Williamsburg Off The Beaten Path

Carter's Grove is eight miles from Colonial Williamsburg. It is a beautiful colonial plantation along the James River. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation has created authentic displays and "living" exhibits here showing four centuries of history. I tell you, after you have been here, you have a deeper appreciation of history!

Robert "King" Carter purchased this land, and his grandson, Carter Burwell, built a Georgian mansion here. Carter lived here for only six months before his death. His son Nathaniel Burwell then lived here and raised corn and wheat. The Burwell family remained here until 1838.
The most interesting part of visiting this plantation is to learn about the slaves who lived in cramped dwellings with bare domestic necessities. They formed their own unique community and blended their African and Virginian heritages, creating a new African-American culture.

Mr. and Mrs. Archibald McCrea purchased Carter's Grove in 1928, and they deeded it to Colonial Williamsburg in 1969.

Be sure to see the RECEPTION CENTER as you enter Carter's Grove. Watch the orientation film and see the exhibits such as the reconstructed slave quarter where you see the backbone of support for this busy plantation. Then, cross the grounds and see an orientation film in the stable area before visiting the MANSION. Take a self-guided tour (1/2 hour).

If you are interested in archaeological research, then go to underground Winthrop Rockefeller Archaeology Museum west of the mansion.

This is a photograph of the Robertson's Windmill which is located on North England Street, but it is a copy of the 1723 original windmill. It was reconstructed on its orginal site. this is a lattice-vaned, linen-sailed machine. It stands on the Colonial Williamsburg's Windmill, Cooper, and Rural Trades site.

Closeby, barrel makers, sawyers, and farmers do authentic work. Thus, we visitors are able to see how a colonial barrel was made, how tobacco was packed, how a shingle was split, how wheat was ground, how a board was sawed, and how corn rows were tended.

William Robertson ran the windmill, but he was also appointed clerk of the colony's Council, and a city alderman. Robertson's windmill was a post mill which was a design from Europe in the Middle Ages. Its structure balanced on a large, single timber (post) to be turned into the wind by a man at the tailpole. When a breeze spun the windmill's blades, a shaft * gear turned a millstone to grind corn into meal or wheat into flour.

Colonial coopers made wooden containers for everything. The best were made of white oak.

You can also see shingles made from logs, and the production of tobacco can also be seen.
It's lots of fun to see these actual activities just as they were done in the 18th Century.

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Williamsburg has a very extensive rare breeding program on going to preserve the livestock of its past. They believe that the American Cream is the only draft breed to originate in the United States that would have been well suited for this area. The breed descended from a draft type mare with an outstanding cream color. ‘Old Granny’ (the first registered American Cream) appeared at a farm auction in Story County, Iowa in 1911. Her foaling date has been placed between 1900 and 1905. She was purchased by a well-known stock dealer, Harry Lakin, and began to foal several cream colored colts on the Lakin farm, all of which sold for above average prices.

I found these horses crazing ever so happily in a field and I was drawn to them, of course. You could tell they were being taken care of, because their coats just shined.

While strolling around, I did notice the lovely manicured grounds and gardens that are nestled everywhere. One that I enjoyed was right outside the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum on South England Street. It had this very lovely hallway of vines to walk through, and a gorgeous fountain in the front and in the back, another very inviting garden in the back.

........when I heard that there were artists, I wished I could some time be one. If I could only make a rose bloom on paper, I thought I should be happy! or if I could at last succeed in drawing the outline of winter-stripped boughs as I saw them against the sky, it seemed to me that I should be willing to spend years in trying.
~Lucy Larcom, A New England Girlhood, 1889~

101 Visitor Center Drive, Williamsburg, VA 23185

I just read that Carter's Gove is to close for comprehensive facility, site and program assessment! The article said that the Colonial Williamsburg foundation will close its Carter's Grove property for two years beginning January 2, 2003 to conduct a comprehensive assisment of all facilities, grounds, and programs located on the 750-acre complex. So, that means that in 2005 (pretty close now), it should reopen.

Take a ferry ride over to Surry. While there isn't much to see on the other side of the river, other than undeveloped farmland, the ride is very nice. While on the ship you can feed the seagulls, take pictures of the James River Coast, or keep your eyes peeled for the Bald Eagle that has been perching on the turn bouy.

In fact, you can take the Colonial Parkway right to the entrance of the Ferry. Don't you like how my off the beaten path tips flow together. :)

The Ferry runs every 30 mintues from the Jamestown and Surry side of the James River.

Located at the end of Jamestown Road.

Charles City's Plantation Row is often overlooked by tourists who flock to Williamsburg. All the plantations predate the War for Southern Independence. One is the site of the first Thanksgiving and where the first 10 U.S. presidents had ties. One (William Henry Harrison) was born at Berkely Plantation. Other plantations include Westover and Shirley. Since I originally wrote this tip, the owners of Evelynton Plantation closed it to tourists and Indian Field Tavern has changed name and ownership to the Charles City Tavern. From what I understand, they offer the same type of food on their menu. From Colonial Williamsburg, simply go southwest on VA-31/VA-5/JAMESTOWN RD toward CHANDLER CT. Turn RIGHT onto VA-5 W/VA-199 W. 0.5 miles (0.3 km.) Turn LEFT onto VA-5 W/JOHN TYLER MEMORIAL HWY to the plantation of your choice 20-30 miles (32-48 km.).

George Washington and the French General, Rochambeau arrived at Yorktown in late September 1781to fight the British and win to end the Revolutionary War in October 1781. The Battlefield is now a National Park. Tickets to Jamestown and Yorktown can be purchased together or separate.