A ship brings '20 and odd' enslaved Africans to Point Comfort in the English colony of Virginia.
At a Glance
- Date
- 20 August 1619
- Location
- Point Comfort, Virginia
- Category
- Abolition & Slavery
- Source
- John Rolfe letter (1619) · National Park Service
What It Meant Then
It marked the documented beginning of African slavery in British North America.
What It Means Now
The 1619 arrival anchors ongoing reckonings with slavery's place in the nation's origins.
Cite this page
- MLA
- “The First Africans Arrive in Virginia.” Black-History.com, 30 Sept. 2026, https://black-history.com/on-this-day/the-first-africans-arrive-in-virginia/.
- APA
- Black-History.com Editors. (2026, September 30). The First Africans Arrive in Virginia. Black-History.com. https://black-history.com/on-this-day/the-first-africans-arrive-in-virginia/
- Chicago
- Black-History.com Editors. “The First Africans Arrive in Virginia.” Black-History.com. September 30, 2026. https://black-history.com/on-this-day/the-first-africans-arrive-in-virginia/.
Editorial Note
By the Black-History.com editors. Last reviewed 30 September 2026. To suggest a primary source or a correction, write to editors@black-history.com or use our corrections form.