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Thursday, November 5, 2009
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Children's Orientation Walk
Type: Family Program, Walking Tour. Location: Gateway Building
The Children's Orientation Walk is designed to assist guests with planning their visit and will highlight options that families will enjoy. Guides share the latest information on programming, dining, and shopping options. Guests will receive an overview of the 18th century community and specifically understand what childhood and family life was like in the 18th century. The walking tour lasts approximately 30 minutes.
11:45 12:15
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75th Anniversary Tour of the Capitol
Type: Day Program. Location: Capitol
In the early years of the twentieth century, the Reverend W.A.R. Goodwin, rector of Bruton Parish Church, was inspired by the surviving eighteenth century character of Williamsburg and dreamt of restoring Virginia’s colonial capital to its former glory. In 1926, he persuaded John D Rockefeller Jr. to see Williamsburg through his eyes and the rest is museum history.
Guided by architectural research focused on early maps, deeds, inventories, plans drawing and accounts, their plans flourished and in 1934 the Capitol and the Governor’s Palace were completed and opened to the public. Beginning on May 25th and continuing throughout the year, specially focused tours of the Capitol and Governor’s Palace will tell the story of the beginnings of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, the people who were instrumental in bringing the Historic Area into being, the creation of public awareness of America’s architectural treasures and the development of preservation techniques. Learn about the era in which the Capitol Building and the Governor’s Palace were reconstructed and compare that time with today.
Understand the techniques used to research, reconstruct and furnish these two buildings by examining photos, documents and the buildings. The story that we tell today at these two sites has evolved over the last 75 years. Colonial Williamsburg interpreters will delve into those changes and illustrate how a visit to the Historic Area has changed over time.
12:00 1:00
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An Introduction to Folk Art
Type: Museum Program. Location: Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum
Guided tours by knowledgeable museum volunteers introduce you to the whimsical and fascinating paintings, sculpture, textiles and more from Mrs. Rockefeller's original collection, for which the museum was founded.
Thirty-minute tours begin at 12:00 and 2:00 p.m. Included in museum admission ticket.
Programs and exhibitions at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum are supported by the DeWitt Wallace Endowment Fund.
12:00 12:30
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Bits and Bridles Walking Tour
Type: Day Program. Location: See reservation ticket for location
This one-hour walking tour takes guests through the stable and carriage facilities and introduces them to the rare breeds conservancy program operated by Colonial Williamsburg. Guests will view the facilities, see some of the animals and view the various vehicles owned and operated here.
Discussion of animal treatment, training, equipment use and the Coach and Livestock operation is ongoing throughout the tour. This experience includes some hands-on activities, such as trying out a sidesaddle or inspecting a horse’s hoof. Children must be accompanied by adults at all times.
Please make reservations at any on-site ticket location. Not available with the Capital City Pass.
Available to Colonial Williamsburg Liberty Pass, Hotel Guest Pass, Freedom Pass or Independence Pass holders only.
1:00 2:00
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Decorative Arts Highlights
Type: Museum Program. Location: DeWitt Wallace Museum
Guided tours by knowledgeable museum volunteers introduce you to some of the masterworks on exhibit, such as paintings, ceramics, furniture and silver.
30 minute tours begin at 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Included in museum admission ticket.
Programs and exhibitions at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum are supported by the DeWitt Wallace Endowment Fund.
1:00 1:30
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Order in the Court
Type: Day Program. Location: Courthouse
Come and participate in a local court session where lives, liberties and property come into contest. Our guests may take on roles as justices, attorneys, litigants, petitioners or defendants. See how the rights of Virginians were maintained in open court.
25 minute program runs continuously.
1:00 2:30
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Soul of a Sharecropper
Type: African American. Location: DeWitt Wallace Museum
Following the Civil War, the abolition of slavery presented opportunity to some and a brand new set of challenges to most. A former slave shares tales of hope and despair in this moving performance by Valarie Holmes.
Programs and exhibitions at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum are supported by the DeWitt Wallace Endowment Fund.
1:15 2:00
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Shakespeare on the Green
Type: Live Performance. Location: Play Booth Theater
Shakespeare was a favorite of actors and audiences here in the colonies as well as in England. However, then like today, theater companies rewrote the Bard's words to suit the tastes and sensibilities of their audiences. Scenes, speeches, and even characters themselves were often added, deleted, or changed completely. Enjoy this lively look at how these "improvements" to his plays did and did not survive.
Weather permitting.
1:30 2:00
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An Introduction to Folk Art
Type: Museum Program. Location: Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum
Guided tours by knowledgeable museum volunteers introduce you to the whimsical and fascinating paintings, sculpture, textiles and more from Mrs. Rockefeller's original collection, for which the museum was founded.
Thirty-minute tours begin at 12:00 and 2:00 p.m. Included in museum admission ticket.
Programs and exhibitions at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum are supported by the DeWitt Wallace Endowment Fund.
2:00 2:30
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Focus on Furniture
Type: Museum Program. Location: DeWitt Wallace Museum
Museum volunteers guide this in-depth tour of 18th and early 19th century furniture including rare baroque, rococco and neo-classical tables, chairs, chests and desks.
45-minute tours begin at 2:15 and 3:30 p.m. Included in Museum Admission Ticket.
Programs and exhibitions at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum are supported by the DeWitt Wallace Endowment Fund.
2:15 3:00
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Revolutionary City: Collapse of Royal Government 1774-1776
Type: Revolutionary City. Location: Historic Area from Botetourt St. to the Capitol
From May, 1774 to May, 1776 events take place in Williamsburg that change Virginians from servants of a distant monarch to citizens of a self-governing republic. These events cause colonists to declare that they are no longer dependent on the British crown, but are citizens of the free and independent United States of America.
The Revolutionary City recreates these critical moments that relive Williamsburg's role in the American Revolution and the War for Independence. Come take part in the everyday life of the city against the backdrop of these momentous, world changing historic events.
Meet famous patriots like Thomas Jefferson, George Washington and Patrick Henry, and lesser known people such as, Alexander Hoy, a poor man who enlisted in the army, enslaved African Americans like Kate, Hannah and Marcus who debate whether to escape to the British, and a Baptist preacher named Gowan who talks about his hopes for the future where all citizens are equal.
Meet the men and women – rich and poor, great and humble, free and enslaved – who live in these extraordinary times and create our nation.
Guests are free to come and go through the course of this two-hour event.
2:30 4:30
NOTICE: All events and exhibits listed on the calendar are subject to change. Call 1-800-HISTORY for reservations and check the daily program schedule upon arrival.
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