From Colonial Williamsburg: Past and Present Podcasts
"Restoration presents a paradox when repairing old instruments could mean erasing their stories. Conservator John Watson walks the fine line."
Interested readers can also learn more about the material culture present at Colonial Williamsburg by exploring the Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg website.
Colonial Williamsburg staff archaeologist Meredith Poole discusses excavation at the Williamsburg Ravenscroft site, where archaeologists are using the "Frenchman's map," a map showing the layout of Williamsburg in the 18th century, to guide their search for the remains of structures.
Interested listeners can learn more about the Ravenscroft Archaeological Project by exploring the project's website.
The story of Jamestown continues to unfold as archaeology proceeds at the fort site. One of the discoveries was an abandoned well where early colonists dumped oyster shells, which were studied by Juli Harding, the senior marine scientist at at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science. She explains how oysters join the narrative of America's first permanent English settlement.
Note: this podcast is no longer available. To view a transcript of the original podcast, click here.
Meredith Poole, a staff archaeologist at Colonial Wiliamsburg, describes work on the Ravenscroft site, where 17th-century artifacts are being discovered.
Jim Axtell, the College of William and Mary's William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of Humanities, discusses possible reasons why many people mistakenly believe that Plymouth was founded before Jamestown; and looks at what might be required for Jamestown to assume prominence in popular memory.
Kelly Ladd-Kostro, associate curator of archaeological collections at Colonial Williamsburg, describes the search for remnants of 17th-century Middle Plantation, the settlement which preceded Williamsburg.
Architectural historian Carl Lounsbury describes the Bodleian Plate, a copper plate preserving an illustration of Williamsburg in 1747. The Plate has been used as reference in the restoration of Colonial Williamsburg.
To listen to this podcast, select "All 2008 podcasts," and scroll to the August fourth program.
Architectural historian Ed Chappell explains the reconstruction of the Charlton Coffeehouse in Colonial Williamsburg and the function of the coffeehouse when it stood.
Donald L. Miller, with Stephen Ambrose; Virginia Scharff; Waldo E. Martin, Jr.; Pauline Maier; Louis P. Masur; and Douglas Brinkley, explores the pre-Contact and contact history of the Americas, beginning with the Ice Age migrations, through the corn civilizations of Middle America, to the explorations of Columbus, de Soto, and other Spaniards.
The Old Stone House Museum contains 25 rooms of exhibits on 19th-century life in Vermont. The museum consists of six buildings spread over 55 acres, with the largest being Athenian Hall, a stone dormitory. The dormitory was built between 1834 and 1836 by the nation's first African American college graduate and state legislator, Reverend Alexander Twilight. Other structures on-site include Twilight's own home and an English-style barn.
The museum offers self-guided tours, hands-on activities, educational programs, and living history outreach presentations. The website offers several scavenger hunts.