Traveling through time to a century and a half later, we entered the town of Williamsburg in the year 1773. There, we meandered down brick pathways through a living Colonial town.
One of our first stops was at a shoemaker’s shop. There we saw how shoes were made in Colonial America. We learned that shoemakers had a 12-year apprenticeship. Shoe shops imported leather from England because it was of better quality than leather from America. Additionally, shoemakers only made and sold men’s shoes – women’s and children’s shoes were made of fabric and were not well crafted, like men’s leather shoes.
Next, we had the pleasure of dining by candlelight in Chowning’s Tavern. There, we were entertained by guitar music and readings by Edward Chowning, the tavern owner’s nephew. We dined on Shepherd’s Pie and sampled homemade ales and hot cider.
A stop in the marketplace turned into an afternoon of shopping for local wares, game playing, and a lively game of “baseball,” the way Colonial children might have played it.
We met some very interesting folks during our stroll through town. One gentleman even taught my sons how to march like soldiers!
On the way down Duke of Gloucester Street, we stopped at the courthouse and had a chat with a clerk. He informed us about the law and how it was carried out in Colonial times…
We took a grand tour of the Governor’s Palace,
which included a tour of the kitchen. We got to visually sample a five-course meal that might have been served to guests of the palace.
We walked through the parlor, offices, bed chambers, and the ballroom…
The finale was a visit to a woodworking shop, where a wheelwright was fastening the final pegs into a cart wheel. We learned that all wheels were made of ash, oak, and elm. It took two weeks to make one wheel!
Reading about history is wonderful and can be very interesting and engaging. But actually living it, seeing it in action, walking amongst it, is an altogether different experience. My children and I will remember this experience in all of its vivid splendor for a very long time…
