yk+family weeklong American history tour to Virginia, April 2022
May 13th, 2022, 02:06 PM
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Day 5 Jamestown photos
historic Jamestowne archeological tour with church tower in the back
Replica of one of the 3 ships that brought over the original settlers, at Jamestown settlement
Candlelight concert inside Bruton Parish Church
May 13th, 2022, 06:41 PM
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Day 6
Day 6 (Friday) — CW Part I
We finally will visit Colonial Williamsburg today, AND tomorrow. I decided to allocate 2 full days, which I think is the perfect amount of time. Let me backtrack a bit to the day before: another reason why we got to Jamestown so late (10:30am) is because yesterday morning we had to stop in the CW visitors center. 1) to pick up our free length-of-stay tickets, and 2) book 2 evening tours. As CW hotel guests, we can get a discount for the tours, but I can't get the discount online.
Anyway, after another hotel breakfast, we set off on the walking path from the visitors center to CW. It's a pretty 1-mile walk. It's important to check the CW Daily Schedule ahead of time so you don't miss certain performances; also not all the buildings are open daily so you need to make sure you don't miss the opening days.
Did I also mention that the temperature has gone from 35F the day we visited UVA, to 70sF today? We went from wearing winter jackets, scarves and gloves, to wearing T-shirts and shorts. Our first stop is the Governors Palace, which is open by guided tour. It is restored back to the years when the final colonial governor, Lord Dunmore, was living there. He had to skip town in the middle of the night when things started looking bad for the British. We didn't have time to check out the gardens afterwards because we had to hurry over to watch the "Nation Builder" on Charlton Stage. The "nation builder" is a performance by different costume interpreters throughout the day, usually there is 2 or 3 performances a day. The one that morning featured George and Martha Washington. They were mostly having a domestic conversation (the date was set in the 1760s), discussing their upcoming plans. As you listen in to this, they started talking about going to an estate sale of one of their bankrupt friends, and George is hoping to purchase 2 slaves who were brothers. Then there is the discussion why he had to purchase both when he only really needed one of them. It was fascinating you can see George trying to explain why he wanted to keep the brothers together etc.
We then visited many of the shops that were open that day, chatting with the interpreters. I didn't think CW is that crowded but there are times we had to wait our turn to enter, as most of the buildings are pretty cramped inside. Given that dining options are very limited inside CW, we walked all the way to the Art Museum cafe for lunch (which has a nice outdoor, shaded patio). Although the Art Museum is part of the CW dining "kids eat free" options, it doesn't offer a kids menu and therefore, kids cannot eat free there. I had one of the best salads there. My son ate a lunch that I packed from the free breakfast, but i bought him a locally-made ice cream sandwich for dessert.
Later on while walking on Duke of Gloucester Street, we saw the Washingtons riding around town on horseback, and a few minutes later, saw Marquis de Lafayette on horseback as well. My son thought that was very cool. When we were inside the courthouse building, the interpreter conducted a mock trial so we could see what it was like back in Colonial times. In late afternoon just before the buildings close, behind the courthouse is the Fife and Drum demonstration where the band plays different tunes which has different purposes on the battlefield.
Seeing that there is little hope of finding a dining spot inside CW, we walked over to William and Mary and found a ramen place for takeout. I had a bowl of ramen and my son had tonkatsu. In the "market place" area just to the West of CW along Duke of Gloucester Street, the street is entirely closed to traffic and plenty of tables and chairs are set outside for anyone to use, so that's where we ate our dinner. That evening I had tickets for CW Lights where they illuminated the Governors Palace Gardens. It was really nice, and I didn't know the gardens is so huge (remember, we didn't have time to explore it earlier in the morning). We spent about 90 minutes there, then we took the shuttle bus back to the hotel.
of note: there are 3 historic taverns inside CW. Christina Campbell's is closed. Kings Arms is fully booked weeks in advance. The last one, Chowning's Tavern, only takes walk-ins and waits are easily 1+ hour long.
We finally will visit Colonial Williamsburg today, AND tomorrow. I decided to allocate 2 full days, which I think is the perfect amount of time. Let me backtrack a bit to the day before: another reason why we got to Jamestown so late (10:30am) is because yesterday morning we had to stop in the CW visitors center. 1) to pick up our free length-of-stay tickets, and 2) book 2 evening tours. As CW hotel guests, we can get a discount for the tours, but I can't get the discount online.
Anyway, after another hotel breakfast, we set off on the walking path from the visitors center to CW. It's a pretty 1-mile walk. It's important to check the CW Daily Schedule ahead of time so you don't miss certain performances; also not all the buildings are open daily so you need to make sure you don't miss the opening days.
Did I also mention that the temperature has gone from 35F the day we visited UVA, to 70sF today? We went from wearing winter jackets, scarves and gloves, to wearing T-shirts and shorts. Our first stop is the Governors Palace, which is open by guided tour. It is restored back to the years when the final colonial governor, Lord Dunmore, was living there. He had to skip town in the middle of the night when things started looking bad for the British. We didn't have time to check out the gardens afterwards because we had to hurry over to watch the "Nation Builder" on Charlton Stage. The "nation builder" is a performance by different costume interpreters throughout the day, usually there is 2 or 3 performances a day. The one that morning featured George and Martha Washington. They were mostly having a domestic conversation (the date was set in the 1760s), discussing their upcoming plans. As you listen in to this, they started talking about going to an estate sale of one of their bankrupt friends, and George is hoping to purchase 2 slaves who were brothers. Then there is the discussion why he had to purchase both when he only really needed one of them. It was fascinating you can see George trying to explain why he wanted to keep the brothers together etc.
We then visited many of the shops that were open that day, chatting with the interpreters. I didn't think CW is that crowded but there are times we had to wait our turn to enter, as most of the buildings are pretty cramped inside. Given that dining options are very limited inside CW, we walked all the way to the Art Museum cafe for lunch (which has a nice outdoor, shaded patio). Although the Art Museum is part of the CW dining "kids eat free" options, it doesn't offer a kids menu and therefore, kids cannot eat free there. I had one of the best salads there. My son ate a lunch that I packed from the free breakfast, but i bought him a locally-made ice cream sandwich for dessert.
Later on while walking on Duke of Gloucester Street, we saw the Washingtons riding around town on horseback, and a few minutes later, saw Marquis de Lafayette on horseback as well. My son thought that was very cool. When we were inside the courthouse building, the interpreter conducted a mock trial so we could see what it was like back in Colonial times. In late afternoon just before the buildings close, behind the courthouse is the Fife and Drum demonstration where the band plays different tunes which has different purposes on the battlefield.
Seeing that there is little hope of finding a dining spot inside CW, we walked over to William and Mary and found a ramen place for takeout. I had a bowl of ramen and my son had tonkatsu. In the "market place" area just to the West of CW along Duke of Gloucester Street, the street is entirely closed to traffic and plenty of tables and chairs are set outside for anyone to use, so that's where we ate our dinner. That evening I had tickets for CW Lights where they illuminated the Governors Palace Gardens. It was really nice, and I didn't know the gardens is so huge (remember, we didn't have time to explore it earlier in the morning). We spent about 90 minutes there, then we took the shuttle bus back to the hotel.
of note: there are 3 historic taverns inside CW. Christina Campbell's is closed. Kings Arms is fully booked weeks in advance. The last one, Chowning's Tavern, only takes walk-ins and waits are easily 1+ hour long.
Last edited by yk; May 13th, 2022 at 06:47 PM.
May 14th, 2022, 05:39 AM
#27
You guys are really filling up your days! Your photo of the replica Jamestown ship (the barque Susan Constant, I think) sent me off to read up on Jamestown history, which I kind of remember but had forgotten plenty. Always fun to review, so thanks for that inspiration.
The food at the CW taverns looks pretty interesting. I've bookmarked a link to a recipe for An Onion Pye, to perhaps try some day.
The food at the CW taverns looks pretty interesting. I've bookmarked a link to a recipe for An Onion Pye, to perhaps try some day.
May 14th, 2022, 08:16 AM
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Thank-you for your trip report and photos. It’s been 9 years since I’ve been to these places, but we went yearly as kids, despite the 5 hour drive. (Thanks Mom and Dad)
The Monticello house interior tours have been a huge disappointment with their lack of content in the past 20 years . My sister and I felt the need to add in fascinating tidbits for each room that today’s guides NEVER mention that used to be included. We did take the behind the scenes tour and finally got to see the bright yellow dome room which had always been off limits to visitors. I will try to find a link to an interesting article for your son about the culinary impact Jefferson had.
You are an awesome parent for taking your son on all of these scenic, educational trips!
The Monticello house interior tours have been a huge disappointment with their lack of content in the past 20 years . My sister and I felt the need to add in fascinating tidbits for each room that today’s guides NEVER mention that used to be included. We did take the behind the scenes tour and finally got to see the bright yellow dome room which had always been off limits to visitors. I will try to find a link to an interesting article for your son about the culinary impact Jefferson had.
You are an awesome parent for taking your son on all of these scenic, educational trips!
May 15th, 2022, 01:27 PM
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Taking a quick break from the remainder of the TR. THANK YOU so much for all your kind comments. I hope my son still remembers some of this history when he finally learns it in the 5th grade curriculum! I told him he can make a powerpoint presentation in 5th grade to show his classmates all the places he has visited. I'm also heartened by his comment that this trip is probably as good as a trip to Disney World.
Daniel - did you go to William & Mary? What a quaint campus it has. As for the Rotunda tour, I think it was VTtraveler who told me that. And when i couldn't find the info, she posted the direct link of the tour, so I'm very grateful to her for that. I wouldn't have been able to take the tour if we hadn't rearranged our itinerary.
Yes, TDu, we got to see his sleeping alcove/nook, and that he didn't have a real bedroom. The bed was very short in length for sure.
Alas, we never made it to Lewis Ginter. hopefully we will be back to Richmond, as I can see a Civil Wars tour in our future.
I do wonder if we would get to see at a more leisurely pace if we had done the self-guided, but then we wouldn't get the guide's commentary.
Yes, It is Susan Constant, which is the biggest of the 3. I knew very little about the history of Jamestown, esp the first few decades after the initial settlement, so it was very enlightening on this trip, hearing about how they almost packed up and left after the famine/drought of 1609, only to be turned back by the arrival of Lord De la Waar, and the connection of Pocahontas to the Jamestown settlers.
The guide was in such a rush in each room as we only get a certain number of minutes before we have to move on to the next room. Maybe in the future we can take the behind-the-scenes tour. There was a lot of information about Jefferson's personal chef James Hemings (brother of Sally), and how he went to France to learn the culinary trades to bring back to Monticello. I think I read somewhere that mac and cheese was one of Jefferson's creation? I guess all American kids can thank Jefferson for that, lol
Thank you for your trip report yk
I didn’t realize there were tours at the UVA Rotunda. It’s interesting that Highland is so quiet, especially when compared to Monticello. I went to Highland in the 90’s when I was an undergrad and we were one of a handful of visitors then too and Monticello in Dec 2019 when it was the finely tuned clockwork super-busy machine of letting visitors in that you describe. Downtown Charlottesville and the UVA area are a nice place to meander on a nice day; sorry the weather was not cooperating.
Looking forward to the Williamsburg report, as that’s where I did my B.Sc.
Thanks, Daniel
I didn’t realize there were tours at the UVA Rotunda. It’s interesting that Highland is so quiet, especially when compared to Monticello. I went to Highland in the 90’s when I was an undergrad and we were one of a handful of visitors then too and Monticello in Dec 2019 when it was the finely tuned clockwork super-busy machine of letting visitors in that you describe. Downtown Charlottesville and the UVA area are a nice place to meander on a nice day; sorry the weather was not cooperating.
Looking forward to the Williamsburg report, as that’s where I did my B.Sc.
Thanks, Daniel
Our tour of Monticello was in the late 1970s or early 80s. Yes! the rooms were so much smaller than expected. Did your guide note that Jefferson slept in a sitting position (or not totally prone)? It was considered healthier.
I enjoyed Colonial Williamsburg enough to return... looking forward to that part of your trip.
I enjoyed Colonial Williamsburg enough to return... looking forward to that part of your trip.
Yes, impressive how you can juggle tickets at the last minute with changing conditions. Your discussion of herding the crowds at Monticello is spot on. That system could use some work. We did a self-guided tour so we could move through the house at our own pace, but still had to go through the entrance procedure.
If you want to redecorate after your tours, note that the wallpaper in Monroe's Highland is still available, for a price no doubt.
https://www.zuber.fr/en
If you want to redecorate after your tours, note that the wallpaper in Monroe's Highland is still available, for a price no doubt.
https://www.zuber.fr/en
You guys are really filling up your days! Your photo of the replica Jamestown ship (the barque Susan Constant, I think) sent me off to read up on Jamestown history, which I kind of remember but had forgotten plenty. Always fun to review, so thanks for that inspiration.
The food at the CW taverns looks pretty interesting. I've bookmarked a link to a recipe for An Onion Pye, to perhaps try some day.
The food at the CW taverns looks pretty interesting. I've bookmarked a link to a recipe for An Onion Pye, to perhaps try some day.
Thank-you for your trip report and photos. It’s been 9 years since I’ve been to these places, but we went yearly as kids, despite the 5 hour drive. (Thanks Mom and Dad)
The Monticello house interior tours have been a huge disappointment with their lack of content in the past 20 years . My sister and I felt the need to add in fascinating tidbits for each room that today’s guides NEVER mention that used to be included. We did take the behind the scenes tour and finally got to see the bright yellow dome room which had always been off limits to visitors. I will try to find a link to an interesting article for your son about the culinary impact Jefferson had.
You are an awesome parent for taking your son on all of these scenic, educational trips!
The Monticello house interior tours have been a huge disappointment with their lack of content in the past 20 years . My sister and I felt the need to add in fascinating tidbits for each room that today’s guides NEVER mention that used to be included. We did take the behind the scenes tour and finally got to see the bright yellow dome room which had always been off limits to visitors. I will try to find a link to an interesting article for your son about the culinary impact Jefferson had.
You are an awesome parent for taking your son on all of these scenic, educational trips!
May 15th, 2022, 03:34 PM
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Hi yk,
Yes, indeed I went to W&M for my undergrad and I very much appreciated the beautiful campus, as well as the education I received there. Thanks for the pictures of Colonial Williamsburg; seeing Duke of Gloucester Street (or as we affectionately referred to it as, DOG Street) mentioned brought me down memory lane.
Best wishes,
Daniel
Yes, indeed I went to W&M for my undergrad and I very much appreciated the beautiful campus, as well as the education I received there. Thanks for the pictures of Colonial Williamsburg; seeing Duke of Gloucester Street (or as we affectionately referred to it as, DOG Street) mentioned brought me down memory lane.
Best wishes,
Daniel
May 20th, 2022, 02:05 PM
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Day 7
Day 7 (Saturday)
Today is our second full day for Colonial Williamsburg. By going 2 days, we pretty much can cover all the buildings. I think there is only 1 or 2 buildings that are closed on both days. We were able to start our day early, and we headed to Governor's Palace Gardens first. Remember, we visited the interior of the Palace yesterday, but we didn't have time for the garden. The the night before we went through the garden during CW Lights, but of course if was nighttime so we couldn't see the vegetation. We got there by 9:15am and we were the only people there the entire time. It was lovely; we heard lots of bird songs, and walking through the quiet garden made us imagine being the Lord Governor enjoying the private garden. We then did the maze, and I was worried for a brief moment. I was worried if we got lost, no one would find us for sometime because no one was there! Luckily the maze isn't big and my son found our way out.
We then walked all the way to William and Mary campus for the Wren building, which is the oldest academic building in the US, even though W&M isn't the oldest university in the US (it is one of the earliest ones). There is a free organ recital inside the Wren Chapel at 10am. The organist played a variety of pieces, and pausing in between to give us a history of the organ and its characteristics. It is not the original organ, but it dates back to the early 18th-c and is English, so it's as authentic as you can get.
After the concert, we returned to Williamsburg and continued to cross off each building one by one. Along the way we learned the stories of famous Virginians during the Colonial times, including Peyton Randolph, Patrick Henry, George Wythe, the Custis family etc. My son wanted to watch the Fife and Drum demonstration again, which on Saturdays is around midday. We found a shady bench where we watched and ate our picnic lunch (aka, from hotel breakfast). In the afternoon we headed to the other end of CW to visit the Capitol building. Afterwards, we returned to the Charleton stage (where we saw the Washingtons the day before) but today it was George Wythe doing a monologue, and it was a bit more cerebral so my son wasn't as interested.
It was a pretty hot day so by 4pm my son asked to return to the hotel and go to the pool. There is a spray deck next to the pool which is nice, as the water was pretty cold in the pool. Finding dinner that evening (Saturday) was somewhat challenging. I was naive enough to think we can just saunter into Blue Talon Bistro and get seated. The whole place was fully reserved. Which left us with Retro's Good Eats across the street where I got pulled pork sandwich and my son got a cheeseburger. They have outdoor seating so that was nice.
We finished fairly early and went back to CW and sat on a bench. My son brought a book to read. I had booked us on Haunted Williamsburg Walk at 7:30pm. Finally around 7'ish I said lets start walking to the starting location. To my horror, I realized the tour started at 7pm, not 7:30pm! We quickly joined the group but sadly we already missed 15 minutes of it. It was a very good tour; the guide is probably one of the best story-tellers and kept us all engaged and in suspense the whole time. My son loved it.
Today is our second full day for Colonial Williamsburg. By going 2 days, we pretty much can cover all the buildings. I think there is only 1 or 2 buildings that are closed on both days. We were able to start our day early, and we headed to Governor's Palace Gardens first. Remember, we visited the interior of the Palace yesterday, but we didn't have time for the garden. The the night before we went through the garden during CW Lights, but of course if was nighttime so we couldn't see the vegetation. We got there by 9:15am and we were the only people there the entire time. It was lovely; we heard lots of bird songs, and walking through the quiet garden made us imagine being the Lord Governor enjoying the private garden. We then did the maze, and I was worried for a brief moment. I was worried if we got lost, no one would find us for sometime because no one was there! Luckily the maze isn't big and my son found our way out.
We then walked all the way to William and Mary campus for the Wren building, which is the oldest academic building in the US, even though W&M isn't the oldest university in the US (it is one of the earliest ones). There is a free organ recital inside the Wren Chapel at 10am. The organist played a variety of pieces, and pausing in between to give us a history of the organ and its characteristics. It is not the original organ, but it dates back to the early 18th-c and is English, so it's as authentic as you can get.
After the concert, we returned to Williamsburg and continued to cross off each building one by one. Along the way we learned the stories of famous Virginians during the Colonial times, including Peyton Randolph, Patrick Henry, George Wythe, the Custis family etc. My son wanted to watch the Fife and Drum demonstration again, which on Saturdays is around midday. We found a shady bench where we watched and ate our picnic lunch (aka, from hotel breakfast). In the afternoon we headed to the other end of CW to visit the Capitol building. Afterwards, we returned to the Charleton stage (where we saw the Washingtons the day before) but today it was George Wythe doing a monologue, and it was a bit more cerebral so my son wasn't as interested.
It was a pretty hot day so by 4pm my son asked to return to the hotel and go to the pool. There is a spray deck next to the pool which is nice, as the water was pretty cold in the pool. Finding dinner that evening (Saturday) was somewhat challenging. I was naive enough to think we can just saunter into Blue Talon Bistro and get seated. The whole place was fully reserved. Which left us with Retro's Good Eats across the street where I got pulled pork sandwich and my son got a cheeseburger. They have outdoor seating so that was nice.
We finished fairly early and went back to CW and sat on a bench. My son brought a book to read. I had booked us on Haunted Williamsburg Walk at 7:30pm. Finally around 7'ish I said lets start walking to the starting location. To my horror, I realized the tour started at 7pm, not 7:30pm! We quickly joined the group but sadly we already missed 15 minutes of it. It was a very good tour; the guide is probably one of the best story-tellers and kept us all engaged and in suspense the whole time. My son loved it.
May 20th, 2022, 05:18 PM
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Day 8
Day 8 (Sunday at Yorktown)
We have come to almost the end of our weeklong, early American history tour. What's more appropriate than to end our trip at Yorktown, one of the last major battles in the Revolutionary War?
Similar to Jamestown, Yorktown has 2 main tourist sites. One is the Yorktown Battlefield, which is run by NPS. The other is the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown. My son wants to visit the latter first, which is just as well as temperature today was expected to be in the high 80sF.
We got to theAmerican Revolution Museum at Yorktown at 9:15am (it opens at 9am).It's run by the same organization that runs Jamestown Settlement. You can buy a combo ticket for a slight discount. And similar to Jamestown settlement, the museum has both indoor and outdoor exhibits. We chose outdoor first before it gets way too hot. Size-wise, this is smaller than Jamestown Settlement. First you arrive at the Continental Army Encampment, where many rows of tents are set up. They are of different sizes and with amenities based on rank. The lowest rank members have to sleep in the smallest tent with 6-8 soldiers. It's so small you basically don't have room to move. The largest is the war tent where the general does his business. There are also medical tents, and an outdoor kitchen where a costumed interpreter shows us what is the food ration and how they cook the salted meats. After this part, the next section is a revolution-era farm, with farm house, out buildings, enslaved quarters etc. They based it on the Moss family's list of belongings which was in the records when the father died.
We returned to the museum building and went through all the exhibits. It is not nearly extensive as the American Revolution museum in Philadelphia, but it still has all the important facts and dates. A lot more focus on what unfolded in Virginia, and lots more details on Yorktown Battle. They even have a 4D theater that tells the Siege of Yorktown. We ended up spending 3 full hours there.
I was planning to eat at the cafe at the museum, which turns out to be closed on Sundays! Plan B was to find a place in Yorktown to eat, only to find a huge festival was happening in Yorktown so every parking spot is taken, plus tons of vehicular traffic and pedestrians (also there is a nice beach right in town and with the first HOT day tons of people were heading to the beach). many streets were closed to traffic as well so we gave up and drove straight to Yorktown Battlefield NPS. I had some snacks in my backpack so that was our lunch.
The admission at Historic Jamestowne covers Yorktown (good for 7 days); you just need to remember to bring the receipt. After getting our bearings and got the junior ranger activity book for my son, we watched the introductory movie (which looks like it was filmed in the 1980s) followed by checking out the exhibits in the visitors Center. After that we joined a ranger-guided tour, in which he went over the historic facts, as well as stories from POC who also fought in the battle. at the conclusion of the tour, I managed to convince my son to take the short 1/4 mile walk in the hot sun to the Yorktown monument, erected 100 years after Battle of Yorktown. Then we were ready to take the self-guided driving tour of the battle sites.
The NPS website has a link to an app for an audio guide of the driving tour. which I had downloaded ahead of time. There are 2 driving tours: the battlefield tour and the encampment tour. The ranger recommended the battlefield tour, whereas the encampment tour is more like a scenery tour. IIRC on the battlefield tour are 6 stops, and he recommended getting out at the last 4 stops to walk around for sure. (I asked because by then it was in the high 80sF ).
We saw the battery (a number of canons there), second siege lines, and the famous redoubts 9 and 10, the latter is slowly falling into the ocean due to erosion, and also that's the one Alexander Hamilton captured. The french army captured redoubt 9. The penultimate stop is Moore House where terms of surrender was discussed, but the house was not open. The final stop was surrender field, where they built an observation deck so you can have an elevated look at the vast field when the British troops had to march through to lay down their arms. It was quite overwhelming standing there, seeing just a meadow but knowing history happened there. And also realizing our vacation/tour has come to an end.
We finally headed home, after spending 4 full hours at Yorktown Battlefield. My son finished his junior ranger activity, but we didn't need to return to the HQ because the ranger already handed me his badge ahead of time.
Just to recap, we started our day at 9am (arrived at the museum by 9:15am), and finished at surrender field at 5pm. FWIW, the 2 sites opening hours are also 9a-5p. Obviously, no one will kick you out on the driving tour, as it is open to the public, but I was glad my son suggested seeing the 2 in this order. I've read reports where people spent just half a day in Yorktown. It's certainly a place worth a full day. And we didn't even get to visit the actual town itself because of the crowds and time constraints.
We drove directly back to CW (not to hotel but to the historic town) and tried our luck at Chowing's Tavern, our last chance to try colonial fare. I didn't have high hopes when we arrived around 5:30pm, but to our surprise, we got seated within 10 minutes! It's one of the few places that offer "kids eat free" for CW hotel guests and has a kids menu. BUT... the kids menu only has hot dog, PB&J, or chicken tenders. Since we both didn't eat lunch and I'm no fan of the kids menu, we both ordered off the regular menu well knowing his won't be free. He got Virginia Pork BBQ. I had a cup of corn chowder, followed by "To Stew a Duck in the French Way." We shared "American Heritage Chocolate Cobbler" topped with ice cream. My son cleaned everything off his plate and so did I. It was pricey but we were satisfied.
We took one last evening stroll down Duke of Gloucester Street back to our car, and headed back to our hotel for one last sleep.
We have come to almost the end of our weeklong, early American history tour. What's more appropriate than to end our trip at Yorktown, one of the last major battles in the Revolutionary War?
Similar to Jamestown, Yorktown has 2 main tourist sites. One is the Yorktown Battlefield, which is run by NPS. The other is the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown. My son wants to visit the latter first, which is just as well as temperature today was expected to be in the high 80sF.
We got to theAmerican Revolution Museum at Yorktown at 9:15am (it opens at 9am).It's run by the same organization that runs Jamestown Settlement. You can buy a combo ticket for a slight discount. And similar to Jamestown settlement, the museum has both indoor and outdoor exhibits. We chose outdoor first before it gets way too hot. Size-wise, this is smaller than Jamestown Settlement. First you arrive at the Continental Army Encampment, where many rows of tents are set up. They are of different sizes and with amenities based on rank. The lowest rank members have to sleep in the smallest tent with 6-8 soldiers. It's so small you basically don't have room to move. The largest is the war tent where the general does his business. There are also medical tents, and an outdoor kitchen where a costumed interpreter shows us what is the food ration and how they cook the salted meats. After this part, the next section is a revolution-era farm, with farm house, out buildings, enslaved quarters etc. They based it on the Moss family's list of belongings which was in the records when the father died.
We returned to the museum building and went through all the exhibits. It is not nearly extensive as the American Revolution museum in Philadelphia, but it still has all the important facts and dates. A lot more focus on what unfolded in Virginia, and lots more details on Yorktown Battle. They even have a 4D theater that tells the Siege of Yorktown. We ended up spending 3 full hours there.
I was planning to eat at the cafe at the museum, which turns out to be closed on Sundays! Plan B was to find a place in Yorktown to eat, only to find a huge festival was happening in Yorktown so every parking spot is taken, plus tons of vehicular traffic and pedestrians (also there is a nice beach right in town and with the first HOT day tons of people were heading to the beach). many streets were closed to traffic as well so we gave up and drove straight to Yorktown Battlefield NPS. I had some snacks in my backpack so that was our lunch.
The admission at Historic Jamestowne covers Yorktown (good for 7 days); you just need to remember to bring the receipt. After getting our bearings and got the junior ranger activity book for my son, we watched the introductory movie (which looks like it was filmed in the 1980s) followed by checking out the exhibits in the visitors Center. After that we joined a ranger-guided tour, in which he went over the historic facts, as well as stories from POC who also fought in the battle. at the conclusion of the tour, I managed to convince my son to take the short 1/4 mile walk in the hot sun to the Yorktown monument, erected 100 years after Battle of Yorktown. Then we were ready to take the self-guided driving tour of the battle sites.
The NPS website has a link to an app for an audio guide of the driving tour. which I had downloaded ahead of time. There are 2 driving tours: the battlefield tour and the encampment tour. The ranger recommended the battlefield tour, whereas the encampment tour is more like a scenery tour. IIRC on the battlefield tour are 6 stops, and he recommended getting out at the last 4 stops to walk around for sure. (I asked because by then it was in the high 80sF ).
We saw the battery (a number of canons there), second siege lines, and the famous redoubts 9 and 10, the latter is slowly falling into the ocean due to erosion, and also that's the one Alexander Hamilton captured. The french army captured redoubt 9. The penultimate stop is Moore House where terms of surrender was discussed, but the house was not open. The final stop was surrender field, where they built an observation deck so you can have an elevated look at the vast field when the British troops had to march through to lay down their arms. It was quite overwhelming standing there, seeing just a meadow but knowing history happened there. And also realizing our vacation/tour has come to an end.
We finally headed home, after spending 4 full hours at Yorktown Battlefield. My son finished his junior ranger activity, but we didn't need to return to the HQ because the ranger already handed me his badge ahead of time.
Just to recap, we started our day at 9am (arrived at the museum by 9:15am), and finished at surrender field at 5pm. FWIW, the 2 sites opening hours are also 9a-5p. Obviously, no one will kick you out on the driving tour, as it is open to the public, but I was glad my son suggested seeing the 2 in this order. I've read reports where people spent just half a day in Yorktown. It's certainly a place worth a full day. And we didn't even get to visit the actual town itself because of the crowds and time constraints.
We drove directly back to CW (not to hotel but to the historic town) and tried our luck at Chowing's Tavern, our last chance to try colonial fare. I didn't have high hopes when we arrived around 5:30pm, but to our surprise, we got seated within 10 minutes! It's one of the few places that offer "kids eat free" for CW hotel guests and has a kids menu. BUT... the kids menu only has hot dog, PB&J, or chicken tenders. Since we both didn't eat lunch and I'm no fan of the kids menu, we both ordered off the regular menu well knowing his won't be free. He got Virginia Pork BBQ. I had a cup of corn chowder, followed by "To Stew a Duck in the French Way." We shared "American Heritage Chocolate Cobbler" topped with ice cream. My son cleaned everything off his plate and so did I. It was pricey but we were satisfied.
We took one last evening stroll down Duke of Gloucester Street back to our car, and headed back to our hotel for one last sleep.
Last edited by yk; May 20th, 2022 at 05:56 PM.
May 20th, 2022, 05:55 PM
#35
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Day 8 photos
Tent in continental army encampment
Reading about Redoubt 10
View of Surrender Field from observation deck
Chowning's tavern menu
My dish of "To Stew a duck in the French way" from Martha Washington's cookbook
May 21st, 2022, 10:53 AM
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Day 9
Day 9 (Monday)
My son should have been back in school today but I chose to fly back on Monday because of much cheaper plane tickets. There are only 3 nonstop flights Richmond->Boston a day, and I figured we might as well take the last flight home so 1) we at least get most of the day for sightseeing, and 2) my husband can pick us up after his workday is done.
I didn't have concrete plans for departure day; I left it free in case we wanted to spend more time in any of the places around. We decided we have seen everything we wanted in CW, as well as Yorktown. However, my son had forgotten to get his NPS cancellation stamps from Jamestowne, so we went back there after checking out of the hotel. VTTraveler had suggested the James River plantation homes, and this week coincided with Virginia Historic Garden week. (more on that later)
As we returned to NPS Historic Jamestowne, we realized we didn't have time to visit their Glasshouse, so we went there as well (there is a cancellation station at the glasshouse). It was another hot day and I feel for the staff who work there, standing just a few feet away from the hot furnace. They have a gift shop on site and I wish I hadn't already bought souvenirs on this trip, otherwise I would have bought something from there. (We limit our vacation souvenirs to xmas ornaments only, so we aren't continuously cluttering our house with trinkets).
Have I mentioned how pretty the Colonial Parkway is?
Anyway, we then got on Route 5 that travels along the James River. I have to say, it's not nearly as scenic as I had expected, as the highway is not directly next to the river. There is a really nice bike path however, that goes alongside the highway, all the way from Jamestown to Richmond (51 miles!!!).
About the Virginia Historic Garden Week, it's a weeklong event where you can visit the gardens of historic sites all over Virginia. With this event, 3 plantations on James River participate in it. You can pay $60 for all 3 sites, but they don't have discount for children, and I thought that would be too much for my son (and possibly time crunch). When I checked the individual plantations, because of Garden Week, only Shirley allows you to buy individual ticket to visit, and no discount for children. (on a regular non-garden week day, they have children discount). We didn't have a choice, so we went to Shirley Plantation as that's the only one we can visit that day.
Let me just say this out front, the garden is NOT impressive to us. Maybe I mistakenly assumed garden week = flower week, as there really weren't too many blooms. The garden is also fairly small. We are able to tour the inside of the house (ground floor only). Usually you can visit the house on guided tours, but with historic garden week, they station a person in each room who answered questions. Some are more knowledgable than others. One is clearly a garden week volunteer, as she was reading the script to us. Whereas another guide is a cousin of the current owners, who obviously knows a whole lot more about the history of Shirley.
I actually didn't read ahead about Shirley, so we were pleasantly surprised to see how Shirley is connected to what we have seen just days before. The first owners were Baron De La Warr and his wife Cecilia Shirley West. De La Warr was the appointed governor of Virginia who arrived to Jamestowne just in time to turn back the original settlers who had given up and wanted to sail home. He and his wife were also the ones who introduced John Wolfe and Pocahontas to English society. A few decades later Edward Hill bought the land, and his descendants married the Carter family, which was one of the richest families in Colonial Virginia. We saw one of their homes in Colonial Williamsburg. In any case, Shirley is still the family home of the Carter family, now in its 11th generation. The family lives there permanently, and I believe the wife was manning the gift shop that day. There is also a link between the Carter family with Robert E Lee as well. Therefore, even though there isn't a whole lot to see, the history is fascinating.
There are a number of out buildings and each one have its own exhibit, including one dedicated to the enslaved who had worked there and their stories. We spent quite a lot of time just lounging on the bench at the property (where we ate our picnic lunch), since we had no other place to go before our flight. I didn't want to try to squeeze in Lewis Ginter garden, as it is on the other side of town and it was just too hot that day.
We had an uneventful drive back to the Richmond airport, returned our rental car, and got on our flight home.
My son should have been back in school today but I chose to fly back on Monday because of much cheaper plane tickets. There are only 3 nonstop flights Richmond->Boston a day, and I figured we might as well take the last flight home so 1) we at least get most of the day for sightseeing, and 2) my husband can pick us up after his workday is done.
I didn't have concrete plans for departure day; I left it free in case we wanted to spend more time in any of the places around. We decided we have seen everything we wanted in CW, as well as Yorktown. However, my son had forgotten to get his NPS cancellation stamps from Jamestowne, so we went back there after checking out of the hotel. VTTraveler had suggested the James River plantation homes, and this week coincided with Virginia Historic Garden week. (more on that later)
As we returned to NPS Historic Jamestowne, we realized we didn't have time to visit their Glasshouse, so we went there as well (there is a cancellation station at the glasshouse). It was another hot day and I feel for the staff who work there, standing just a few feet away from the hot furnace. They have a gift shop on site and I wish I hadn't already bought souvenirs on this trip, otherwise I would have bought something from there. (We limit our vacation souvenirs to xmas ornaments only, so we aren't continuously cluttering our house with trinkets).
Have I mentioned how pretty the Colonial Parkway is?
Anyway, we then got on Route 5 that travels along the James River. I have to say, it's not nearly as scenic as I had expected, as the highway is not directly next to the river. There is a really nice bike path however, that goes alongside the highway, all the way from Jamestown to Richmond (51 miles!!!).
About the Virginia Historic Garden Week, it's a weeklong event where you can visit the gardens of historic sites all over Virginia. With this event, 3 plantations on James River participate in it. You can pay $60 for all 3 sites, but they don't have discount for children, and I thought that would be too much for my son (and possibly time crunch). When I checked the individual plantations, because of Garden Week, only Shirley allows you to buy individual ticket to visit, and no discount for children. (on a regular non-garden week day, they have children discount). We didn't have a choice, so we went to Shirley Plantation as that's the only one we can visit that day.
Let me just say this out front, the garden is NOT impressive to us. Maybe I mistakenly assumed garden week = flower week, as there really weren't too many blooms. The garden is also fairly small. We are able to tour the inside of the house (ground floor only). Usually you can visit the house on guided tours, but with historic garden week, they station a person in each room who answered questions. Some are more knowledgable than others. One is clearly a garden week volunteer, as she was reading the script to us. Whereas another guide is a cousin of the current owners, who obviously knows a whole lot more about the history of Shirley.
I actually didn't read ahead about Shirley, so we were pleasantly surprised to see how Shirley is connected to what we have seen just days before. The first owners were Baron De La Warr and his wife Cecilia Shirley West. De La Warr was the appointed governor of Virginia who arrived to Jamestowne just in time to turn back the original settlers who had given up and wanted to sail home. He and his wife were also the ones who introduced John Wolfe and Pocahontas to English society. A few decades later Edward Hill bought the land, and his descendants married the Carter family, which was one of the richest families in Colonial Virginia. We saw one of their homes in Colonial Williamsburg. In any case, Shirley is still the family home of the Carter family, now in its 11th generation. The family lives there permanently, and I believe the wife was manning the gift shop that day. There is also a link between the Carter family with Robert E Lee as well. Therefore, even though there isn't a whole lot to see, the history is fascinating.
There are a number of out buildings and each one have its own exhibit, including one dedicated to the enslaved who had worked there and their stories. We spent quite a lot of time just lounging on the bench at the property (where we ate our picnic lunch), since we had no other place to go before our flight. I didn't want to try to squeeze in Lewis Ginter garden, as it is on the other side of town and it was just too hot that day.
We had an uneventful drive back to the Richmond airport, returned our rental car, and got on our flight home.
May 21st, 2022, 04:47 PM
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Day 9 photos
Glasshouse at Historic Jamestowne
Shirley Plantation mansion, built in the 1700s and largely unchanged.
350-year-old Willow oak at the back of the house by the bank of James River
Glimpse of Shirley mansion from its garden
May 21st, 2022, 05:52 PM
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Costs
I always want to know how much we spend on trips. Prices here reflect one adult + one child.
8 nights lodging: $1523
Airfare: $594
Rental car x 9 days: $798
Food: $434 (we have free breakfasts at both hotels, and we had a number of "free" lunches)
Admissions and tours: $359 (our CW admissions were free as part of our hotel deal)
Grand total = $3708
8 nights lodging: $1523
Airfare: $594
Rental car x 9 days: $798
Food: $434 (we have free breakfasts at both hotels, and we had a number of "free" lunches)
Admissions and tours: $359 (our CW admissions were free as part of our hotel deal)
Grand total = $3708
May 21st, 2022, 06:10 PM
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Final thoughts
Both of us had a really great time on this trip. All the places are new to both of us. My son was keen on learning all this history. He kept a journey in which he would write down what we did each day. I would say that Colonial Williamsburg/Jamestown/Yorktown is more "fun" than Charlottesville, so I'm glad we did that in the second half of the trip, even though chronologically it would make more sense to reverse the order. We could have used another 2 hours in Jamestowne, but that was mainly our fault as we didn't start our day as early as I'd like.
I liked that we broke up the trip half way with a hiking day. I would love to spend an extra day at Shenandoah. Other than that, I wouldn't really change a thing. We did not spend any time in Richmond at all, even though we flew in/out of it. Perhaps we will return for another trip in a few years' time focusing on Civil War history.
Weather-wise we really got the whole gamut! From snow and freezing rain down in the 30sF, to almost 90F on our last 2 days. We were dressed for all weather and we lucked out as it only rained for one day out of 9 days. I didn't find there were too many tourists (we were there 3rd week of April) except for Monticello. I checked that April break for public schools in VA and surrounding states is usually during the first or second week of April. I don't think I would want to visit most of these places during summer, due to the heat and the crowds.
Thank you for reading and I'm happy to answer any questions!
I liked that we broke up the trip half way with a hiking day. I would love to spend an extra day at Shenandoah. Other than that, I wouldn't really change a thing. We did not spend any time in Richmond at all, even though we flew in/out of it. Perhaps we will return for another trip in a few years' time focusing on Civil War history.
Weather-wise we really got the whole gamut! From snow and freezing rain down in the 30sF, to almost 90F on our last 2 days. We were dressed for all weather and we lucked out as it only rained for one day out of 9 days. I didn't find there were too many tourists (we were there 3rd week of April) except for Monticello. I checked that April break for public schools in VA and surrounding states is usually during the first or second week of April. I don't think I would want to visit most of these places during summer, due to the heat and the crowds.
Thank you for reading and I'm happy to answer any questions!
