Williamsburg Local Customs

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Tobacco was the first lucrative cash crop in North America. The Jamestown settlers acquired a taste for it from the local Indians. But the type they smoked was too bitter. So a new kind was imported from the Carribean islands. The farmers learned to grow it, and it thrived in the rich soil and temperate climate.

The King banned the weed from his court, saying that it was repugnant and unhealthy. But it caught on all over Europe, and made the Jamestown colony very profitable. And we've been dealing with it ever since.

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The settlers brought boat-building skills from old England. But they also learned new ones from the Indians, who constructed dugout canoes from trees. The Indians would chop down a tree, cut out a cross-section, cut it lengthwise, then burn out the center. Finally, they would scoop out the ashes with oyster shells.

Both English and local techniques are shown here. Re-enactors gladly demonstrate how it was done and answer questions.

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Re-Enactors at Jamestown demonstrate a variety of other local trades, crafts, and skills which were necessary in the new colony. Among them are cleaning clothes, forging tools, navigating on the rivers, baking, keeping records of all transactions, and governing the colony.

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The soldiers kept everyone in the colony safe. These were professionals, who had trained since they were young boys. Most had seen combat in Europe. Of course, the New World offered new challenges. But the Indians' weapons were very much out-classed by the English muskets, swords, and armor.

I asked about the colonists's involvement in the English Civil War of the 1640s and 1650s. The response was that there were clashes here between Royalists and Parliamentarians. Most Jamestown settlers were pro-Royalist, while the majority in the Massachusetts Bay colony favored the Parliamentary army of Oliver Cromwell.

In any case, the troops played a vital role.

I was surpriced to see identical wooden fences, like on my picture, around all, over 500 houses in Colonial Williamsburg. It's very unique in Virginia and even in the USA where individuals fence their houses in thousands different ways.

I got to know that in this historic area there is the fence law which specify in details (6 points) the shape, size, colour etc. of the fences. The local law make many, many limitations in building anything in this area. In Colonial Williamsburg, they like to keep the fences as they looked in 1776. Mainly guides and other employees live in the historic area. They are proud of their great historical heritage and wise enugh to narrow their rights to build anything they want in historical district. In the residential areas in Williamsburg and in James City County, individuals may fence their private property the way they want to.

There is ink-powder to see, to try and to buy ($2.00) in colonial Wolliamsburg's Post Office. I got to know that they used quite different ink in the past, in 18th century colonial America than you can find in current store.

The ink was made and stored as solid ink-powder and then solluted in water before use. Natives used quill pens dipped in the ink stored in inkwells.


Keep in mind that till 1450 books were exclusively written and copied by hand - letter by letter - which made them very expensive thus not available for most. It changed since Gutenberg brought together the technologies of paper, oil-based ink and the wine-press to print books. But whereas the improvement of paper, print-ink and print-press went fast there were no key changes in hand-writing by 20th century where improved ball pens with a container for ink became popular.

I met this costumed guy playing on a fife on the main avenue of Colonial Williamsburg, in front of Raleigh Tavern. Fife is a small transverse (side-blown) flute with six finger holes and no keys. It produces a high pitch and shrill tone.

Well, it's not my favourite musical instrument (I am a fan of saxophone) but I can imagine that fife's spirited and inspirational sounds carried well on the field of battle in the past. Fifes and drums were used for command and control in battle. In America they were popular since 1750s till late 1860s. They played prominent role during the Revolutionary War (1775 - 1783) and thus become traditional symbols of the young nation and of its heritage

A typical Georgian residential house of 18th century colonial Williamsburg has either one side tall chimney or, in larger houses, two symmetrical chimneys on both side walls. But some Williamburgers broke this rule and put up chimneys in different way.

Alexander Craig House originally built in 1735 and then changed many times has two chimneys put on one side wall. Alexander Craig was a saddler who may have speculated in land.