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COLONIAL
WILLIAMSBURG
VOL. 30, NO. 1
SPRING 2009
As the Dust Settles: An Update from the Department of
Architectural and Archaeological Research
More than Memory: Representing an
abundance of artifacts from the twentieth cen-
African American Neighborhood at
tury, scrutiny has turned towards this period of
site occupation. This overview presents some
the Ravenscroft Site
of the preliminary findings uncovered in the
ongoing historical studies that are integral to
by Ywone Edwards- Ingram
the archaeological investigations.
Ywone is a staff archaeologist in the Department of
Architectural and Archaeological Research.
In the twentieth century, mainly in the first
half, African Americans and their families
lived and operated businesses on or adjacent
to the archaeological site described above. The
Introduction
block boasted structures such as a large board-
Since 2006, archaeologists from the Colo-
nial Williamsburg Foundation and students
from College of William and Mary have been
ing house called the Crump Hotel, a barber
shop, a pool room, and the Union Baptist
Church. Other structures significant to life
excavating the Ravenscroft site. The site bears
on the block included the James City County
the name of one of its eighteenth- century
Training School ( 1924 -1940) situated across
owners, Thomas Ravenscroft, and is located at
from the site on Botetourt Street; and towards
the northwest comer of Nicholson and Bote-
the north, the Mount Ararat Baptist Church
tourt streets in a section of the Historic Area
organized in 1882), in its same location as
now designated Block 28. 1 While excavations
at this site have mainly concentrated on an
eighteenth century cellar previously uncovered
in 1954 and 1998, the site material assemblages
also represent a later African American neigh-
borhood of the twentieth century. Research
today at the comer of Botetourt and Franklin
streets.3 The church moved from its location
on Francis Street into this building in the early
1930s.4
By the 1930s, the re -birth of Williamsburg
as the colonial capital of Virginia had started
has focused on African Americans at the site
to erode the physical structure of the African
during the eighteenth century;2 but with the
American neighborhood, evident in changes
on the Ravenscroft block. The Williamsburg
Holding Corporation of the restoration ac-
Also in this issue .. .
quired and demolished buildings in the area,
Coffee, Tea, Chocolate: Not Just For Breakfast"
by S. Cotner
7
New at the Rock" by D. Mayo
9
Q & A"
14
and the occupants were
moved to other parts
of Williamsburg. The process of displacing
individuals and demolishing structures continued during the 1950s and impacted not only
African Americans but whites as well in vari-
ous sections of the area that became Colonial
Of the Greatest Advantage': A Brief
History of Eyeglasses through the Eighteenth
Williamsburg.
Century" by S. Pryor
17
Bothy's Mould: Dung" by W. Greene
19
Cook's Corner: Some More Fun Things to Do
With Your Food" by J. Gay
24
The Historical Evidence
Inquiries into archival and historical data,
including oral history accounts at repositories
of the Foundation and the College, have re-
�The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
2
This is an aerial view of the African American neighborhood in the late 1920s showing areas close to the Nicholson
and Botetourt Streets intersection. The James City County Training School is very large building in the foreground;
the two -story Crump hotel with its four chimneys is towards the west while the Union Baptist Church is across the
street behind the school.
sulted in more information to help guide the
Ravenscroft study and to better understand the
African American community in Williamsburg
during a period of upheaval and change caused,
more or less, by the Restoration.5 Several documents, including land title and deed abstracts,
interview transcripts
and other recollections
of Williamsburg residents, city and county
directories, early twentieth century maps, and
photographs of buildings
and street scenes
century. Both Samuel Harris and his wife, Joanna B. Harris, owned land on the Ravenscroft
block perhaps as early as the late nineteenth
century.? Before the Restoration, many African Americans were located on streets within
and nearby the now Historic Area of Colonial
Williamsburg. The Directory of 1898 also lists
members of this group as barbers, carpenters,
cooks, clerks, drivers, farmers, fishermen, green
grocers, laborers, merchants, painters, plaster-
are providing information about this section
ers, porters, restaurant proprietors, shoemakers,
of an African American district that had featured a mixture of homes, social venues, and
business places. The conversion of this block,
teamsters, teachers, waiters, wheelwrights, and
now known as the Ravenscroft site, into a pre-
information about both public buildings and
dominantly African American neighborhood
private
appears to have either started or accelerated in
century century occupation of the Ravenscroft
the first quarter of the twentieth century when
white land owners sold lots to Williamsburg
residents with surnames like Crump, Epps, Har-
block by African Americans. To date, more is
ris, and Braxton.
the block delineated by Botetourt Street on the
merchants.
Preliminary historical research has provided
residences
related
to
the
twentieth -
known about four public buildings than about
other structures, that once stood on the sides of
Members of these African American families
east and Nicholson Street on the south. The
had lived or owned property on the nearby main
findings from historical research on the Crump
Hotel, the Braxton property, a barber shop, a
street, " Gloucester Street," now returned to its
eighteenth- century name as Duke of Gloucester
Street. A Directory and Handbook of the City
of Williamsburg and the County of James City,
pool room, and the Union Baptist Church are
Virginia, published in 1898, 6 shows residents
The Crump Hotel
Thomas Crump as a " barber" and Peter Epps
as a " cook at the Inn" on this street. Samuel
Harris is listed as a " wholesale merchant" in the
Directory and was the owner of the prominent
Harris' Cheap Store in the late nineteenth
presented below.
The Crump Hotel is mainly associated with
Harriet Crump and was likely constructed after
1905,
when she and her husband Thomas
Crump acquired land on the Nicholson Street
�Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
side of the block and made financial arrange-
ments for its improvement. 8 The hotel may
have functioned
3
I give and bequeath to my dear daughter in -law Roselia Crump my house and the lot
as a place where African
upon which it stands, with all of my personal
Americans could stay as long -time boarders
including his grandmother's husband, E. Francis, may have shared the work of running this
facility.9 Preston Crump was born in November
property, and at her death to be divided
between my two grand children, Lillie M.
Crump, Price, and George Crum[p] Jr.
Again I bequeath to E. Francis my husband
5. 00 an expression of my love and respect.
I further request that my lodge the Mount
Ararat No. 155 of the Independent order of
Good Sameritans &
daughters of Samaria
shall out of the funds allowed me, under the
1910 and as a child, had lived on Nicholson
direction of my Executors burry me. 12
rather than as short term residents. In a 1984
interview conducted as part of an Oral History
Project for the James City County Historical
Commission, Preston Crump, the grandson of
Harriet Crump, suggested that male relatives,
Street. Based on Preston Crump's description,
the hotel was a large two story structure with
eleven rooms and a front porch.
It] had two kitchens, kitchen on one side,
kitchen, a dining room, and a living room
on one side of the house. And on that same
side was three bedrooms upstairs, over top of
Harriet Crump was probably a member of
Mount Ararat Baptist Church, based on simi-
larity of the name of her benevolent society,
Mount Ararat No. 155, and the church. At
that time, the church was located on Francis
Street in a building that may have also served
as a school for African American children from
there. Then on the other side was a large din-
1883 to 1885. 13 Mrs. Crump's connection to
ing room and a kitchen, and three bedrooms
the church is further suggested from her will
upstairs on that side. It was five downstairs
of 1923 in which she named Reverend L. W.
and six up, so that made eleven rooms. 1°
Wales as her executor. According to the Directory of 1898, L. W. Wales, a " preacher" was living on Francis Street. This reference appears to
Harriet Crump died in April 1923 leaving
the property to her relatives. 11 Her will, dated
February 16, 1923, and probated on April 21,
1923, states:
be for Reverend L. Wales, Sr., who was born in
1860 and died in 1927. His son, L. W Wales, Jr.
The Mount Ararat Baptist Church at the corner of Franklin and Botetourt streets is an African American landmark.
�The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
4
was appointed as one of the appraisers of Har-
The Barber Shop and
riet Crump's personal estate. L. W. Wales, Jr. accepted leadership of Mt. Ararat Baptist Church
Pool Room Buildings
after his father' s death, he is also identified as a
negotiator for the relocation of the Church to
its Franklin Street location.14 An inscription
on a corner stone of the Mount Ararat Baptist
Church dates the structure to 1932.
Archival documents indicate that the hotel
property was out of the Crump family's ownership for many years before Colonial Williamsburg acquired it on August 28, 1949. 15 The
Crump hotel building was demolished by July
1951. 16
A barber shop and a pool room on the Botetourt Street side of the block are linked to Peter
Epps and his wife Mollie Epps. On August 6,
1927, the Eppses purchased land in this vicin-
ity.22 Recall that the Directory of 1898 listed
Peter Epps, as a " cook at the Inn," on Gloucester Street. Extant buildings on Block 28 were
probably converted to provide the appropriate
settings for the barber shop and pool room. A
1921 fire insurance map of Williamsburg by
the Sanborn Map Company depicts two unnamed structures in this location on Botetourt
The Braxton Property
William Braxton owned property on the Ravenscroft block in the early twentieth century.
Street. Another Sanborn map in 1929 shows
these buildings as a " Pool Room" and a " Bar-
ber," respectively. Supporting evidence for the
re -use of one of these structures comes from a
On April 20, 1907, Eugene Potts conveyed land
letter written in July 1933, on file at the Colo-
to him and the property is described as:
Fronted 50 feet on the north side of Nicholson Street, running back between parallel
lines and bounded as follows: South by
Nicholson Street, west by property of the
grantor [ Eugene Potts], east by the property
of Harriet Crump, and north by the property
nial Williamsburg Foundation' s archive, which
ofJoanna B. Harris. 17
Mr. Braxton and Harriet Crump were neigh-
described the barber shop that was vacant at
the time as a house that was once used for this
purpose. 23
Both the pool room and the barber shop
probably featured enormously in the social life
of this African American neighborhood. Tra-
ditionally, barber shops and pool rooms were
meeting places, primarily for males, where key
bors, and the name Braxton is associated with
topics on the public agenda were discussed, pri-
the Crump family in other documents. William
vate information shared, and where customers
H. Braxton is listed as one of the witnesses to
relaxed and socialized. The Epps Family is also
Harriet Crump's will of February 1923, and he
was also named, along L.W. Wales, Jr., as an ap-
associated with the Crumps for, in his interview
in 1984, Preston Crump related that Molly
praiser of her estate. 18 In his interview, Preston
Mollie) Epps was his aunt and that she had
Crump remembered a Mr. Braxton staying ( ap-
a restaurant on Gloucester Street. This would
parently as a boarder) at the Crump residence
indicate that the Eppses' history of providing
services to the community predates their busi-
before Braxton bought the house next door.19
Mr. Crump's recollections of Mr. Braxton relate
to the time when he ( Preston Crump) was a
small boy" in the years following 1910. If this
nesses on the Ravenscroft block.
Mr. Braxton was the same individual as William
building" by 1933, and it was demolished in
Braxton, he may have lived with the Crump
family before he moved to a house on his property on the block.
the same fate during the 1930s. Today, a large
headstone in the Cedar Grove Cemetery in the
On October 6, 1932, William Braxton, " un-
property" he had purchased from Eugene Potts to Tempy Sparrow.
The property passed into the hands of Clyde
C. Hall by December 28, 1934. Clyde Hall and
his wife, Beulah B. Hall, conveyed the property
to Colonial Williamsburg Incorporated by a
deed dated, January 23, 1950. At that time,
married, conveyed the ...
G.T. Brooks and Charlotte S. Brooks, his wife,
rescinded their interest in this property20. A
building on Block 28 called the Brooks -Hall
property was demolished in December 1950.21
By March 1932, the Eppses had sold their
land. The pool room was considered an " old
1934. 24 The barber shop may have suffered
City of Williamsburg commemorates the Epps
Family of the Ravenscroft block ( Peter Epps
1864 - 1939 and Mollie Epps 1868 - 1956).
The Union Baptist Church
The Union Baptist Church was located on
the northwest side of Botetourt Street at the
intersection with Franklin Street. A deed dated
April 21, 1905, mentions a lot within this vicin-
ity as " contracted to be sold to Union Baptist
Church. " This suggests that the church was
25
established at least on or prior to this date. The
�5
Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
building was probably constructed closer to the
upwards of 2, 000 delegates" and had " Historic
1905 date rather than to the time when it was
Tours of Williamsburg and Jamestown" on its
recorded on a 1921 fire insurance map of Williamsburg by the Sanbom Map Company.
agenda.28
The African American neighborhood that
While various African American structures
included the Ravenscroft site was not just a
were being removed from the block, activities
physical manifestation of structures but an
continued at the Union Baptist Church. There
intricate social network of people and social
are photographs of the church in the late 1950s;
practices that extended beyond place and time.
it was probably destroyed by the early 1960s. A
Thus, even when buildings were demolished
Union Baptist Church congregation now meets
and occupants relocated, the neighborhood as
in the community of Highland Park, near Colonial Williamsburg.
Summary
The life histories of African Americans on
part of a wider community" was still viable as
more than memory. Archaeological and historical evidence are key elements connecting the
African American community with Colonial
Williamsburg.
the Ravenscroft block in the twentieth century
are linked with each other and to structures
that were located on the site and nearby areas.
With the removal of
homes, businesses, and
social venues from the area, the remaining
churches continued to draw members of the
African American community and other groups
to this part of the town for regular and special
events. Two special events, the Virginia Gazette
1 See http: //research .history.org /Ravenscroft /; Kathryn
Sikes and Meredith Poole, " Ravenscroft Revisited: Consid-
ering interpretive strategies in light of architectural features
and documentary evidence." Paper presented at the Society
for Historical Archaeology Meeting, Albuquerque, New
Mexico, 2008.
2 Ibid.; http:// research .history.org /ravenscroft /historyJenny.cfm
thought worthy to note, were the Union Baptist
3 Linda Rowe, " African Americans in Williamsburg,
Church's connection with a census that was
1865- 1945." In Robert P. Maccubbin, ed., Williamsburg,
being conducted under the auspices of researchers from the College of William and Mary and
Virginia: A City Before the State 1699- 1999. Williamsburg,
Va.: The City of Williamsburg distributed by the University
a conference that was held at Mount Ararat
Baptist Church. On March 16, 1948, a training
Press of Virginia, 2000, pp. 124, 128; L. W. Wales, Brief
Autobiographical Sketch of the Life and Labors of Rev. L. W.
Wales. D. D....
Brief Historic Outline of Mt. Ararat Baptist
meeting for the canvassers for a religious census
Church, Williamsburg, Virginia, Sermons, Addresses, &
of the African American churches of Williams-
burg was held at the Union Baptist Church and
another meeting was planned for March 22. 26
In November of the same year, the Virginia
Gazette reported on the conference of a notable
African American organization that convened
at Mount Ararat Baptist Church. This meeting
included public officials such as Williamsburg
mayor, H. M. Stryker, superintendent of schools
J. Rawls Byrd, and Dr. Joseph E. Barrett, Direc-
c.
Williamsburg, Va.: n. p., 1910, p. 11.
4 Rex M. Ellis. " The African- American Community
in Williamsburg, 1947 -1998." In Maccubbin, ed., Williamsburg, Virginia, pp. 231 -232; Rowe, " African Americans in
Williamsburg, 1865 -1945," p. 128.
5 These include the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Archives and Records Department ( Colonial Williamsburg
Archives); John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Library, Colonial Williamsburg Foundation; and Special Collections, Earl Gregg
Swem Library, College of William and Mary; and the Clerk's
Office, Williamsburg James City County Courthouse.
tor of Mental Health and Hygiene for Virginia
6 A Directory and Handbook of the City of Williamsburg
as participants. This was a three -day meeting
of the " Negro Organization Society," a Virginia
and the County of James City, Virginia. Williamsburg, Va.:
Virginia Gazette, [ 1898], pp. 28, 30.
organization that was established in 1909 under
7 Abstract of Tide by Ashton Dovell for Williamsburg
the leadership of Robert R. Moton of Hampton
Holding Corporation, March 1932 /April 21, 1932, [ Block
28, Epps], Colonial Williamsburg Archives; Abstract of
Institute ( now Hampton University) "
in re-
Title by C.V. Spratley, Jr., for Colonial Williamsburg, Inc.,
sponse to an earnest popular demand for closer
December 7, 1948 [ Block 28. No. 1, Crump Hotel], Colonial Williamsburg Archives.
attention to the needs of the race along lines of
health and education, especially in the public
8 Ibid.
schools and among the masses. "27 The Negro
9 Interview of Preston Crump by Robinette Fitzsim-
Organization Society often hosted African
mons, October 20, 1984. James City County Oral History
American educator and founder of Tuskegee
Collection, 1983 -1986. Special Collections, Earl Gregg
Swem Library, College of William and Mary, p. 18.
Institute, Booker T. Washington, as a speaker
at its annual meetings. With a theme of "Con-
tinuous Community Growth through Renewed
and Cooperative Effort," the conference drew
10 Ibid., pp. 18, 42.
11 Will Book 3, City of Williamsburg, Va., Williamsburg - ames City County Courthouse, p.83.
J
�The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
6
12 Ibid.
13 Wales, Brief Autobiographical Sketch; Rowe, " African
Americans in Williamsburg, 1865 - 1945," p. 123.
14 Ellis, " The African- American Community in Williamsburg," pp. 231 -232; Ed Belvin, Growing Up in Williamsburg: From the Depression to Pearl Harbor. Williamsburg, Va:
The Virginia Gazette, Inc., 1981, pp. 94 -95; Wales, Brief
Autobiographical Sketch, p. 2.
15 Abstract of Title, Crump Hotel.
16 Letter, Monier Williams to A. E. Kendrew, July 12,
1951, Colonial Williamsburg Archives.
21 Letter, H. O. Bebe to A. E. Kendrew, December 13,
1950, Colonial Williamsburg Archives.
22 Abstract of Title, Epps.
23 Letter, Harvey Johnson to Williamsburg Holding
Corp., July 6, 1933, Colonial Williamsburg Archives.
24 Letter, R. L. Rice to V. M. Geddy, Williamsburg, Va.,
September 12, 1933; letter,
Holland to
Brown,
October 30, 1934, Colonial Williamsburg Archives.
25 Abstract of Title, Epps.
26 The Virginia Gazette, March 19, 1948, p. 24, cols. 2
and 3.
17 Abstract of Title by C. V. Spratley, Jr., for Colonial
27 The Southern Workman, Vol. XL ( August 1911): 455;
Williamsburg, Inc., January 26, 1950 [ Block 28, No.2,
August Meier, Negro Thought in America, 1880 -1915. Ann
Brooks -Hall], Colonial Williamsburg Archives.
18 Will Book 3, p. 83.
19 Preston Crump interview, pp. 41 -42.
20 Abstract of Title, Brooks -Hall.
Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1964, p. 123.
28 The Virginia Gazette, November 12, 1948, p. 22,
col. 4.
�Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
7
Coffee, Tea, Chocolate: Not Just For Breakfast
by Sharon Cotner
Sharon is an apothecary in the Pasteur & Galt Apothecary Shop.
By the eighteenth century, coffee, tea, and
lence, and promote the menses. It was also con-
chocolate had become incorporated as part of
sumed to stimulate the appetite, assist digestion
the common aliment in Great Britain and the
after a large meal, and relieve flatus. Dr. David
colonies. These three exotic plants were gener-
Macbride prepared a decoction of raw coffee
ally promoted as wholesome beverages; how-
berries boiled in water to break apart and bring
ever, not everyone looked upon their regular
away urinary calculi ( solid particles or stones in
consumption with favor. In 1722 an unknown
author wrote "never was a better State of Health
the urinary system). Landon Carter was familiar with Macbride's work, and in July 1774 he
enjoyed, than by our ancestors, when the Toast
ordered a similar treatment for a slave believed
and good Beer went round for Breakfast in a
to be suffering from bladder stones. ( There is no
Morning, before ever Tea, Coffee, Chocolate or
mention in Carter's diary of the outcome.)
other new Inventions came in. " Yet the more
1
What has been said of coffee was also applied
these stimulating liquids were indulged in, the
more they were recommended for their benefi-
to tea. Accordingly, it was used to revive the
cial qualities.
spirits, remove sleepiness, aid digestion, cure
headaches, relieve cold symptoms, and provoke
Coffee was viewed as the most medicinal of
urine. Tea was also supposed to prevent bladder
these substances. It was commonly prescribed
for all " sleepy disorders" to raise the spirits,
stones and gravel. In The Good and Bad Effects
sharpen the wit, and rouse the dull. Because of
of Tea Consider' d, Simon Mason noted " the Reason, why the Gout and Stone are unknown in
its antihypnotic qualities, Dr. Richard Pearson
China, is ascribed to the Use of this Plant. "
3
employed coffee to " counteract and correct the
There was a harmful side to these drinks,
narcotic effects of opium," 2 and for the same
too. It was observed that coffee was safe for most
reason it was taken after a debauch of strong
liquors to ease nausea, weakness, and swooning
fits. In addition, it was highly regarded as a treat-
constitutions but hurtful to those who were
ment for headaches and migraines.
Coffee was recognized as an excellent diuretic, and mild cathartic; therefore drunk to
pregnant women were advised to avoid it. Over-
relieve dropsy ( fluid retention), decrease corpu-
terica ( tuberculosis of the
thin, lean, dry, and of a bilious ( peevish) disposition. People suffering from bleeding piles and
indulgence in tea was linked to many children's
disorders especially hydrocephalus, tabes mesenmesenteric glands),
�The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
8
and rickets, but in 1753 Dr. William Cullen
relieved dry, rough skin, cutaneous eruptions,
wrote that the medical effects associated with
and itches.
this beverage " depend more on the quantity of
warm fluid, than any particular qualities which
ity to raise the spirits and therefore given in
it gains from the tea. "4 Numerous other side
melancholic disorders. Perhaps, this is also what
effects were attributed to consuming great quantities of these substances. In 1775 Dr. Thomas
rodisiac. Pierre Pomet wrote that consumption
Withers reported that "Tea and coffee taken too
Finally, chocolate was recognized for its abil-
led to one of its most infamous uses as an aph-
of chocolate would " stimulate to Venery causing Procreation and Conception [ and] facilitate
freely can produce indigestion, acidity, heartburn, spasmodic pains of the alimentary canal,
watchfulness, tremors, feebleness, irritability,
delivery. "
8
and dejection of spirits. "5
caffeine is one of the main active ingredients in
Esteemed more for its nutritional virtues,
chocolate was described as strengthening, restorative, and fattening and given to preserve
health, repair weak constitutions, and fortify
From a modem standpoint we know that
coffee, tea, and chocolate. Caffeine is a diuretic
and stimulant, and currently it is used to sup-
wasted flesh. It was touted as the " Panacea of old
press tiredness and treat headaches, especially
migraines. The antioxidant property of green tea
is being investigated to treat and /or prevent a
Age," and D. Quelus remarked in The Natural
number of medical conditions including cancer,
if one examines
colitis, diabetes, and obesity. Last but not least,
the Nature of Chocolate, a little with respect
researchers have reported that the antioxidants
and phenols in dark chocolate can thin blood
History of Chocolate ( 1730), "
to the Constitution of aged Persons, it seems as
though the one was made on purpose to remedy
the Defects of the other. " It was also noted that
6
chocolate was not good for overweight people
and prevent clots, lower blood pressure and
bad cholesterol, and out perform codeine as a
cough suppressant. So, the next time you have
and those who ate and drank too freely, slept too
a headache, are feeling a bit rundown, or catch
much, and rarely exercised.
a cold, don't be afraid of a good old fashioned
Beyond chocolate' s nutritional value, some
medicinal qualities
were
associated
with
eighteenth century remedy.
it.
Chocolate was professed to aid digestion and
1 Of the Use of Tobacco, Tea, Coffee, Chocolate, and
ease gripings of the bowels; however, in 1789,
Dr. William Cullen cautioned that this sub-
Drams, ( London: printed by H. Parker, 1722), p. 10.
stance was not always easily digested because of
Alimentaria, and Materia Medica, vol. I ( London: printed for
the high fat content and, the drink could lead
to " inconveniences of digestion" if not prepared
r. Baldwin, and L. B. Seeley, 1797), p. 101.
with the best chocolate.
Consider' d. ( London: printed for M. Cooper, 1745), p. 16.
The oily properties of chocolate made it a
good emollient. Internally it was taken to ease
urination when suffering from bladder stones
printed for J. Nourse, 1753), p. 219.
and gravel, to relieve all disorders of the upper
cine. ( London: printed for J. Johnson, 1775), p. 269.
respitory system including coughs, colds, and
consumptions,
and
to
strengthen
the
voice.
Externally the oil or butter of cacao was applied
warm for the relief of gouty and rheumatic pains
and painful hemorrhoids. In 1743 Dr. Robert
James reported, that "in America the Women
use it for rendering the Skin smooth
and even, "7 because it
2 Pearson, Richard, A Practical Synopsis of the Materia
3 Mason, Simon, The Good and Bad Effects of Tea
4 Lewis, William, The New Dispensatory. (
London:
5 Withers, Thomas, Observations on the Abuse of Medi6 Quelus, D., The Natural History of Chocolate, 2nd ed.
trans. by R. Brookes ( London: printed for J. Roberts, 1730),
p. 56.
7 James, Robert, A Medicinal Dictionary, vol. I ( London:
printed for T. Osborne, 1743), unpaged.
8 Pomet, Pierre, A Compleat History of Druggs, 3rd ed.
London: printed for J. and J. Bonswick, R. Wilkins,
S. Birt, T. Ward and E. Wickstead,
1737), p. 131.
�Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
New Items in the John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library' s
Special Collections
Federal Era American Newspaper Collection
MS2008. 5
approached by two groups totaling over 1, 000
men. Faced with this strong showing of hostility,
Ingersoll also resigned his post. Following this
Indenture between Norbome Berkeley, Baron de
incident, the Connecticut legislature voted to
Botetourt, James Harris, and Joseph Newton (ex-
send Eliphalet Dyer, William Samuel Johnson,
ecutors of the estate of Mary Phelps) and Robert
Parry, May 13, 1766. Indenture for the lease of
lands and property to Parry. The document is
signed by Botetourt, Harris, and Newton, and
and David Rowland to the Stamp Act Congress
their seals are affixed at the bottom. Attested on
the verso: " Sealed and delivered by the within
named Lord Botetourt, James Harris, and Joseph
Newton being first duly Stamp' d in the presence
in New York. Dyer was a prominent resident of
Windham who served in the General Assembly
before being appointed to the Governor's Council. Ledlie writes of accompanying Dyer to the
Stamp Act Congress. They arrived on October
2, five days before the Congress convened. Ledlie writes that these men will determine the fate
of Geo. Jones, Henr. Edwards." MS2008.6
of the British colonies in North America. He
John Nicholas ( 1764 -1819)
refers to November 1, the day the Stamp Act
is to go into effect, as " that fattal Day which is
Dreded by Every Socalled thinking man" and
letter, Falmouth,
Virginia, March 2, 1802 to James Rees, Geneva,
New York. In this letter, Nicholas ( third son
expresses his hope that " the present Congress
of Treasurer Robert Carter Nicholas) discusses
will do something worthy Such a Sett of Smart
Men as they appear to me to be." MS2008. 8
his impending move to Geneva in New York.
He mentions his concerns at the possibility of
flooding at a mill site and the receipt of a survey
executed by Capt. Baker. Nicholas expresses his
Deed of James Lyon to John Eyre for sixteen
slaves, 1809 November 21. James Lyon, a physi-
wish to send his slaves to New York before his
own departure, but the laws of that state prevent
cian in Northampton County, Virginia, was mar-
it. He also suggests to Rees that the law should
deed between James Lyon and John Eyre is for
ried to Sarah Eyre, the sister of John Eyre. The
be changed. MS2008. 7
the transfer of sixteen slaves to Eyre as security
Hugh Ledlie letter, New York, to Samuel Gray,
for seventeen hundred dollars Lyon received from
Eyre. The deed stipulates that Lyon or his heirs
have until November 21, 1811 ( two years from
Windham, Conn., October 9, 1765. Hugh Led-
lie, a shopkeeper in Hartford, Connecticut, and
captain during the French and Indian War, was
a prominent member of the Windham, Con-
the date of the deed) to repay the loan. The deed
further stipulates that the slaves may be sold by
Eyre if the money is not paid in time. The deed
necticut, Sons of Liberty during the Stamp Act
crisis. Encouraged by the Virginia Stamp Act
Resolves of May 30, 1756 and the Massachusetts
was proved at the court in Northampton County
on December 9, 1811, following the death of
call for an inter colonial Congress, residents of
slaves are all named in the deed. MS2008. 9
Lyon in November of that year. The sixteen
Windham determined to resist the threat to
their liberties. Ledlie was probably involved in
Levi Ezra Bartlett manuscript concerning the
the intimidation of Nathaniel Wales in Wind-
12th Amendment to the United States Con-
ham in the late summer of 1765 that convinced
stitution concerning electors.( ratified June 15,
him to resign his post as stamp agent for the
1804). Levi Bartlett was the son of Josiah Bartlett of New Hampshire, signer of the Declara-
Windham region. On September
18,
1765,
Connecticut stamp agent Jared Ingersoll was
tion of Independence. MS2008. 10
�10
The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
A Formulary of that part of the Solemnity which
York near Lake Champlain. Yonge received the
is performd in the Collegiate Church of St. Peter
grant before the war, and he wants his agent to
Westminster at the Coronation of her Majesty
help him secure it and to aid in getting settlers
Queen Anne, 23 Apr. 1702. This manuscript
for the land. Yonge informs his agent that the
was probably intended to serve as a rehearsal
English are ready to trade with the Americans
document for the coronation of Queen Anne. It
as soon as your Government is a little settled."
was most likely intended for one of the dignitar-
Yonge also states that there is confusion in-
ies taking part in the ceremony. MS2008. 11
volved in trading with America: " We must
likewise know, if possible, with what Powers, or
Bond of Louisa Ross with the Common Council
authorities we are to treat or settle any commer-
of Alexandria, Virginia, May 9, 1822. Bond of
Louisa Ross and Davis Bowie, security, with the
particular State, or with Congress. Whether if
Common Council of Alexandria. The bond
there is to be a general Treaty with Congress of
was required pursuant to an act of the council
a commercial Nature, there is to be a Particular
regarding slaves, free negroes, and mulattoes.
one with Each State as far as may consist with
cial, or mercantile matters —whether with each
This law required free negroes and mulattoes to
the General one." Yonge goes on to discuss the
post bond with good and sufficient security for
fifty dollars to guarantee their " good, peaceable,
political situation in England. At the end of
and honest conduct, during their residence" in
Alexandria. The bond was meant to guarantee
the good behavior of Louisa Ross. MS2008. 12
Yonge' s letter is the draft of a letter from his
agent to the one person currently settled on the
New York grant. MS2008. 15
Fourth of July orations of Nathaniel Paine
James Rush letter to John Mason, George Town,
November 10, 1800. Writing one month after
Denny. The first oration is a defense of the
Federalists, particularly John Adams and George
the execution of Gabriel [ Prosser], Rush dis-
Washington,
cusses the disturbances caused by the slave
patrols in the wake of Gabriel's Rebellion. Rush
Thompson Callender. Denny attacks Callender
and Jefferson in the oration. Denny criticizes
notes that Governor Mason has called for mili-
Jefferson's administration and the South in gen-
tia patrols of the various quarters to look for any
eral. He writes of the " painful task of viewing
against
the
attacks
of James
improper assemblage of Blacks." The militia
our situation under a different administration.
was to bring such blacks before a magistrate or
the commanding officer. Rush feared this power
The affairs of our country at present day are
governed &
directed by men of the South... .
would be abused. MS 2008. 13
School houses in Virginia are as rare as Brothels
in New England & places of public worship as
Two documents concerning the sale of slaves
unfrequented, as horse races in Massachusetts."
belonging to Dr. John R. Archer to satisfy a debt
The second oration looks at the divisiveness in
owed to the Farmers Bank of Virginia. The first
American political culture and uses the French
document is a copy of the suit issued by the Su-
and English revolutions as examples of where
perior Court of Law of Petersburg for the case of
America may be headed if things don't change.
The President, Directors, & Co. of the Farmers
The final three pages of the manuscript include
Bank of Va., against John R. Archer and Wm. B.
genealogical material on the Denny family.
Giles." The copy was made by the court's clerk,
Harry Beverly Gaines, for Dr. Archer. William
MS2008. 16
Branch Gaines endorsed the note of Archer and
An abstract of a cargoe for the Windward Coast,
was also sued by the bank. The second item is a
Africa. Abstract listing the cargo of an unknown
letter from George Jefferson, sheriff of Amelia
slave trader bound for the Windward Coast of
Africa, modem Cote d' Ivoire. The trader was
County, concerning the sale of Dr. Archer's
slaves and the handling of the money from the
sale. MS 2008. 14
most likely from Liverpool as some of the cargo
is from Manchester. The cargo consists chiefly
of manufactured goods including cloth, beads,
George Yonge letter to his agent in America
muskets, and spirits. Much of the cloth is Indian
concerning his land grant in New York, May
in origin: chiloes, brawles, niccneees, and biju-
5, 1784. George Yonge represented Honiton in
Parliament from 1754 to 1794 and served as sec-
dipauts. There are some raw materials including
retary of state for war at the time of the writing
lead and iron listed in the cargo. The mention
of cloth from Benin " if to be got" implies trad-
of this letter. The letter was written to his agent
ing en route. The cargo was to be traded for 250
in America concerning his land grant in New
slaves. MS2008. 17
�11
Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
Hartford Convention. The Proceedings of a
Methodist persuasion) criticizes slave owners for
Convention of Delegates, from the states of
their mistreatment of slaves within those colonies.
Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode- Island;
Whitefield notes that slave masters tend to treat
the counties of Cheshire, and Grafton, in the
their animals better than their slaves. He writes
state of New Hampshire; and the county of
Windham, in the state of Vermont convened
my blood has frequently almost run cold within
me, to consider how many of your Slaves had
at Hartford. The final report of the Hartford
neither convenient Food to eat or proper Raiment
Convention, this report criticizes the adminis-
to put on, notwithstanding most of the Comforts
tration of James Madison and proposes several
you enjoy were solely owing to their indefatigable
constitutional amendments aimed at curtailing
Labours." Whitefield believes the prayers of the
slaves will be heard and " The blood of them spilt
the political power of the South and protecting
Northern commercial interests.
for these many Years in your respective Provinces,
will ascend up to Heaven against you." White -
The Independent Gazetteer; or, the Chronicle of
Freedom, November 8, 1783, Numb. 106. This
field's main concern, however, is for the souls of
the enslaved. He believes the slave owners pur-
issue contains George Washington's farewell ad-
posely keep their slaves ignorant of Christianity, a
dress to the Continental Army.
crime far worse than the physical degradation the
slaves are made to endure.
The London Chronicle from Tuesday, April 3, to
Thursday, April 5, 1770, Vol. XXVII, No. 2076.
This issues contains an account of an attack
The Pennsylvania Packet, and Daily Advertiser,
Wednesday, February 9, 1785, No. 1876. Con-
upon an overseer at the plantation of Bowler
tains an advertisement for a fire engine " On the
Cocke.
newest construction ... "
by Mason &
Gibbs.
The advertisement includes an image of the fire
The London Chronicle, from Saturday, July 16, to
Tuesday, July 19, 1774 Vol. XXXVI, No. 2747.
Contains: " Extract of a Letter from a Lady at
engine.
Williamsburgh, in Virginia, to a Friend in Lon-
John Taylor. New Views of the Constitution of
the United States. Washington, D.C.: Way and
don, dated June 1." Discusses the reaction to the
Gideon, 1823. This is the last of Taylor's works
closing of the Port of Boston. Mentions the day
of fasting and prayer in Virginia, the dissolution
of the House of Burgesses and the possibility of
on the Constitution. It discusses the Constitu-
Taylor decried the tendency of the federal
interrupting trade with England.
government to repeatedly assume powers not
tional Convention and the Federalist papers.
granted by the Constitution.
The Pennsylvania Evening Post, Tuesday, September 12, 1775, Num. 100. Contains a petition
John Peter Zenger. The Trial ofJohn Peter Zenger,
addressed " To the Hon. President, and the rest of
sitting in Convention, the petition of sundry mer-
of New York, Printer: Who Was Charged with
Having Printed and Published a Libel, Against the
Government and Acquited. With a Narrative of
the DELEGATES of the people of Virginia, now
chants, and others, natives of Great Britain, and
His Case. London: John Almon, 1765. Account
resident in this colony." The petition attempts to
of the trial of Zenger, publisher of the New
allay Virginians' fears of people born in Britain
and living in Virginia. The petitioners assert their
York Weekly Journal, who was tried for libel for
remarks in his paper concerning the William
Cosway, governor of New York.
willingness to support the American cause short
of taking up arms against the British. Following
the petition are the resolutions of the Convention
Tench Coxe. An Enquiry into the Principles on
concerning it. The first resolution pronounces
Which a Commercial System for the United States
the petition reasonable and calls on the people of
of America Should Be Founded; To Which Are
Virginia not to harass native bom Britons who do
not show themselves to be enemies. The second
resolution calls for the petition and that it be
Added Some Political Observations Connected with
printed in the Virginia Gazette. Signed in print by
Robert Carter Nicholas and John Tazewell.
the Subject. Philadelphia: Robert Aitken, 1787.
Paper read at the first meeting of the Philadelphia Society for Political Inquiries, convened at
the home of Benjamin Franklin, May 11, 1787.
Coxe advocates the growth of manufactures to
The Pennsylvania Gazette, April 17, 1740, Numb.
592. In an open letter to the inhabitants of
create a more balanced economy while taking
Maryland, Virginia, and the Carolinas, George
paper anticipates Hamilton's Report on Manu-
Whitefield ( Church of England minister of the
factures that Coxe drafted.
care not to alarm the agrarian majority. This
�12
The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
Daniel Webster. A Discourse in Commemora-
An Abstract of Several Cases Relating to the Trade
tion of the Lives and Services of John Adams and
to Africa. London, 1714. This pamphlet argues
Thomas Jefferson,
Delivered in Faneuil
Hall,
against the restoration of the monopoly of the
Boston, August 2,
1826. Boston: Cummings,
Royal African Company. The author notes that
1826. This address on the
since the trade was opened, the number of slaves
deaths of Adams and Jefferson was delivered on
exported to the America's has increased and the
demand for British manufactures has increased.
The author states that it is dangerous to place
Hilliard &
Co.,
the fiftieth anniversary of the August 2, 1776
signing of the official Declaration by members
of the Continental Congress. Both Adams and
Jefferson had died on July 4, 1826, fifty years to
the trade in the hands of one company since any
setback to that company would be a great blow
the day after the adoption of the Declaration of
to the British economy.
Independence.
Mercure de France, Novembre, 1787. A French ga-
Royal African Company. The Case of the Royal
African- Company and of the Plantations. London,
zette and literary magazine, this issue contains the
1714. In this pamphlet, the Royal African Com-
text of the proposed United States Constitution.
pany makes the case for restoring its monopoly
of the trade in African slaves. The company
Mercure de France, Septembre, 1789. Contains
notes that the trade was developed at their
the text of Madison' s speech to Congress of
June 8 submitting twelve amendments to the
company expense and that since the loss of its
monopoly, the price of slaves has risen. This
Constitution, the first ten of which will become
price increase, it notes, has been detrimental to
the Bill of Rights in 1791.
the colonies and to British manufactures.
Journal of the United States in Congress Assembled:
Containing the Proceedings from the Sixth Day of
November, 1786, to the Fifth Day of November,
John Stevens. Examen Du Gouvernement
d' Angleterre, Compare Aux Constitutions Des
Etats -Unis ...
Paris: Froulle, 1789. This is the
1787. New York, 1787. The journal of Congress
French
containing the text of the proposed Constitu-
on Government. It was popular with French
tion, Washington's transmittal letter to Congress
reformers who favored an American style de-
of the same, and the Northwest Ordinance.
mocracy for France.
Thomas's Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode -Island,
Jonathan Carver. Travels through the Interior Parts
New Hampshire &
Vermont Almanack ...
1788.
translation of Stevens'
Observations
Worcester: Isaiah Thomas, 1787. This edition of
of North America, in the Years 1766, 1767, and
1768. London: Charles Dilly, 1781. Carver's ac-
Thomas's almanac contains the " Proceedings of
count of his travels in the interior of America.
the Federal Convention,"
consisting of the full
Carver traveled farther west than any English-
text of the proposed Constitution and George
man before the Revolution and his account was
Washington's letter of transmittal to Congress.
a valuable source for later explorers, including
Lewis and Clark. The work is the first to use
Thomas's Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode -Island, Newhampshire &
Vermont Almanack . . .
the word " Oregon" in print and contains several
illustrations including colored maps, images of
1797. Worcester : Isaiah Thomas, 1796. This
Native Americans and their implements, and
edition contains Washington's Farewell Address
the tobacco plant.
to the citizens of the United States.
Thomas Hutchins. A Topographical Description
State of the British and French Colonies in North
America with Respect to Number of Peoples,
of Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and North
Carolina, Comprehending the Rivers Ohio, Ken -
Forces, Forts, Indians, Trade and Other Advan-
hawa, Sioto, Cherokee, Wabash, Illinois, Missis-
ents information on the situation of the French
sippi ...
London: J. Almon, 1778. One of the
most valuable sources on the West by the most
and British colonies in North America drawn
accomplished geographer in America at the
Cadwallader Colden, and Franklin's Observa-
tages. London: A. Millar, 1755. This work pres-
largely from the work of Archibald Kennedy,
time. Hutchins descriptions of America west of
tions upon the Increase of Mankind. The author
the Alleghenies were the best available at the
time of the Revolution. This work includes two
discusses the designs of the French upon those
parts of North America the English believe to
small maps showing a stretch of the Mississippi
be their territory such as the Ohio Valley. The
and the falls of the Ohio.
author comments on Washington' s mission to
�Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
13
Ohio and blames both the British administration and the Americans for the current situation
Cadwallader Colden. The History of the Five In-
with regard to the French.
dian Nations of Canada: Which Are Dependent on
the Province of New -York in America, and Are the
Alexander Scott Withers. Chronicles of Border
of the World. London: Thomas Osborne, 1747.
Warfare, or, a History of the Settlement by the
Whites, of North Western Virginia: and of the
Indian Wars and Massacres, in that Section of the
Jackson Jonathan. Thoughts upon the Political
State; with Reflections, Anecdotes, &
That of Massachusetts Is More Particularly Consid-
Barrier between the English and French in That Part
C. Clarks-
Situation of the United States of America: In Which
burg, Va.: Joseph Israel, 1831. A compilation
ered; with Some Observations on the Constitution
of accounts of encounters between settlers and
for a Federal Government, Addressed to the People
Native Americans in the Ohio country.
of the Union. Worcester, 1788.
William Douglass. A Summary, Historical and
Political, of the First Planting, Progressive Improvements, and Present State of the British Settlements
in North -America. London: R. and J. Dodsley,
France. An Historical Memorial of the Negotiation
of France and England, From the 26th of March,
1761, to the 20th of September of the Same Year,
with the Vouchers. London: Becket, 1761. The
1760. Douglass was the first resident of America
first English language edition of these state
to undertake a history of all the British North
papers relating to the Treaty of Paris that ended
American colonies. While the work was praised
the French and Indian War. These papers were
by various contemporaries of Douglass for bringing together more facts on the American colo-
demonstrate England's fault in peace negotia-
nies than any other publication, Wright Howes
in his U. S.
originally issued by the French government to
tions.
Iana ( 1650 -1950: A Selective
Bibliography in which Are Described 11, 620 Uncommon and Significant Books Relating to the Continental Portion of the United States. New York:
Preliminary Articles of Peace, between His Britannick Majesty, the Most Christian King, and the
Bowker, 1962) referred to it as " A vast reservoir
Day of November, 1762. London: Thomas Har-
of untrustworthy information."
rison, 1762.
Samuel Kercheval. A History of the Valley of Vir-
Ohio Valley and the western parts of Virginia
Stamp Act Congress. Authentic Account of the
Proceedings of the Congress Held at New -York, in
MDCCLXV, on the Subject of the American Stamp
Act. London: J. Almon, 1767. First English edi-
and Pennsylvania. The work is based upon
tion which followed the publication of the first
the
edition issued in Annapolis, Maryland.
ginia. Woodstock, Va., 1850. The second edition
of Kercheval's account of the settlement of the
author's
interviews
with the
inhabitants
Catholick King: Signed at Fontainebleau, the 3d
and the work of other authors especially Philip
Doddridge, a distinguished figure of western
Thomas Dring. Recollections of the Jersey Prison -
Virginia.
Ship. Providence, RI: Greene, 1829.
Thomas Jefferson. Reports of Cases Determined
in the General Court of Virginia. From 1730, to
Londina Illustrata. Graphic and Historic Memori-
1740; and from 1768 to 1772. Charlottesville,
Charitable Foundations, Palaces, Halls, Courts .
als of Monasteries, Churches, Chapels, Schools,
Va.: E Carr and Co., 1829. A collection of
London, 1825. This book contains interior
Virginia court cases that Jefferson organized
views, exterior views, and surrounding neigh-
for publication from the records of the Gen-
borhoods and streets of these institutions. It is
eral Court. Includes Jefferson's essay: " Whether
Christianity is a part of the Common Law ?"
arranged in sections for each type of structure.
Expose des Motifs de la Conduite du Roi, Rela-
lections, John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library)
Submitted by Douglas Mayo, head, special coltivement a l' Angleterre. Paris, 1779. This is the
official first edition of France's justification for
taking up arms against the British during the
American Revolution.
�The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
We strive to make the best possible replicas of
American and English eighteenth -century products. This entails careful study of original objects,
their materials and production processes,
and a
commitment to be faithful to them. Access to
Colonial Williamsburg's collections and curators
enhances these studies. Consultation with ar-
chaeologists, conservators, and historians can help
determine the impact of social, cultural, and economic influences on forms and fabrication. When
it comes to certain trades, like wigs, period tools,
some textiles, and wheels, we seem to be among
the very few institutions, businesses, and hobbyists
who strive and succeed in this endeavor.
Even in cases where we are not the only ones
Q&
A
Question: Does Colonial Williamsburg, through
its Historic Trades program, preserve certain
trades that don' t exist in the eighteenth cen-
tury manner anywhere else? ( submitted by a
participant in an Introduction to Interpretive
Education class)
Answer: The question is a good one that can-
not be answered so simply. For a few trades,
the answer is probably yes. For others, a proper
answer requires reflection on Colonial Wil-
liamsburg's approach to preserving eighteenth century work, how that work differs from similar
efforts elsewhere, and the overall environment
in which our tradesmen ply their skills at this
particular museum.
accurately replicating period products, we are no-
table in our dedication to discovering and imple-
menting eighteenth- century technology with few
modem shortcuts ( we do take a few on a case -bycase basis), using appropriate tools and materials,
as well as understanding and applying the mechanics of period technology and the mind set of
period artisans. We are able to achieve this level
of authenticity through our in - ouse tool h
making
capabilities, our ability to obtain proper materials,
the availability of historical and curatorial information about
artisans
and products,
and —
most
importantlyfinancial backing.
Indeed, Colonial Williamsburg's financial
support allows us to practice trades with period
technology when doing so in a commercial setting would otherwise not be viable. The result is
that only a handful of other museum programs
Colonial Williamsburg has the largest and
and hobbyists pursue these trades with a com-
most diverse museum historic trades program in
parable dedication to authenticity of method
the world, exceeding in size and scope any other
and product. Even in these cases — especially
public or private program dedicated specifically
regarding hobbyists —the historical accuracy of
to eighteenth century, non- mechanized practice
our setting and work environment usually sets us
and production. We are one of the few museum
apart. Even though we do not work in a " pure"
trades programs that employ full -ime, specialized
t
eighteenth- century environment, it is much
traditional artisans, who master and practice their
more intentionally controlled for period accuracy than most other " traditional" shops. While
trades rather than demonstrate basic operations
as an interpretive activity. While individuals
elsewhere may rival or exceed our Historic Trades
the Historic Area is not a perfect re- creation,
staff in knowledge and skills, overall mastery of
traditional hand skills at Colonial Williamsburg
also fosters a spirit of experimentation among
our trades staff, as exemplified by the develop-
is unequaled. Likewise, while other individuals
ment of programs to make chocolate and beer or
or institutions research eighteenth -century trades
to fabricate a cannon and a fire engine.
and technology, we are, collectively, the most
focused and informed. As America's longest -
only we make guns using eighteenth- century
the
overall verisimilitude
of the
environment
There are many traditional gunsmiths, but
running historic trades program, we draw on our
technology exclusively. We have the only coo-
experience in organization and administration,
pers making tight work in the traditional man-
technical know - ow, training, and research for
h
just about everything we do.
Colonial Williamsburg's Historic Trades have
established and maintained our leadership role
ner. Colonial Williamsburg supports some of the
through dedication to high standards in redis-
ers, and shoemakers dedicated to making wares
totally by hand —not in the modem sense of
covering and preserving traditional trades.
few silversmiths, cabinetmakers, blacksmiths,
brick makers, carpenters, basket makers, founders, cooks, mantua makers, tailors, harness mak-
�Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
15
not in a factory," but, literally, using only hand
I work with said they were told that marriages
and foot power, hand tools, and simple, histori-
were listed that way because one of the years
was for the wedding and the other for the mar-
cally appropriate machines.
While schools exist that train hobbyists and
modem craftspeople
and some museums
train
riage license. Can you set us straight, please?
submitted by Carolyn Wilson)
their staff in a few historic trades, Colonial
Answer: You are right, it has to do with the
Williamsburg operates one of the best historical
calendar, but there were two aspects of the cal-
trades training programs in the western world.
endar in the colonial period that contribute to
Each apprenticeship is govemed by a curriculum
confusion over dating of documents and events
developed for the specific trade, and overall our
before 1752, neither of which has to do with
standards are, if not the highest, among the
weddings or marriage licenses. As any historian,
researcher, or family historian can testify, docu-
highest anywhere. Many of us are informed, passionate, and stubborn purists!
ments of all kinds ( wills, deeds, private letters,
The size and diversity of our trades program
sets us apart in another important respect. We
inventories, newspapers, account books, and,
yes, marriage dates) can carry the Old Style/
are the only organization that can approach rep-
New Style double year notation. A notable ex-
licating eighteenth- century production systems.
ample in Williamsburg is the gravestone of John
The interactions among our tradesmen in a single trade shop or among shops when collaborat-
ing on a big project, as well as the components
we make or purchase, replicate closely those of
the period. Thus we can build a house from the
ground up and furnish it and its occupants much
as it was done in colonial Virginia.
Formerly noted for our size, scope, and focus on
the eighteenth century, Colonial Williamsburg's
trades program in recent years has increased in
significance as a preserver of traditional hand
work in any form. Before World War II, many
trades, though dominated or assisted by machines, still employed hand work and traditional
skills, and during the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s,
many museums operated trades programs. Over
the last several decades, however, production
pressure has eliminated most traditional skills in
modern manufacturing. Likewise, most museum
trades programs have shrunk or ceased altogether
in response to economic pressures. This also
means that we are one of the few places left —
in
some cases the only place —where
museums and
Page at Bruton Parish Church that shows Page's
date of death as January 23, 1691/ 2.
Old Style/New Style dates in Britain and
her colonies. The calendar in England for much
of the colonial period was complicated on one
level by an anomaly that had developed in medieval England, whereby English clergy began
dating the new year from March 25 - -he Feast of
t
the Annunciation or " Lady Day," as the English
styled it. An extremely important feast day in
the Christian year, Lady Day commemorated
the Angel Gabriel's announcement to Mary ( the
Lady" of Lady Day) of the coming birth of Jesus.
Thus, January 1 through March 24 were still part
of the previous year in England but part of the
new year in most of the rest of western Europe.
To help alleviate the confusion for these three
months,
clerks
and
other
government
officials,
newspaper editors and ordinary letter writers
sometimes used both Old Style ( English) and New
Style ( continental) years separated by a " forward
slash" or other punctuation ( for example, Febru-
ary 18, 1711/ 2 or February 18, 1711 -12).
As of
collectors can acquire accurate reproductions of
March 25, the year designation became the same
eighteenth- century ( and sometimes even seven-
in England as it was in the rest of Europe through
teenth- or nineteenth century) items.
It is evident that these attributes of our Historic
Trades program embody Colonial Williamsburg's
mission to preserve and present life of the eigh-
teenth century. Whether unique in every respect
or not, our trades programs do their palpable part
in fulfilling the wish of so many guests who say
they want to feel they have gone " back in time."
Jay Gaynor, Director of Historic Trades, and
Bob Doares, Interpretive Training)
Question: Please correct me if I'm wrong:
December 31. Thus, March 24, 1711/ 1712 in Eng-
land was followed by March 25, 1712 ( not 1713).
Slashed" dates showing Old Style and New Style
years applied only to the days January 1 — March
24, not to the rest of the year. Please note that
not everyone in Great Britain and her colonies
used the Old Style/ New Style convention, with
the result that considerable confusion surrounds
the dating of certain historical documents created before 1752 when Parliament adopted the
Gregorian calendar and changed New Year's Day
to January 1 ( see below).
of the uncertainty of the year but because of
Gregorian Calendar. On a second and broader
level, calendar confusion in the colonial period
the change in the calendar. One of the people
stems from British refusal to adopt the Gregorian
Some years are written 1726/27, not because
�16
The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
calendar along with most of the rest of western
FMtxrax cttittstty, f: ufx 1,
DOrhereby certify, that any lu t
1777•
Europe in 1582. Still in use today ( with additional
fine tuning), the Gregorian calendar improved
upon the Julian calendar developed by Julius Cae-
1
sar in 46 B.C. Based upon more precise astro-
cattle for his teavinemz is un account that
nomical observations by Jesuit priest/astronomer
1 ain ag intl and will not give u1ycon(eut
Christopher Clavius and German astronomer Jo-
hannes Kepler, Pope Gregory XIII (pope from 1572
to 1585) established new rules goveming leap years
to better account for the exact length of a solar
year ( 365 days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, 46 seconds)
and decreed that October 5, 1582, be designated
Griixes has ciciericti.my 'hou4e, aqd now
is going` about in an idle mariner' and Ole
ha. he llnuld in'terin:irry with a certain
jaeki il) who is a
lathibeba
tnelulerr',
pu lillt or marry the faicl Philip Crimes to
any perfon wh reye1',
gorian calendar was obvious, it was impossible in
undci• age,
as hr is but 20 years old the 24' h day ut
Dui-ember next.
October 15, 1582, to correct for the accumulated
10 -day error by 1582 in the Julian calendar.
Although the technical superiority of the Gre-
and d+ fore varri all m' n' ll. ry ° +
a
to
fl -
Pn11. rP
GRII stRI.
FAIRFAX county, August 1, 1777.
I DO hereby certify, that my son Philip
Grimes, has deserted my house, and now
1582 for Protestant England under Elizabeth to
is going about in an idle manner; and the
accept a calendar devised by the pope and adopted
cause for his leaving me is on account that
under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Church.
I am against and will not give my consent
Britain clung to the Julian calendar for another 170
that he should intermarry with a certain
years with the result that after 1582, days of the
Bathsheba Hollis ( alias Jackson) who is a
month in England were numbered ten days behind
the continent. Although a separate ( but related)
melater [ mulatto], and do forewarn all
issue from Old Style/New Style dating discussed
above that had to do with March 25 being New
Year's Day in Great Britain, the ten - ay difference
d
Philip Grimes to any person whatever,
ministers to publish or marry the said
while under age, as he is but 20 years old
the 24th day of December next.
could cause its own trouble with dates near the end
of December. For example, December 29, 1718, in
England was something like January 8, 1719, on
the continent. (It is not clear that this discrepancy
was often noted in documents.)
Linda Rowe, Department of Training and Histori-
PHILIP GRIMES.
The elder Philip Grimes is exercising his prerogative to withhold his permission for his underage son
to marry and reminds ministers that intermarriage
between the races was forbidden in Virginia law.
cal Research)
Question: Was a marriage license required in
eighteenth -century Virginia? What was the
Reading of the Banns I've heard about?
the county court clerk had equal legal standing in Virginia. According to this act, marriage
licenses were issued by the clerk of court and
Answer: Before being wed in colonial times,
signed by the senior justice of the county ( or the
the prospective bride and groom needed to
either have the banns read ( a public announce-
his bond with security that there was no impedi-
ment in church of the intention to marry) on
ment to the marriage. If either party was under
second justice in his absence). The clerk posted
three consecutive Sundays or obtain a marriage
the age of 21, then the father or guardian of that
license from the county court clerk. In both
party gave his consent in person to the clerk or
cases the parties to the marriage came away with
a piece of paper ( signed by the parish minister
in the case of the banns or court clerk for the
license). The public reading of the banns before
the church community and a marriage license
from the court had the same purpose: To certify
that there was no reason that the couple in ques-
tion could not be legally married.
A 1748 Act of Assembly, An Act concerning
Marriages, declared ( as had a similar act of 1705)
that publishing the banns on three successive
Sundays or obtaining a marriage license from
sent a written, witnessed statement to that ef-
fect to the court clerk. In the case of banns, the
marriage could go forward if no objection to it
was raised after three public statements in the
parish church of intention to marry. Discovery
of impediments to the marriage such as age, one
or both parties already married, or permission of
parent or guardian withheld if either party was
underage relied upon the information networks
of the day: family and community.
Linda Rowe, Department of Training and Historical Research)
�Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
17
Of the Greatest Advantage':
A Brief History of
Eyeglasses through the Eighteenth Century
by Susan Pryor
Susan was formerly employed at the Pasteur & Galt Apothecary Shop.
In our modern world filled with visual stimuli,
Despite the increasing popularity and afford-
it is hard to imagine a world where distinct and
ability of glasses, the medical profession typically
focused vision was not always possible. Such a
scoffed at their use. Guy de Chauliac, a professor
need was first felt by scholars who spent their
of medicine at Montpellier in Paris, thought
time reading, writing and copying manuscripts in
of the printing press in 1440, this work was done
by hand and by candlelight. The advent of print-
to be the first medical writer to reference eyeglasses, noted in his Chirurgia Magna in 1363, ".
And if things do not avail, recourse must be
had to spectacles of glass or beryl ".2 Even as late
ing stimulated the growth of education and with
as 1583, celebrated oculist Dr. Georg Bartisch
it the need to preserve and enhance vision.
of Dresden, advised against their use: "' It is bet-
monasteries and libraries. Before the invention
There is no specific date assigned to the
ter and more useful that one leaves spectacles
invention of reading glasses, but rather a range
of some twenty years between the 1260s and
1280s, with most historians in the western
alone. For naturally one sees and recognizes
something better when he has nothing in front
of his eyes than when he has something there. It
world settling on ca. 1287; glasses were already
is much better that one should preserve his two
recorded in use in China by 1200. Credit cannot
eyes than that he should have four. "'
3
be given to a specific inventor, though English
It was the use of colored lenses that stimu-
monk, Roger Bacon, perhaps influenced by the
eleventh -century writings of Arab scholar Al-
lated any medical interest at all, however minimal. As early as the sixteenth century in China,
hazen, was instrumental in their development
tea colored lenses were used to cool the face
from the heat of conjunctivitis. But, and let
by suggesting the use of lenses to assist in reading. In his Opus Majus, written in 1268, Bacon
stated:
If anyone examines letters or minute objects
me state this clearly, there is NO reference to
the use of blue lenses in the identification of or
treatment for syphilis.
through the medium of a crystal or glass . . . , if
The age of the user generally determined
it be shaped like the lesser segment of a sphere,
with all of the convex side toward the eye, he
will see the letters far better and they will seem
specific lens needs. Spanish optician Daca de
larger to him....
the
For this reason such an
Valdes created the first numbering system for
lens selection in 1623. But as late as 1789 it was
customer not a medical professional who
with weak eyes, for they can see any letter,
was largely responsible for choosing the right
glasses for his needs which surely led to occa-
however small, if magnified enough.'
sional mistakes in lens choice:
instrument is useful to all persons and to those
At first lenses were moved along the page
before evolving into handheld single ( called a
Though, in the choice of spectacles, every one
must finally determine for himself, which are
spectacle in England) or double lenses set into
the glasses through which he obtains the most
distinct vision....
By trying many spectacles
the eye is fatigued, as the pupil varies in size
metal frames at an equal distance apart as the
eyes; or the two framed lenses were connected
by a rigid bridge and balanced on the nose,
keeping the lenses close to the eye.
with every different glass, and the eye endeavours to accommodate itself to every change
In the early years of their existence, eye-
that is produced. Hence the purchaser often
glasses were exclusively for the scholar but soon
fixes upon a pair of spectacles, not the best
became a sign of wealth and importance. This
adapted to his sight, but those which seem to
relieve him most, while his eyes are in a forced
exclusivity, however, kept their popularity with
the masses rather flat until after the printing
press stimulated the desire for and ability to
acquire an education, increasing the demand
for the mass production of affordable glasses and
and unnatural state; and consequently, when
he gets home, and they are returned to their
natural state, what he has chosen, fatiguing
and injurious to his natural sight. 4
extending their benefit to anyone with the need
or desire for corrected vision. Simultaneously,
could have their vision corrected with glasses.
spectacle- makers guilds appeared in Europe.
These first lenses were convex and ground from
Initially, only longsighted ( farsighted) people
�18
The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
beryl or quartz. Glass lenses came later. Those
made from Venetian glass were considered su-
constantly, I have only to move my eyes up or
perior. In the early sixteenth century, concave
down, as I want, to see distinctly far or near,
lenses were introduced for the shortsighted ( near-
the proper glass always being ready. 6
By this means, as I wear my own spectacles
sighted) person. The frames were made from
Dr. Franklin's accomplishment notwithstand-
brass, iron, nickel, silver and even bone or hom.
The regular use of eyeglasses could be tedious
as they constantly had to be put onto or taken
ing, the idea of the split -lens was suggested as
early as 1716, and the earliest recorded experiments occurred in London in 1760, possibly by
off the nose and the hand - eld lenses raised or
h
Franklin, himself.
lowered. Toward the middle of the sixteenth
In 1756 English optician Benjamin Martin de-
century, leather or hom frames fastened around
the head with leather straps. By the 1580s,
signed an earlier variation on reading glasses that
glasses frames with cords attached could
be looped around the ears. The problem
was finally solved in the early decades
of the eighteenth century ( perhaps
as early as 1702) with the inven-
partially obscured the aperture of the
lens with a wide ring of hom to restrict
the overload of light into the eye.
He also tilted the lens inward to
converge the axes of the eye more
strongly onto the object in sight
tion of rigid side arms called
temples
that
attached
and often tinted them violet.
He called these new glasses
to
the frames and pressed
against
the
side
Martin's Margins.
Unfortunately,
of the
head to hold them on.
Again, no credit is given to a
specific inventor, though London
Martin
was considered rather radical
by his peers, one of whom wrote a
scathing rebuttal ( anonymously, of
optician Edward Scarlett is thought to have per-
course) to his 1756 Essay on Visual Glasses in which
fected and promoted them in the late 1720s. In
1752, James Ayscough advertised his own modi-
he introduced his Margins. He further challenged
fication, double -hinged temple pieces. By the end
use of colored lenses, long celebrated by popular
of the century shortened temple pieces that ended
in front of the ears and accommodated wigs and
culture, in restoring weak or tired eyes and shad-
elaborate hairstyles were available.
the historical record, however, until Jarius Aucott
Nevertheless, eyeglasses were never univer-
sally the last word in fashion ( except in Spain
where they were all the rage). George Wash-
ington reportedly once asked pardon for using
them: "
Gentlemen, you will permit me to put
on my spectacles for, as you see, I have not only
grown gray, but almost blind in the service of
my country. "
5
conventional wisdom regarding the therapeutic
ing the eyes from the sun. They did not enter
advocated the use of green glass in 1561. In December 1666, Samuel Pepys was advised to use green
spectacles, remarking in his diary, " I do truly find
that I have overwrought my eyes so that now they
are become weak and apt to be tired, and all the
excess of light makes them sore...." 7 Green lenses
were indeed thought to be the most favorable, but
Martin declared that idea to be a " vulgar Error ",
Probably the most famous modification made
and, basing his claim on the force of refracted light
to existing eyeglasses was the introduction of the
split or bifocal lens. In a 1784 letter to Phila-
passing through each color argued that "... blue
and indigo Colours are preferable to [the eyes]; and
delphia optician George Whately, Benjamin
Franklin wrote of his frustration at needing two
so the yellow, orange and red are in order the worst
separate pairs of glasses to improve his sight,
lenses were available in a kaleidoscope of colors and
describing how he solved his dilemma and ultimately created bifocals:
I imagine that it will be found pretty generally
shades including "...
Colours of Light. " In eighteenth 8
century Europe
yellow green, meadow green,
sea green, light blue, deep blue, yellow, violet, wine colored and pink. "
9
true that the same convexity of glass, through
Williamsburg merchant John Greenhow ad-
which a man sees clearest and best at the
vertised numerous types of corrective and protec-
distance proper for reading is not the best for
greater distances. I therefore had formerly two
pairs of spectacles, which I shifted occasionally as in travelling I sometimes read, and
tive eyewear for sale in several issues of the Virginia
purple spectacles, for preserving weak Eyes, visual
often wanted to regard the prospects. Finding
Spectacles, of a new Construction made by Mar-
this change troublesome and not always suf-
tin, the celebrated Optician, concave Spectacles
ficiently ready, I had the glasses cut and half
of each kind associated in the same circle.
and Hand Glasses for near sighted People, convex
Gazette throughout the 1760s and 1770s, including
this detailed ad from April 1771: " Green, blue and
Spectacles and Glasses of all sorts. "10 Reading
�19
Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
glasses, Martin's Margins, temple spectacles with
double and single joints and green preservers were
1 Richard Corson, Fashions in Eyeglasses ( PA: Dufour
Editions, 1967), 19.
also sold at the Virginia Gazette printing office,
and at the Golden Ball James Craig offered "visual
2 Ibid., 27.
3 Ibid., 37.
Spectacles fit for all ages. " 11
As technology has evolved in modern time,
so have eyeglass styles and designs as well as
advancements in eye examinations. Bifocals became trifocals and then progressives. Clear lenses
4 George Adams, An Essay on Vision ...
7 Ibid., 45 -46.
available light level. Contact lenses eliminated
8 Benjamin Martin, An Essay on Visual Glasses, ( vul-
frames altogether offering both vision correction
They say that the eyes are the windows of the
soul, animating the face and reflecting personal-
ity, and so their care was always paramount with
problem -ree sight both a desire and a necessity.
f
Benjamin Martin summed it up this way: " For as
the Sight is the most noble and extensive of all
our Senses, as we make the most frequent and
Lon-
5 Corson, 73 -74.
6 Ibid., 77.
darkened automatically according to current
and even a temporary change in eye color.
intended for the
Service of those whose Eyes are Weak or Impaired ... (
don: for the author by R. Hindmarsh, 1789), 96 -97.
garly called Spectacles) ... (
London: printed for the author,
1756), 22.
9 J. William Rosenthal, MD, Spectacles and Other Visual
Aids ( San Francisco: Norman Publishing, 1996), 271.
10 Virginia Gazette ( Purdie &
Dixon), April 11, 1771.
See also the following John Greenhow advertisements in
Purdie & Dixon Virginia Gazettes: September 19, 1766, June
4, 1767, December 3, 1767, September 29, 1768, December
12, 1771.
constant Use of our Eyes in all the Actions and
11 Ibid., April 7, 1768.
Concerns of human Life, surely that which re-
12 Martin, 4.
lieves the Eyes when decayed and supplies their
Defects rendering them useful when almost useless must needs of all others be esteemed of the
greatest Advantage. "12
Bothy's Mould
Presenting the latest dirt (mould)
from the gardener' s hut ( bothy).
Dung
by Wesley Greene
Ca
and Barrow
Wesley is a garden historian in the Landscape Department. You can often find him in costume work-
aggregates, the property that gives what we would
call a good tilth to the soil. At about the same
ing in the Colonial Garden across the street from
time it was recognized that land which supported
Bruton Parish Church.
herds of animals improved in fertility and different
dungs or animal manures came into use.
The earliest centers of agriculture were devel-
oped near rivers. Mesopotamia, meaning " land
Pliny writes in Natural History ( circa 72 CE):
There are several varieties of dung, and its ac-
between the rivers," was located between the
tual employment dates ...
Tigris and the Euphrates rivers that provided
The invention of this procedure is traditionally
ascribed to King Augeas in Greece, and its
introduction in Italy to Hercules, though Italy
not only irrigation but nutrients in the form of
alluvial deposits from annual flooding. As civilization expanded away from the river basins, the
first efforts at maintaining or supplementing soil
fertility began to appear.
as far back as Homer.
has immortalized Stercutus son of Faunus on
account of this invention.
Some of the earliest attempts to improve soils
Homer's Odyssey, written sometime between
900 and 700 BCE, mentions dung piles and the
mirrored the natural alluvial process in which dif-
manuring of vineyards. Theophrastus ( 371 - 287
ferent soils, most notably marl soils, were used as
BCE), successor to Aristotle and considered the
manures. These are limestone soils that not only
father of botany, recommended manuring some
soils at different rates depending on soil structure
and also suggested including stable bedding as
provide minerals, particularly calcium and mag-
nesium, but also condition soils by promoting soil
�20
The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
a compost. Xenophon, the Greek philosopher/
It was also necessary to let animal manure rot
soldier from circa 400 BCE recognized that any
so that calcination might occur as explained by
kind of vegetation can be turned into manure,
Laurence:
much like the compost gardeners make today
Dung till Calcination, or perfect Rottenness,
from yard and kitchen scraps.
Manure's physical contribution to the soil has
will afford little or no Salt... And therefore if
they do not imbibe the Nitre or Spirit of the
Air, I do not see how or which way they can
long been readily apparent to the gardener. Its
chemical contribution to the soil and the physi-
be useful, in the Improvement of Land. 4
ological process of plant nutrition and growth was
The earth's nitre was often described as a salt.
not fully understood until the twentieth century.
Writers from the time of Pliny until the eighteenth century attributed the benefits of manure
as a host to the "spirits" naturally found within the
J. R. Glauber ( 1604- 1668), a German chemist, theorized that saltpeter was the " principle
of vegetation." He was able to collect saltpeter
soil, air and water. Pliny referred to this miracu-
from the soil under the pens of animals which he
postulated came from the plants the animals ate.
lous property of the earth in the first century CE
He then applied saltpeter to plants and demon-
when he writes: " It is the prayer of trees and crops
strated a marked increase in growth. Saltpeter, or
in common that snow may lie a long time. The
reason is not only because snow shuts in and imprisons the earth's breath when it is disappearing
by evaporation, and drives it back into the roots
potassium nitrate, is a potent fertilizer which explains the rapid growth Glauber observed. Laurence also observed that the salt concentrated
of the vegetation to make strength." The " earth's
from composted manure was a vital ingredient
in plant nutrition and helped explain the virtue
breath" is the aroma we are all familiar with after
of animal manures:
The earth
Although the Use of Dung towards Vegeta-
then sends out that divine breath of hers, of quite
incomparable sweetness, which she has conceived
tion is not perhaps thoroughly understood; yet
from the sun."
etate Plants is some Salt, I suppose is gener-
a rain shower or as Pliny describes: "
In 1727 John Laurence called this property:
The Nitre or Spirit of the Air, which flies about
here and there as the Wind directs it, where -ever
it finds a kind Matter fit to receive it, there it
abides till the Dews and Rains wash it in."
John
Hill calls it the " Principle of Vegetation" in 1753
and records that it is: "
Lodg'd in the Earth itself,
and in the Aire and Rains. "2
that what does most apparently seem to vegAnd he [ John Eveyln] believes
that were Nitre or Salt Peter to be obtained in
ally agreed ...
Plenty, we should need but little other Composts, to meliorate our Ground. 5
This observation foreshadows the development
of modern synthetic fertilizers.
While most gardeners believed that the earth
was primarily responsible for plant growth, others
The belief that the principle of vegetation was
believed water was the most important ingredient.
lodged in the earth was the primary explanation
Francis Bacon ( 1561 - 1624) theorized that water
was the principal nourishment for plants but also
believed that each plant drew from the soil, and
for the benefits of tilling, or breaking the soil into
smaller particles. Hill gives this advice to the
gardener:
eventually exhausted, unique properties that ex-
He plows it deep and well, and after some
plained why growing the same plant continuously
Months he repeats that Labour: thus the Mould
is broken, the Air, Sun, Rains and Dews,
for that particular plant and hence, the benefit of
on the same plot of ground impoverished the soil
Nature' s own Manure, are admitted freely;
the clods are calcin' d by the Sun and Wind,
crop rotation that had been long recognized.
mellow'd by the Dews, and dissolved by Rains.
Flemish physician and chemist, proposed a " The-
The Spade is the Gardener's Plow, and it is a
ory of Elements" that rejected the ancient four el-
better Instrument.3
ements of earth, air, fire, and water that had been
Most writers assumed that plants imbibed small
Jan Baptiste van Helmont ( 1577 - 1644),
a
the explanation of all earthly substances since the
portions of the soil, a further reason for break-
time of Aristotle. He recognized only two, air and
ing it finely and it was this belief that produced
the horse drawn cultivator, invented by Jethro
water. Air he viewed as a matrix of gases ( van
Tull ( 1674- 1741). Tull believed that pulver-
vented the word " gas" from the Greek chaos) but
izing the soil provided the " proper pabulum"
did not understand the chemistry of individual
gases, how they interacted or how they impacted
or nourishment, to the plants. Pulverizing, or
tilling the soil is a very good way of stimulating
Helmont claimed, perhaps truthfully, to have in-
plant or animal life. All other elements, he pro-
plant growth because, we now know, it aids in
the release of chemical nutrients bound to the
posed, were simply modified forms of water.
soil particles.
of soil into a clay pot and planted a willow shoot
To demonstrate this he measured 200 pounds
�21
Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
weighing exactly 5 pounds into it. After five years
he extracted a willow tree weighing 169 lbs., 3 oz.,
but could only account for a loss of 2 ounces from
lands is marle, which is of various kinds, viz. the
grey marle, blue marle, yellow marl, red marle." 7
the soil, easily within the range of experimental
The primary purpose of marl, as we understand it
today, is in altering soil pH. Marl works the same
error, which he attributed it to, and thus declared
way that agriculture lime works to raise soil pH
that water was the sole plant nutrient.
and thereby increasing soil nutrient availability.
While none of these theories is correct, they
all are
accurate
observations of plant responses
Pliny credits northern Europeans with this discovery: " There is another method, discovered by
to environmental elements and all represent ad-
the provinces of Britain and those of Gaul, the
vances in scientific methodology. In some cases,
method of feeding the earth by means of itself,
such as Pliny's connection of the "earth's breath"
and the kind of soil called marl, "8
The individual benefits and uses of animal
and the sun, these theories are remarkably astute
as we now recognize that all life processes on
earth originate with the energy of the sun.
The first scientist to propose that plants
manures, or dung, are also ranked by all authors
from Pliny's time to the present. Pliny records:
Marcus Varro gives the first rank to thrushes;
received their nourishment from both the air
droppings from aviaries. Columella puts ma-
and water was the English physiologist, Stephen
nure from dovecotes first, and next manure
Hales ( 1671- 1761). He demonstrated that plants
from the poultry -yard, condemning the droppings of water birds entirely. The rest of the
authorities advocate the residue of human
banquets as one of the best manures, and
some place even higher the residue of men's
drink. Next to this kind of manure the dung of
swine is highly commended, Columella alone
condemning it. Next comes the dung of goats,
after that sheeps' clung, then cow -dung and
last of all that of beasts of burden.
transpire water through their leaves and that this
respiration corresponds with water uptake by the
roots. He also speculated that: "plants very probably draw through their leaves some part of their
nourishment from the air."6 Hales, however, did
not understand the elements of the atmosphere
responsible for plant growth and it was only after
Priestley's discovery of oxygen in 1774 that the
chemical basis for life started to be formulated.
For those who have forgotten their plant
There are extensive recommendations for
physiology it is now understood that well over
the uses of different dungs in eighteenth -century
90 percent of a plants dry weight is composed of
English garden works. Philip Miller writes in
carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. These elements
are obtained from soil water ( H2O) and atmo-
1768: " Dungs are designed to repair the decays
of exhausted or worn out lands, and to cure the
defects of land ... some dungs are hot and light,
spheric carbon dioxide (CO2). Through photosynthesis these elements are rearranged to form
carbohydrates ( CH2O) and oxygen ( 02) which
as that of sheep, horses, pigeons, &
c.
others
again are fat and cooling, as that of oxen, cows,
makes life for the rest of us animals possible.
hogs, & c. "9
The twenty- first -century gardener considers
synthetic fertilizers to be a temporary form of providing soil fertility, while composts are considered
a more lasting fertilizer. It is interesting that the
heavy soils and cooling dungs for light soils.
He recommends hot dungs for
Samuel Cooke gives similar advice in 1780:
Horse -dung best suits cold soils, and cow -dung
the loose burning ones; sheep -dung suits most
soil. . . .
Hogs -dung was formerly rejected
from the notion of it producing weeds, but it is
eighteenth- century gardener considered manure
compost as a temporary form of fertilizer, while
adding other soils to the land was considered a
permanent manure." An entry in the 1776 Farm-
now found to be perhaps the richest and fattest
of any we have ... a little of it suffices. Fowls
and pigeons, living principally upon grain,
dung makes a very warm manure but cannot
ers Magazine, published in London, records:
Those manures which I call temporary do not
change the nature of the soil, but fertilize it
well be obtained in large quantities. 10
only, and thereby enable it to produce a course
In urban centers and in the market gardens that
of crops; after which the land is left nearly in
grew up around them, horse dung is, by far, the
the same condition as it was before the ma-
most common. Abercrombie writes in 1789: " But
Clay, marle, and chalk, essentially
as horse stable dung is easily obtained, almost every
where, and many have it abundantly from their
nure....
change the nature of the soil.
A number of different clays are used according
to the type of ground being manured. Richard
Bradley writes in 1727: " When I speak here of
own horse stables; and, besides, when it has effected its office from hot - eds, and becomes rotten,
b
it becomes most excellent manure for the Kitchen
clays for manure, I would rather chuse the yellow,
Garden. "11 As early as 1716 stable manure was
red, or white clay, than the blue clay." He also rec-
a
ognizes several marls: " The next manure for light
around London as John Worlidge explains:
marketable product
to
the
market gardeners
�22
The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
Horse -Dung is the most common of any
MR SYLVAN, Some time ago as I was travelling
Dung whatsoever, by reason that Horses are
the great western road, I could not help taking
notice of a farmer ploughing in a fine luxuriant
crop of clover by way of manuring his land... .
most kept in Stables, and their Soil preserved,
yielding a considerable price in most places;
the higher the Horses are fed, the better is the
I must confess that I was rather astonished at
Dung by far. 12
it, for I thought that this outlandish, wasteful,
Most authors account for the differences in the
various dungs by what and how the animal eats.
slovenly piece of husbandry had long since been
abolished ...
certainly sheep might have been
Laurence tells us in 1727: " Now a great deal of
folded upon it, and then the farmer would have
Difference from Dung may arise by reason of the
manner of Chewing. Those Beast that chew fin-
reaped a double benefit. I am, & c. VIATOR.
To this the editor replies in agreement:
est, and void it in smallest Quantities, leave the
The Flemings were undoubtable the first who
most Superficies, whereby most Nitre may be at-
ploughed in living crops to manure ...
tracted. "13 All authors also cite the importance of
composting it first. Bradley writes: `By experience
I find that no kind of dung ought to be used till it
is like earth it self. "14
There are some hazards in the use of manure
however cogent their reason might be, we cannot
help joining issue with Viator in thinking, that
in the present improved state of agriculture
this practice is a shrewd sign of inattention
and bigotry.
that are recognized by a number of authors. John
Composted vegetable material is mentioned
Laurence gives a number of reasons for the del-
by many authors as a type of manure but is
eterious effects of dung in 1716, most significant
is that dung: " mightly fills the Place with many
generally considered the poorest of the manures.
Philip Miller writes in 1768: " There are some
noxious Weeds. "15 This is particularly true for
who have directed the use of torrent leaves of
fresh horse dung which will introduce many
vegetables, as an excellent ingredient in most
weed seeds to the garden.
Dunging and trenching the garden is a winter
job. John Abercrombie writes in 1789:
DUNG for manure, wheel on at all oplet the
portunities of dry frosty weather ...
dung be digged in regularly, one spade deep,
and generally dig or trench the ground up in
composts; but from many years experience, I can
affirm, they are of little use, and contain the least
quantity of vegetable pasture. "19
Composts of manure, soil, ash, and various
other substances are frequently recommended,
particularly for container plants as related by
Miller in 1768: " The great use of composts is for
rough ridges in order that it may mellow and
such plants as are preserved in pots or tubs." Hill
improve more effectually. 16
gives us this elaborate formula for raising Hyacinths:
Dung can also be applied as a manure tea as
we hear from Bradley:
I have observed that dungs, such as that of
sheep, deer, pigeon, and hens, have been good
helps to land when they have lain a long time
in pits of water, and then the water taken out,
Throw upon an open expos' d Spot of Ground
one Load of common Mould: add to it a Load
of dry Mud from the Bottom of standing
Water, and three quarters of a Load of Willow
Earth: mix this together, and then add to them
half a Load of Sea -Sand, taken wet from the
and put in tubs, which being wheeled on the
Shore; and half a load of rotted Cow Dung:
land, and those lands sprinkled with the im-
stir up all these together, sprinkle a little Water
pregnated water. 17
over the Surface, and lay them up in a Heap.
Most authors record human dung as one of
the richest. Bradley writes:
Break this Heap once in four Days, and in a
Fortnight's Time it will be fit for Use.
orange, and citron- trees, and is sold there at a
In the American colonies the practice of Bunging agricultural fields was not nearly as common as
it was in England, mostly because the abundance
very dear rate; it fertilizes land extremely. That
of land encouraged a sort of " slash and bum"
which has lain for four years is considered the
agriculture in which new land was continually
opened up as older fields became less productive.
Human ordure is much used in Italy, and the
South parts of France, for their vines, and
best and the composters prefer that which they
bring from places where the most flesh is eaten.
In twelfth-century Moorish Spain, Ibn al -Awwam
writes that laborers should be encouraged to uri-
nate in the compost pits.18
In a 1793 letter to George Washington on the
economy of farming Thomas Jefferson observes:
Manure does not enter into this, because we can
buy an acre of new land cheaper than we can ma-
The plowing in of cover crops to provide a
nure an old acre." However, in the longer settled
green manure has been practiced for thousands
areas of Tidewater Virginia, soil fertility was an
of years but is viewed as a wasteful process by a
important part of maintaining a plantation. In
writer to the Farmers Magazine in 1776:
1757 Landon Carter records the benefit of dung:
�23
Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
having now experienced the great advantage .. .
to my Lands as well as profitable to my self by
American cities. Perhaps the best known and most
making good reasonable Crops of tobacco, wheat,
was a New Jersey gardener named Peter Henderson
and Oats when I could hardly make corn before, I
intend to put my Cowyards into order." He then
details plans for constructing moveable pens for
his cattle to manage the dung.
In 1758 Carter recorded gathering —from all
of his farms - 828 Loads of dung. His carts had the
capacity of 40 bushels each, which would equal
whose market garden was located across the sound
33, 120 total bushels. This, in turn, is equal to
41, 069 cubic feet of manure or enough manure to
cover a football field, goal line to goal line, a little
better than ten inches deep. Certainly a lot of dung
but when we consider the hundreds of acres he is
farming it is a small amount to maintain fertility.
Even Jefferson, regardless of what he might
tell Mr. Washington, was very aware of the benefits of manuring fields. Just a few days after he
had advised Washington that manuring lands
accomplished nineteenth-century market gardener
from New York City, which provided his principal
market and source for manure. He records using between 75 and 100 tons of manure per acre, per year;
all coming off of the streets of New York.22 Barges
would carry cabbages from New Jersey and return
with manure from New York. New Jersey officials
cannot say for certain where the name " Garden
State" originated but it could very well have been
from the extensive market gardens that grew up on
the Jersey shore in the nineteenth century.
By the twentieth century, one of the marketing
claims from Ford Motor Company was that the
new automobiles were friendly to the environment because cars did not leave manure behind!
A single horse will generate about 20 pounds
was not economic Jefferson wrote a letter to Dr.
of dung per day. The best estimate of the horse
population in New York City after the Civil War
George Logan ( July 1, 1793) asking: " If sheep,
is between 100 and 200,000. A calculation using
instead of cattle should be made the principal
the lower estimate yields about 2 million lbs of
object, what number of sheep was equivalent to a
dung per day. It was such an important disposal
young, for making
problem that the " dirt carters" who removed the
given number of cattle old &
Manure ?" Dr. Logan had determined that 150
manure were licensed beginning in 1818. One
head of cattle would manure 60 acres per year.
Because of the scale of American agriculture
hundred years later Mr. Ford found the cure in his
and the smaller population centers there was never
Once again mankind had solved one problem, and created the next.
an abundance of dung in the colonies when com-
environmentally responsible automobile.
pared to European cities and agricultural centers.
George Washington writes to William Pierce on
1 John Laurence, A New System of Agriculture, 1727.
November 24, 1793: " As my farms stand much in
2 John Hill, Eden: or, A Compleat Body of Garden -
need of manure, and it is difficult to raise a suffi-
ciency of it on them; and the Land besides requires
something to loosen and ameliorate it, I mean to go
largely ... upon Buck Wheat as a Green manure."
Green manures, considered inferior in England,
were likely more common in the colonies for this
reason. Jefferson also employs buckwheat as a cover
crop and advises Thomas Mann Randolph on July
28, 1793 to follow the wheat crop with: "A green
dressing of buckwheat, and, in the succeeding winter put on what dung you have. "
For the kitchen gardener the availability of
dung in adequate quantities was much easier to
obtain, particularly in urban centers such as Williamsburg. John Randolph recommends laying the
dung on in January: " I would advise the preparing
of your dung, and carrying it to your beds, that it
may be ready to spread on in February. "20 Across
town, Joseph Prentis gets off to an earlier start:
Such of the Garden as may be vacant should be
ing, 1753.
3 Ibid.
4 Laurence, A New System of Agriculture, 1727.
5 Ibid.
6 Stephen Hales, Vegetable Staticks, 1727.
7 Richard Bradley, A Complete Body of Husbandry, 1727.
8 Pliny, Natural History, ca. 70 CE ( Rackham translation).
9 Philip Miller, The Gardeners Dictionary, 1768.
10 Samuel Cooke The Compleat English Gardener, 1780.
11 John Laurence, The Gentleman's Recreation, 1716.
12 John Worlidge, A Compleat System of Husbandry, 1716.
13 Laurence, A New System of Agriculture, 1727.
14 Bradley, A Complete Body of Husbandry, 1727.
15 Laurence, The Gentleman's Recreation, 1716.
16 John Abercrombie, The Universal Gardener's Calendar,
1789.
17 Bradley, A Complete Body of Husbandry, 1727.
18 Susan Campbell, Charleston Kedding, 1996.
well manured in October and also well spaded
19 Miller, The Gardeners Dictionary, 1768.
that it may have the advantage of fallow from the
20 John Randolph, A Treatise on Gardening, 1793.
sun, snow, and air of the winter season. "21
In the next century market gardens, fueled
with urban manure, sprang up around all the large
21 Joseph Prentis, The Monthly Kalendar &
Garden Book,
1775 - 1779.
22 Peter Henderson, Gardening for Profit, 1867.
�The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
24
Some More Fun Things to Do With Your Food
by Jim Gay
Jim is a journeyman in Historic Foodways in the Department of Historic Trades.
A few issues ago, I presented some translated
eighteenth- century recipes that were fun to prepare and even better to eat. The following recipes are a continuation on that theme with some
so little. Each pair of hands, each nose, each
palate, is going to react just a bit differently.
The Chinese call it `wok presence.' 2
The following are some eighteenth- and early
new elements thrown in. In a paper written two
nineteenth century recipes
decades ago, historian Karen Hess wrote,
some key procedure in order to work. The solutions provided are my own. Perhaps yours might
The story of cookery is in the recipes... .
A culinary historian reads recipes much as a
that are
missing
work better. Let's see.
musicologist reads music. It is not essential to
be a virtuoso performer, but it takes years of
drudgery, as well as a bit of flair, to be able to
Eggs in Croquets3
grasp the structure of a work, to understand
its characterizing aspects, simply by reading
the directions, whether the work be culinary
cut them in dice, pour over them a sauce a -la -creme
recipe follows], add a little grated bread, mix all
well together, and let it get cold: put in some salt and
or musical. l
pepper, make them into cakes, cover them well on
Boil eighteen eggs, separate the yolks and whites and
But what happens if the directions don' t work;
when the recipe leads to failure? The cook,
and fry them a nice brown; dry them a little before
both sides with grated bread, let them stand an hour,
then as now, has to be willing to experiment to
the fire, and dish them while quite hot.
be successful and read between the lines when
necessary.
Eighteenth -century recipes were written for
Sauce a - creme4
la
result than a detailed step -by -step procedure.
Put a quarter of a pound of butter with a large table
spoonful of flour rubbed well into it, in a sauce pan,
add some chopped parsley, a little onion, salt, pepper, nutmeg and a gill of cream; stir it over a fire
On the other hand, modern recipes tend to
until it begins to boil.
people who already knew how to cook. They
are more a description of the process and the
be little scientific experiments complete with
precise measurements, cooking times, and tem-
One of the first things that you have to con-
peratures, along with color pictures of the result.
But would the same recipe prepared
sider with this recipe is the number of eggs. Just
by a cook in Texas taste exactly
how many little cakes do you
want to make? Do you really
the same as one from a cook in
want to use a dozen and a half
Virginia? Probably not. Hess
eggs? In the eighteenth cen-
wrote,
tury century, eggs didn't come
Now, even highly trained
to you in uniform sizes. They
chefs, schooled in the same
didn't have Grade A Jumbos.
tradition, and each follow-
Big chickens lay big eggs,
little chicken lay little
ing the same recipe,
ones. So let's just work
are going to produce
dishes that vary one
from the other, be it by
WY
with
ten
dium size.
eggs,
all
me-
�25
Vol. 30, No. 1, Spring 2009
Next, we boil the eggs. Having said that, it's
amazing how many people believe eggs have to
boil continuously for fifteen minutes. Usually,
sides. Apply a little pressure on the patties to get
the bread crumbs to stick. Make sure that they
are uniformly coated with crumbs on both sides.
this method overcooks them. It's better to treat
Whether you choose to make your own bread
eggs like, ah ...
eggs. Simply put them in a pan
with cold water covering them. Bring the eggs to
crumbs or buy them in a store is up to you. In
Historic Foodways, we bake bread constantly,
a boil, and then set them aside off the heat for
and the vast majority of it goes into making
bread crumbs for puddings, coatings, and stuff-
fifteen minutes. Keep the pan covered. Don't
worry; they still cook even off the heat. Then,
stop the cooking by putting them in cold water.
Using this method, your yolks will be perfectly
yellow. If the yolks have a greenish tint on the
outside, they are overcooked.
The direction to separate
the yolks and
whites and then dice them is an unnecessary
step. Simply peel the eggs and mince the yolks
ings. I prefer to use fresh bread for crumbs.
The real key to this recipe is to let the patties
get cold before you fry them. At home, I would
refrigerate them for an hour. They will hold
together better if they go cold into the frying
pan. Whether you use butter or lard is up to you.
A neutral flavored heart friendly vegetable oil
won't give you the flavor that butter will. The
la- creme. This sauce is actually from another
trick to frying them is to be gentle. There isn't
much holding them together so cook them on
one side and carefully flip them once. They are
very fragile when hot. Use a spatula larger than
recipe in which you bake sliced boiled eggs
the individual egg croquette or it will break
sort of like a baked egg
apart when it's time to take it out of the pan.
salad. The thing that can throw you off is misin-
The reward in all of this is the eating. They are
terpreting the amount of flour required. Just how
delicious!
much flour is a " large table spoonful ?"Remember, standard measures like cups, teaspoons, and
sake of historical accuracy, sometimes there
and whites together. Make your mince very
small and uniform.
The binder for this recipe is the sauce a-
mixed with the sauce ...
tablespoons hadn't been invented yet. Actually,
for a recipe like this, it's better to think of weight
rather than volume. The required amount of
flour for this recipe is about equal to the amount
of butter by weight. For this recipe, one- quarter
pound of butter and one -quarter pound of flour
are about right.
The sauce also calls for onion. Here it's up
Although we will follow the recipe for the
just isn' t enough information to be successful.
Sometimes, the recipe has added steps that are
meaningless. Then, we have to look behind the
written word or look for another recipe from
another author to provide a better picture.
Sometimes, we have to extrapolate from one
recipe and apply it to another. Such is the case
for the following:
to the cook to decide whether green onions or
white onions are better. Since you are also add-
Cabbage, with Onions6
ing chopped parsley ( and parsley is green), my
Boil them separately, and mix them in the propor-
preference is for two or three green onions finely
minced. But the amount of minced parsley,
onion, and grated bread in the sauce is strictly
either stew them or fry them in a cake.
This recipe is almost Zen -like in its brevity.
up to you. I suggest a handful of each. And don' t
forget the salt and pepper. A liberal sprinkling
bage and onion mixture maybe to be served with
of each is critical to this dish. Eggs, cream, and
bread taste pretty bland by themselves, so the
seasonings are really important here. Nutmeg
is the other spice called for. As usual, freshly
tions you like; add butter, pepper, and salt, and
It has the potential for making a hash -like cabcomed beef, or a stewed veggie mixture fried
into " cakes" or patties like potato pancakes.
grated nutmeg is much more powerful than the
Only five ingredients are mentioned —two in
the title, and three more in the text. Boiling,
stewing, and frying are the cooking methods
store bought pre -ground stuff. For this recipe, a
mentioned. But, please consider the information
small amount equivalent to half a nutmeg ( 1/4 to
that is missing. There is no discussion of the type
l
teaspoon) is about right. Lastly, the amount
of cabbage or onion, quantities of butter, salt
of cream called for is a gill. When this recipe was
and pepper. If you fry them, how do you bind
written, gill was understood to mean 4 ounces
the wet ingredients together without causing a
by volume.5
mess or a fire? All of this is open to the cook's
When the sauce is done, add the minced
eggs and let the whole mass cool to the touch.
interpretation. Here are some suggestions:
Make up little patties about three inches across
recommend one medium size green cabbage and
and 34 inch thick. Put them into a flat pan full
of grated bread crumbs and coat them on both
As far as quantities of cabbage and onion, I
about an equal quantity ( by volume) of white or
yellow onion. You could use a purple onion or
�The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
26
even a modem sweet onion ( like a Vidalia) if
you choose. Mary Randolph even leaves it up to
you to adjust the recipe to your preference.
Although the recipe doesn' t address it, it's
the flour. Mix the veggies into the batter and
combine them well. Melt either butter or lard in
a frying pan to fill it about 1/ inch. Using about
l/ cup of the mixture per cake, cook the cakes
best to cut the cabbage and onions into 'h inch
until brown on both sides.
strips so that the veggies mix together. Boil the
cover them. Whether you boil them separately
as directed by the recipe) or not really makes
Are all eighteenth- century recipes as cryptic
as these? No. But we continually add to our
knowledge base with experimentation and repetition. Hess writes, " The story of cookery is in
no difference. What you do next depends on
the recipes, if we but had them all. This is the
how you intend to serve them.
How much butter and other seasonings will depend on the total amount of veggies you have and
your own personal preference. A piece of butter
most serious limitation in our work. The cook-
ery of entire civilizations has perished without
written trace, and the cookery of the poor has ever
the "size of a hen's egg" or up to 4 ounces could fill
so much was never recorded ...
the bill. After you drain them, return the veggies
been lost, that our understanding of the cuisine
is bound to be slightly skewed, not only by rea-
veggies until tender using just enough water to
to the pan, add the butter, salt and pepper. Cover
the pan and let the butter melt for a few minutes.
been ill recorded. Even when we have records .. .
and so much has
son of the gaps but by the idiosyncratic aspects
of our sources. Still we must work with what we
Then stir everything together and serve.
This recipe is pretty simple and straight forward if you ignore the phrase " or fry them in a
have, filling in the gaps as best we can, drawing
on the work of ancillary disciplines to supple-
cake." If you choose to make cabbage cakes, then
ment and illuminate our own scanty findings. "7
several more steps are required. Our solution in
Historic Foodways is to fry them in a pancakelike batter. Although you boil the cabbage and
onion as before, you need the batter to hold
the cakes together. This means that the veggies
1 Hess, Karen, " Changing Patterns in Tideland Virginia
Cookery: The Early Days to the Nineteenth Century"
paper presented at the Colonial Williamsburg Foodways
have to be as dry as possible in order for the bat-
Research Planning Conference, Williamsburg, Va., April
21 - 25, 1987), p. 1.
ter to adhere. Drain the cooked veggies in a col-
ander and add salt to help sweat out more of the
water. Press them with a weight like the bottom
of a fry pan to extract as much liquid as possible.
Let them drain for about thirty minutes. Then
2. Hess, p. 9.
3 Randolph, Mary, Virginia House -Wife, a facsimile of
the first edition, 1824, along with additional material from
the editions of 1825 and 1828 with historical Notes and
make a batter to use as a binder.
Commentaries by Karen Hess ( Colombia, S. C.: University
of South Carolina Press, 1984), p. 101.
Two eggs, a pint of milk or cream,
4 Randolph, p. 105.
and enough flour stirred together
works well. In order to adhere to
the recipe, add melted butter along
with salt and pepper before you add
5 Randolph, p. 298.
6 Randolph, p. 136.
7 Hess, p. 2.
�Publication of
this issue of the Interpreter
was made possible
by a gift from
James H. and Sherry P. Hubbard
of Severna Park, Maryland
Editor' s Notes
Name correction to page
1
of the Winter
2008/ 2009 issue of the Interpreter noting coffeehouse benefactors Forrest and Deborah Mars.
The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter is published
three times a year by the Research and Historical
Interpretation Division.
Acting Editor:
Linda Rowe
Editorial Board:
Emma L. Powers, Cathy Hellier,
Kevin Kelly, Lorena Walsh
Planning Board: Laura Arnold, Harvey Bakari,
Bertie Byrd, Bob Doares,
Jan Gilliam, Wesley Greene,
Andrea Squires, John Turner,
Ron Warren, Pete Wrike
Production:
The Marketing Creative
Services Department
Diana Freedman
2009 The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. All rights reserved.
All images are the property of
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, unless otherwise noted.
��
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Title
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Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter
Description
An account of the resource
<p><em>The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter</em> was a newsletter published July 1980-September 2009 by the education and research departments of Colonial Williamsburg and authored mainly by staff researchers and interpreters. Its purpose was to disseminate information germane to the current interpretive focus of the Historic Area uniformly across the various departments involved with historical interpretation. Some of the articles sprang from the need to impart new research or interpretive information to staff while others were inspired by employee questions or suggestions. In the earlier issues, standard sections include “The King’s English” which explained various words or terminology encountered in 18th century life, “Occurrences” which noted different programs and events of interest to employees and visitors, and “The Exchange” which was a guest column that offered the perspective and knowledge of non-research department employees on various subjects. Later issues had regular columns about historical subjects, archaeology, gardening, new books at the Foundation library, “Cook’s Corner” about foodways, “Interpreter’s Corner” concerning issues of interpretation, and a Q & A section. The number of issues published per year varied as did the length of the newsletter.</p>
<p>Several supplemental publications sprang from the Interpreter including <em>Fresh Advices, Questions & Answers</em>, and A<em> Cultural Time Line & Glossary for Williamsburg in the Eighteenth Century</em>. Fresh Advices offered discussions of recent research conducted by the Foundation and opportunities for applying it in the Historic Area. It was published infrequently from 1981-1987. <em>Questions & Answers</em> began and ended as a column in the <em>Interpreter</em>, but also existed as a supplemental publication from 1980-1989. It functioned as a means to answer common interpreter questions to the research department about eighteenth-century history and culture, Williamsburg area history, and Colonial Williamsburg itself. The one-time 1990 publication <em>A Cultural Time Line & Glossary for Williamsburg in the Eighteenth Century</em> consisted of a oversize poster-sized timeline and a glossary booklet. The time line included notable events in the Age of Enlightenment in the categories of politics, philosophy and religion, education, science and technology, fine arts and architecture, and performing arts and literature. The glossary was an expansion on selected entries from the time line to give more information on people and events that directly or indirectly influenced the development of colonial Virginia society.</p>
<p>An index to the <em>Interpreter</em> and its supplemental publications may be found here: <a href="http://research.colonialwilliamsburg.org/library/_files/Interpreter.pdf">Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter Index, 1980-2009</a>.</p>
Dublin Core
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The Colonial Williamsburg Interpreter, volume 30, number 1, Spring 2009
Description
An account of the resource
As the Dust Settles: An Update from the Department of Architectural and Archaeological Research: More than Memory: Representing an African American Neighborhood at the Ravenscroft Site -- Coffee, Tea, Chocolate: Not Just For Breakfast -- New at the Rock: New Items in the John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library's Special Collections -- Questions and Answers -- ‘... Of the Greatest Advantage’: A Brief History of Eyeglasses through the Eighteenth Century -- The Bothy’s Mould: Dung -- Cook’s Corner: Some More Fun Things to Do With Your Food