Historic Colonial Williamsburg

The Collapse of the Royal Government!

Today our adventure took us to Historic Colonial Williamsburg!  The day started with a sense of curiosity, a very high heat index (101 degrees) and a feeling of  overwhelming anticipation.  We have gotten in the habit of starting our day early and have enjoyed getting out ahead of the crowds and the heat.

We began our day in the historical part of Williamsburg, which included shops, shoemakers, a post office, an apothecary, taverns, houses, the magazine (weapons storage house), churches, the governor's mansion, the capital and some private residences.  The events in Williamsburg helped shape our nation as the people of Virginia began to distance themselves from the English monarch.  This eventually led to our nation taking root  and the colonies no longer under British rule.  The citizens of the town were faced with difficult choices on their way to becoming a self-governing republic and a free an independent United States of America.

It felt much easier to transport ourselves back to 1765, as the actors and the town itself were authentic, down to the last detail.  Everyone spoke in character and the re-enactments that we were able to tape, proved both powerful and informative.





The first re-enactment that we witnessed was The Next Disagreeable Thing, The Stamp Crisis and the Ball of the Revolution.  This re-enactment portrayed groups of Williamsburg citizens deep in political debate and outrage over the king's collection of the stamp tax.  The citizens of the town were demanding the resignation of one of the king's last stamp tax collector.

The second re-enactment that we were able to capture included the governor addressing the townspeople from the capital balcony concerning the Boston Tea Party.  He encouraged the people to stay loyal to the king and announced his intentions to close the harbor.  This concluded with the opposing voice of Patrick Henry, on the steps of the capital, encouraging the people to fight for their liberty.  In response to the king's claim, that the colonists had "roosted" too high in the trees, Patrick Henry responded, "If he disturb too much his birds, he shall loose their eggs for his pudding."

Other re-enactments that we were able to witness included, The House Divided, which portrayed a common division among family members in regards to their loyalties.  Here a mother accuses her daughter of betraying her loyalist father, in support of her patriotic brother. 

The final re-enactment included a scene where a soldier informs the town and the speaker of the colonists raid on a weapons cache in Concord.  The struggles of the townspeople were apparent during this critical time. 

We thoroughly enjoyed our shopping in Colonial Williamsburg, as we loaded up on authentic colonial clothing, craft books, copies of the Virginia Gazette, girls bonnets, hats, aprons, currency, coins, fifes and even a wooden pistol.  We are excited to return with all of our artifacts and to create our trunks of evidence for our students to delve into.

We were impressed by the variety of experiences that Colonial Williamsburg had to offer.  From the lowly cobbler to children playing period games to the noble gentry, Williamsburg successfully took us back to the past.

After the swim in the James and a daring crossing to the sandbar at low tide, we hit the tavern for libations, games, and entertainment.  We all had a local brew and got a complete history and explanation of Yankee Doodle (Macaroni is a stab at the foppish, elaborate style of dress for the wealthy class).  Take a pass on the dried, stale bread bits and cheese... Traditional pub fare though it may be, though not a great snack if you're hungry.

We were drenched again in a huge thunderstorm going to the African American song and dance program.  The group djembe drum and gourd shakers.  The songs were based on traditional call and response African slave music with the crowd required to participate--there is no such thing as an audience in slave music.  Slaves sang for family, togetherness, to make work go faster, communicate their culture, and for hope for survival.  Afro-latin music, gospel, blues, soul and virtually all American music came to us through slavery.

Another way slaves passed on tradition, morality and education was through story telling.  We listened to three stories in the courthouse by candlelight with bolts of lightning shooting through the sky, adding a dramatic effect.  The messages were well taken and universal: you can't judge a book by its cover, watch your tongue... don't blab everything you hear, and you can't take back words once spoken.  These lessons were valuable on the plantation, in church, and for life.  We can't wait to bring such valuable experiences straight back to the classroom!