Virginia, USA: 3. Plantations: Jamestown, Willamsburg, Monticello

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Image on right: Thomas Jefferson designed this famous house which reflects in a pond at Monticello (see more below). Monticello was built 1768-1809 based on the classical style of Palladian architecture (emulating Italian architect Andrea Palladio, 1508–1580), and has been memorialized on the US nickel coin.

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Historic Jamestowne

Jamestown was founded on May 14, 1607 on Jamestown Island in the Virginia Colony, by the Virginia Company of London. Following several earlier failed attempts elsewhere, Jamestown was the first permanent English settlement in what is now the United States of America. Located in James City County when it was formed in 1634 as one of the original eight shires of Virginia, Jamestown was the capital of the Colony for 83 years, from 1616 until 1698. In 1698, the capital was moved 8 miles (13 km) to Middle Plantation. That small community, which had also become home to the new College of William and Mary in 1693, was renamed Williamsburg in 1699 (see map).
    Today, Historic Jamestowne preserves the actual archeological site of Jamestown Fort on Jamestown Island, in a cooperative effort by Jamestown National Historic Site (a part of Colonial National Historical Park, a unit of the National Park Service) and the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities. Over a million artifacts have been recovered by the Jamestown Rediscovery project with ongoing archaeological work, including a number of exciting recent discoveries.
    Near Historic Jamestowne, at the entrance to Jamestown Island, the Commonwealth of Virginia runs the separate "Jamestown Settlement", which began in 1957 as Jamestown Festival Park for the 350th anniversary of the original settlement. (Jamestown Settlement includes a recreated English Fort and Native American Village, extensive indoor and outdoor displays, and features three popular replicas of the original settler's ships.) Due to limited time, I visited the archeological site of Historic Jamestowne, but not the commercial venture of Jamestown Settlement.

Left: A cannon defends the James Fort on the James River, an archeological site that dates from 1607 on Jamestown Island, Virginia. The National Park Service operates Historic Jamestowne.

Below: A palisade of the James Fort defends the Memorial Church in Historic Jamestowne. Jamestown Church, partially built in 1639 in Jamestown, Virginia, is one of the oldest surviving buildings built by Europeans in the original thirteen colonies that became the United States of America. The current church tower was built 1639-1644. The rest of the original church was destroyed after abandonment in 1750 when a new church was built 3 miles away. In 1906, the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America built the present church on the cobblestone foundations of the older 1617 church and brick foundations of the 1639 church, now visible through glass flooring. Dedicated in 1917, Historic Jamestowne Memorial Church is now part of Jamestown National Historic Site, and is owned by the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities.

Virginia Historic Maps

08VA-1293-Williamsburg-Jamestown-Map.jpgLeft: This map of Chesapeake Bay indicates Jamestown Island and Williamsburg, just 8 miles apart. Working on behalf of the London entrepreneurs of The Virginia Company, Captain John Smith played a pivotal role in establishing the tiny, struggling settlement of Jamestown, the first successful English colony in North America. Making full use of an over sized rowboat with a single canvas sail, Captain John Smith and his crew surveyed 3000 miles of Chesapeake Bay and tributaries in 1607-1609 while searching for food desperately needed by the colony. They thoroughly explored the area and parlayed with and sometimes battled with the Chesapeake 's diverse Native peoples, who were mostly ruled by Emperor Powhatan. Jamestown was the capital of Virginia Colony for 83 years, from 1616 until 1698. In 1698, the capital was moved 8 miles (13 k) to Middle Plantation. That small community, which had also become home to the new College of William and Mary in 1693, was renamed Williamsburg in 1699.


Below: In this map of the British colonies in North America in the mid 1700's, notice how far Virginia spreads beyond its current boundaries: north into present-day Michigan, and westwards of the Mississippi River.

Virginia-Colony_1607-1776.jpg
Left: On Jamestown Island, Virginia, visitors enter Memorial Church through a historic tower dating from 1639, one of the oldest surviving buildings built by Europeans in the original thirteen colonies that became the United States of America. This church tower was built 1639-1644, but the rest of the original church was destroyed after abandonment in 1750 when a new church was built 3 miles away. The National Park Service operates Historic Jamestowne.

Below: On Jamestown Island in 1906, the present Memorial Church was built on the cobblestone foundations of the older 1617 church and brick foundations of the 1639 church, now visible through glass flooring. Within this 1617 structure, the first representative legislative assembly in America convened from July 30 to August 4, 1619. Dedicated in 1917, Historic Jamestowne Memorial Church is now part of Jamestown National Historic Site, and is owned by the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities.


Left: The obelisk at Historic Jamestowne was built in 1907 to celebrate the tercentennial (300 year anniversary) of the landing at Jamestown Island. The following are inscribed in the monument:

Pocahontas

Below: Bronze statue of Pocahontas at Historic Jamestowne, Virginia.  Pocahontas (c. 1595–1617) was a Native American woman who married an Englishman, John Rolfe, and became a celebrity in London in the last year of her life. She was a daughter of Wahunsunacock (also known as Chief or Emperor Powhatan), who ruled an area encompassing almost all of the neighboring tribes in the Tidewater region of Virginia (called Tenakomakah at the time). Her formal names were Matoaka (or Matoika) and Amonute. Pocahontas was a childhood nickname referring to her frolicsome nature (in the Powhatan language it meant "little wanton", according to William Strachey). After her baptism, she went by the name Rebecca, becoming Rebecca Rolfe on her marriage.
    Her father's rule over most of "Tidewater Virginia" refers to all areas where water level is affected by the tides, which is most of the land east of present-day I-95 and north of U.S. 460. This is now the 27th largest metropolitan area in the US. It includes Hampton Roads, the rest of the Virginia Peninsula, the Middle Peninsula, the Northern Neck, and the Eastern Shore. Most people of the southeastern area of Virginia refer to Tidewater as the areas of Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Norfolk, Suffolk, Hampton, Newport News, Yorktown, Poquoson, Williamsburg and Gloucester.


Left: A historic well excavated on Jamestown Island yielded many objects which bring the past back to life, in this exhibit in the Voorhees Archaearium Museum, at Historic Jamestowne.

Below: On the wall of Memorial Church on Jamestown Island, Virginia, is the official Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom and Ireland, used 1603-1649 by James VI (King of Scots), 1660-1689 by Charles II, and 1702-1707 by Queen Anne: The coat features both the motto of the English monarchy, "Dieu at mon droit" ("God and my right"), and also the motto of the order of the Garter (Knighthood), "Honi soit qui mal y pense" ("Shamed be he who thinks evil of it"). Click here to see the Coat of Arms used by Queen Anne's successor, King George I.
    James VI, King of Scots inherited the English and Irish thrones in 1603 (in the Union of the Crowns), and quartered the Royal Arms of England with those of Scotland. For the first time, the Royal Coat of Arms of Ireland (the harp) was added to represent the Kingdom of Ireland.

Colonial Williamsburg

Colonial Williamsburg is owned and operated as a living museum by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, the non-profit entity endowed initially by the Rockefeller family and additionally over the years by many others, notably Readers Digest founders Lila and DeWitt Wallace. The motto of Colonial Williamsburg is: "that the future may learn from the past."
    Colonial Williamsburg is the historic district of the independent city of Williamsburg, Virginia, which was Virginia Colony's capital from 1699 to 1780, and a center of education and culture. The Governor's Palace was the official residence of the royal governor for much of that period. The capital straddled the boundary of two of the original shires of Virginia, James City Shire (now James City County), and Charles River Shire (now York County).
    At Williamsburg, Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, James Monroe, James Madison, George Wythe, Peyton Randolph, and dozens more helped mold democracy in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the United States. The Historic Area exhibits colonial houses and American Revolutionary War history. Prominent buildings in Colonial Williamsburg include the two largest buildings, the Capitol and the Governor's Palace, plus the Raleigh Tavern, Bruton Parish Church, and many others. Interpreters work, dress, and talk as they did in the era, teaching visitors. The 301-acre Historic Area is located immediately east of the College of William and Mary, which was founded at Middle Plantation in 1693. The new College, long a desire of the colonists, was a key factor in the establishment of the town as capital of Virginia in 1698 and its renaming for King William III of England shortly thereafter.  Jamestown and Yorktown, the other two points of the present-day Historic Triangle, are linked to Colonial Williamsburg by the National Park Service's pastoral Colonial Parkway.

Left: Actors play a British redcoat foot soldier and officer on a horse, on Duke of Gloucester Street in Colonial Williamsburg. People of the 1700's may actually have used the terms "Regulars" or "the King's men" instead of "redcoats", a term which didn't appear commonly in literature until the 1880's.

Below: An actor playing the wealthy Printer is carried in a two-horse carriage with driver, on Duke of Gloucester Street in Colonial Williamsburg.

The Capitol building

Fire destroyed the Jamestown statehouse three times, and the Government moved to Williamsburg, which was colonial Virginia's capital from 1699 to 1780, and a center of education and culture.
    The current statehouse building in Williamsburg is the third on the site. In 1705, the first Capitol building in America was built at the eastern end of the Duke of Gloucester Street. A fire destroyed the building in 1747. It was rebuilt, but fell into disrepair after the American Revolution. Famous members of the House of Burgesses which met in the Capital included Patrick Henry, George Washington, George Mason, and Thomas Jefferson. Men who gathered here May 15, 1776 made Virginia the first American colony to speak for independence from England. The Capitol building now standing on its site was dedicated in 1934, designed as a recreation of the 1705 building. As a tradition in Virginia, since 1934, Virginia's state legislators have reassembled for a day every four years in the Capitol building.

Left: Horses pull a carriage by the Capitol building in Colonial Williamsburg. The present brick Capitol was dedicated in 1934, designed by the architects Perry, Shaw & Hepburn as a recreation of the 1705 structure which was the first Capitol building in America. 

Below: A professional actor portrays Patrick Henry with gusto in Colonial Williamsburg. In 1776, Patrick Henry became the first governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia, newly formed with the world’s first written constitution adopted by the people's representatives. He lived May 29, 1736 – June 6, 1799, and was most remembered for his "Give me Liberty, or give me Death!" speech. Patrick henry was one of the most influential and radical advocates of the American Revolution and republicanism, especially in his denunciations of corruption in government officials and his defense of historic rights.


Left: A restroom sign shows icons of women in colonial style hats standing and in a wheelchair at Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia.

Below: A woman in period costume studies two young actors playing American revolutionaries. Women would not get the right to vote in the United States until 1920. The modern origins of women's suffrage (right to vote) lie in France in the 18th century. Of currently existing independent countries, New Zealand was the first to give women the vote, in 1893 as a mostly self-governing colony. However, mostly self-governing Wyoming Territory actually granted women the vote earlier, in 1869. Voting rights for women were introduced into international law in 1948 when the UN adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.


Left: High backed chairs gather around the oval meeting table upstairs in the Council Chamber in the Capitol building in Colonial Williamsburg.

Below: The courtroom in the Capitol at Colonial Williamsburg.


Left: The present statehouse at Williamsburg was dedicated in 1934, designed by the architects Perry, Shaw & Hepburn as a recreation of the 1705 structure which was the first Capitol building in America.

Below: Actors play American militia carrying guns, flags, drum and fife outside of the Capitol building at Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia.

Governor's Palace

The Governor's Palace is a centerpiece and major attraction of the restored city of Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia's Historic Triangle. Through the efforts of Reverend Dr. W.A.R. Goodwin, rector of Bruton Parish Church and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller Jr., whose family provided major funding, the elaborate and ornate palace was carefully recreated in the early 1900's. Faithful reconstruction was based upon artifacts, Jefferson's drawings, Virginia General Assembly records, and a copperplate engraving, nicknamed the Bodleian Plate, discovered in England's Bodleian Library in 1929. Governor's Palace opened as an exhibition on April 23, 1934.


Left: Wood stove at the Governor's Palace, in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia.

Below: The Governor's Palace is located on Duke of Gloucester Street in Williamsburg, Virginia and was home to seven royal governors, plus Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson. The Governor's Palace and the Capitol are the two largest buildings at Colonial Williamsburg. Williamsburg was the Capital of the Virginia Colony from 1699 to 1780, and the Governor's Palace was the official residence of the royal governor for much of that period. The original building took 16 years to construct, and was completed in 1722. The last resident, Thomas Jefferson, urged that the Capital of Virginia be relocated to Richmond in 1780 for security reasons during the American Revolution. (The new, more modest Governor's Mansion is adjacent to the current Virginia State Capitol building in Richmond.)


Left: Historic style place settings and furniture gather around a dining table at the Governor's Palace on Duke of Gloucester Street in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia.

Below: An actress playing a maid conducts a tour through the Governor's Palace on Duke of Gloucester Street in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia.


Left: Many impressive guns and shiny swords decorate the main entry to the Governor's Palace on Duke of Gloucester Street in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia. Colonial Williamsburg is the historic district of the independent city of Williamsburg, which was colonial Virginia's capital from 1699 to 1780, and a center of education and culture.

Below: Crossed swords decorate the main entry to the Governor's Palace on Duke of Gloucester Street in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia.


Left: The front gate opens to the Governor's Palace on Duke of Gloucester Street in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia.

Below: Long pistols frame a historic British Coat of Arms in the main entry of the Governor's Palace on Duke of Gloucester Street in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia. This is the official Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom and Ireland used 1714-1801 by King George I, who presided over the American Revolutionary War. The Coat features both the motto of the English monarchy, "Dieu at mon droit" ("God and my right"), and also the motto of the order of the Garter (Knighthood), "Honi soit qui mal y pense" ("Shamed be he who thinks evil of it").
    King George I was the Elector of Hanover who inherited the throne following the death of Queen Anne under the provisions of the Act of Settlement 1701. The lower right quarter of the Arms (Shield) was changed to reflect the new King's domains in Hanover (Brunswick-Lüneburg-Westphalia, surmounted by the Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire for the Holy Roman office of Archbannerbearer/Archtreasurer).

The Courthouse

Left: An actor portraying a court officer presents a legal case drawn from history, with audience participation in the Courthouse at Colonial Williamsburg.

Below: A court officer records proceedings in the Courthouse at Colonial Williamsburg.

Below: The Courthouse at Colonial Williamsburg.

Silversmith

Left: Wooden mallets serve as tools for the Silversmith at Colonial Williamsburg.

Below: A woman in 1700's era costume demonstrates hammering skills at a recreated Silversmith shop in Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia.


Left: The window of a Milliner & Tailor shop looks out onto Duke of Gloucester Street at Colonial Williamsburg.





Below: Two actors in 1770s costume entertain the crowd gathered for a reading of the Declaration of Independence, in Colonial Williamsburg.


Left: Straw hats with red, maroon, pink, green and blue ribbons hang on the door to the Milliner & Tailor shop on Duke of Gloucester Street at Colonial Williamsburg.








Below: A two-horse buggy is tied up on Duke of Gloucester Street at Colonial Williamsburg.


Left: This funny sheet sold at Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia, shows men twisting their bodies to form the letters of the alphabet: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z.  "The Comical HOTCH-POTCH, or the ALPHABET turned POSTURE-MASTER - Fellows form the Alphabet", artwork printed for Carington Bowles, at No. 69 St Pauls Church Yard, London.

Below: A confederate flag waves on Duke of Gloucester Street at Colonial Williamsburg.

Bruton Parish Church

Left: At Colonial Williamsburg, the shadow of a tree branch falls on the circular window in the brick face of Bruton Parish Episcopal Church. The church was built in 1715, expanded in 1752, completed with a tower in 1769, remodeled in 1840 and restored in 1905-1907. Bruton Parish, formed in 1674 from the merger of several colonial parishes dating back to 1633, took its name from the town of Bruton in County Somerset, England, where Governor Sir William Berkeley and the prominent Ludwell family had strong ancestral ties. The first brick church, completed in 1683, lay northwest of the present building. After the College of William and Mary was chartered in 1693 and the capital of the Virginia colony was moved from Jamestown to Williamsburg six years later, the existing church was too small. In 1715 the present church building was completed and began serving as the “court” church for the colony. In colonial times, church and state were one, and all officeholders had to attend the established Anglican church. Yet Virginians George Mason and James Madison included religious toleration in the Virginia Declaration of Rights of 1776 and Thomas Jefferson in the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom in 1779. With American independence, ties between church and state were severed, and the Anglican Church became the Protestant Episcopal Church in the USA.

Below: A carriage parks across the street from Bruton Parish Episcopal Church on Duke of Gloucester Street at Colonial Williamsburg.

Shirley Plantation

Shirley Plantation, settled in 1613, is the oldest active plantation in Virginia and is said to be the oldest family-owned business in North America, dating back to 1638. Shirley Plantation is a National Historic Landmark located on the north bank of the James River in Charles City County, Virginia, USA, located on State Route 5, a scenic byway which runs between the cities of Richmond and Williamsburg (which are independent of surrounding counties).
    This plantation has been occupied by the Hill family and their descendants since 1738. The mother of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, Anne Hill Carter, was born at Shirley; and in 1793, she married Light Horse Harry Lee in the mansion’s parlor.
    Construction of the present mansion began in 1723 when Elizabeth Hill, great-granddaughter of the first Hill, married John Carter, eldest son of Robert "King" Carter. Completed in 1738, the mansion, referred to as the “Great House,” is largely in its original state and is owned, operated, and lived in by direct descendants of Edward Hill. The Carter family has lived in the house for ten generations, with the eleventh generation currently occupying the house.  It is normally open for tours 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily. The house is the Carter family's only place of residence and therefore, only the bottom floor is open to tours.


Left: Bricks fill a split in a tree trunk at Shirley Plantation, Virginia.

Below: The mansion at Shirley Plantation is a National Historic Landmark open for tours in Virginia, USA, located on State Route 5, a scenic byway which runs between the cities of Richmond and Williamsburg. Built 1723-1738, the mansion, referred to as the “Great House,” is largely in its original state and is owned, operated, and lived in by direct descendants of Edward Hill.

Monticello

Monticello, near Charlottesville, Virginia, was the estate of Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence, the third President of the United States, and founder of the University of Virginia. The house is of Jefferson's own design and is situated on the summit of an 850-foot (260 m)-high peak in the Southwest Mountains south of the Rivanna Gap. Monticello is Italian for "little mountain." An image of the west front of Monticello was featured on the reverse of the US 5-cent coin minted from 1938 to 2003 (the image returned to the reverse of the nickel beginning in 2006) and on the reverse of the United States of America two dollar bill that was printed from 1928 to 1966. Monticello was designated a World Heritage Site in 1987, an honor it shares with the nearby University of Virginia.

Left: This obelisk at Monticello reads "Here was buried Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of American Independence, of the Statute of Virginia for religious freedom, and father of the University of Virginia." Jefferson died on the Fourth of July, 1826, the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. He died a few hours before the death of John Adams, his compatriot in their quest for independence, then great political rival, and later friend and correspondent. Adams is often rumored to have referenced Jefferson in his last words, unaware of his passing.


Below: Thomas Jefferson designed this famous house which reflects in a pond at Monticello. It was built 1768-1809 based on the classical style of Palladian architecture (emulating Italian architect Andrea Palladio, 1508–1580). Among Jefferson's other designs are his other home near Lynchburg called Poplar Forest and the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond.


Left: Exotic plants decorate the gradens at Monticello, near Charlottesville, Virginia.

Below: This late-1700s style kitchen served meals at Monticello.

The University of Virginia Rotunda

Left: The monumental Rotunda building stands on the grounds of the University of Virginia, in Charlottesville. Thomas Jefferson was inspired by the Pantheon in Rome and designed the Rotunda to represent the "authority of nature and power of reason". Construction began in 1822 and was completed in 1826, after his death. Instead of surrounding a church, the grounds of the new university broke the conventions of other universities in the English-speaking world by surrounding a library, housed in the Rotunda. The Rotunda symbolizes Jefferson's longstanding belief in the separation of church and education, as well as his lifelong dedication to education and architecture.

Below: A bronze statue of Thomas Jefferson guards the Rotunda building at the University of Virginia, in Charlottesville.

Virginia, USA: 3. Plantations: Jamestown, Willamsburg, Monticello

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