicator of the man's high social standing was his burial in a coffin. The disintegrated coffin was detected by stains left in the soil around his bones, Kelso said.
About 50 of the original 104 Englishmen at Jamestown were ranked as ``gentlemen,'' according to an account by Capt. John Smith. Alcock's name was among them. Others were classified as laborers and craftsmen. After nine months, the list of those still alive had been whittled down to 38, and Alcock's name was no longer on it.
Kelso hopes someone will see the photo of Alcock's restored face and recognize a family resemblance, or be able to provide more information.
The coffin had crushed the skeleton's skull, but scientists at the Smithsonian Institution pieced the bones together. From the reconstructed skull, forensic artist Sharon Long of Reno, Nev., sculpted a three-dimensional face.
The recently completed head, the skeleton and other artifacts may be viewed by the public at Jamestown's Audrey Noel Hume Center for Archaeological Study and Research. The laboratory is about 100 yards from the site of the grave.
Studies show that the man was shot from behind in his right leg. A lead musket ball and 21 smaller shots severed an artery, killing him quickly, Kelso said. His foot faced backward in the grave, indicating that there was no attempt at amputation and no healing.
He might have died from friendly fire, killed in combat by a soldier in a row behind him, Kelso said. In a book by George Percy, Jeremy Alcock's death was attributed to a ``wound.''
That could fit the description of the Jamestown skeleton, because other causes of death might be identified more specifically, such as being killed by Indians or for mutiny, Kelso said.
But no one is sure.
``We'd like to know why he was shot, and who shot him,'' Kelso said. ``He's the first unknown soldier killed in combat, and he's America's first unsolved murder.
``We'll run it almost as a `wanted' ad and see if anyone steps forward,'' he said.
Scientists plan to follow up their search with DNA tests of possible relatives, and compare it to DNA sampled from the skeleton, Kelso said. ``If we tested it and it came out the same, it would be pretty interesting.'' MEMO: The Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities owns
the Jamestown site. Visit it online at (www.apva.org) or call
804-648-1889. ILLUSTRATION: Drawings/color photo
The restored face of the Jamestown skeleton is that of a 19-year-old
``gentleman.''
The rebuilt skull
The skull had been crushed by its coffin, the use of which indicated
higher social standing.
The excavated grave site
BILL TIERNAN/File color photo
Scientists uncovered the skeleton when they found the remains of the
original Jamestown fort, circa 1607, last fall. The site is
America's first permanent English settlement.
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