the cultivation of tobaccoC. In growing this crop the wealth of the colony sky-rocketed in comparison to the wealth before the crop. A. the discovery of gold B. the cultivation of tobacco C. the lucrative fishing industry D. the sale of the colony's land to foreigners England was not far behind, but after their first plan failed, the Jamestown Colony was the first successful English colony in America. He saved the colony by making a rule that anyone who did not work did not eat. What finally made Jamestown a successful colony? Question: What cash crop saved Jamestown? But sadly after the seventeen hundreds the colony died off and is now a tourist destination. Captain John Smith became leader of the Jamestown Colony. Established on May 14, 1607, the colony gave England its first foothold in the European competition for the New World, which had been dominated by the Spanish since the voyages of Christopher Columbus in the late 15th century. In May 1610, Gates made his way from Bermuda to the colony on makeshift ships made partly from wood found on Bermuda. Established on May 14, 1607, the colony gave England its first foothold in the European competition for the New World, which had been … King James I, concerned about the health of his subjects, opposed growing and selling tobacco. the sale of the colony's land to This crop appeared to be the staple product the colonists had been searching for. Now that the money has come in they stopped using natives as slaves and used Africans. King James I, concerned about the health of his subjects, opposed growing and selling tobacco. John Smith and John Rolfe both helped to make Jamestown a better place. James Smith was very nice towards the Native Americans. That year after John Rolfe made that rule only 18 colonists died which was a huge improvement. This was done by John Ralfe. This crop appeared to be the staple product the colonists had been searching for. In 1612, John Rolfe, one of many shipwrecked on Bermuda, helped turn the settlement into a profitable venture. That's exactly what he did. But even with all these difficulties the colony; Jamestown was successful. Even so, the market for tobacco in England continued to expand, and, by 1617, Virginia shipped around 20,000 pounds of tobacco to England. Initially created for the celebration of the 350th anniversary in 1957, Jamestown Settlement is operated by the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, and largely sponsored by the Commonwealth of Virginia . It was successful because for one thing John Rolfe made a rule that if you don't work, you don't eat. Jamestown Colony. Tobacco was the main crop in Jamestown,they made profit from it. Jamestown, the first permanent English colony in North America, was founded in May of 1607 by 104 settlers who arrived aboard three ships: the Susan Constant, the Discovery and the Godspeed.