Jamestown

We weren't planning on going to Jamestown until we learned that our Yorktown entrance fee could also get us into Jamestown. We knew we wanted to see it at some point, so we figured why not now.

Here's a story about how reading blogs actually improves your life. I really only follow one blog religiously, and that's Janssen's Everyday Reading. Janssen and I don't really know each other, but she married the brother of my best London Study Abroad pal. Way back in May (maybe) Janssen posted about a visit to Duck Beach in North Carolina and in that post she mentioned Duck Donuts. Fast forward to our trip to Jamestown. We were on our way there when I just happened to spot a Duck Donuts. I insisted that we stop. It didn't take much convincing on my part because Nate loves donuts. These donuts just might be the highlight of the trip. We wish that we had stopped there again on our way home. The other day Felix said to us, "Mommy, I have Duck Donut." Duck Donuts why do you have to be 3+ hours away? (Okay, now that I'm searching Janssen's archives I see that she mentioned Duck Donuts in her post about Williamsburg too, which means we could have had Duck Donuts two years in a row if only I have remembered!)

After we ate our Duck Donuts, we were ready to explore Jamestown. There are a couple of different Jamestown sites. The one we went to is the actual physical location. They continue to do archeological digs there. The other is Jamestown Settlement, a living history experience. I've heard that it's pretty great, and it looked fun from the roadside (they have replicas of the boats), so I guess we'll have to go back sometime.

I am not sorry that we started with Historic Jamestown. It gave us a real appreciation for how hard it must have been to settle here. Jamestown is on an island and is surrounded by marshland. It's right out on the water, and, even on a mild December day, it was cold and windy.

Jamestown was settled in 1607, and it was the first permanent British settlement in North America. The obelisk was erected in 1907 to mark the 300th anniversary of the establishment of Jamestown. It's now passed it's 400th anniversary, as well.
Jamestown began as a fort. It was laid-out in a triangular format.

On the right hand side you can see a church tower. The tower is the only structure from the 17th century that is still above ground.

The wood structure below is a reconstruction of the barracks. Jamestown was established as a money-making scheme. This was a problem, obviously, as it is very difficult to turn a profit when you are barely surviving.

Below is the site of the first landing.

Below is the Archaearium Museum. It houses some of the archeological artifacts found at the Jamestown site. It was one of the most fascinating parts of the trip and included a tribute to "Jane" the victim of cannibalism during The Starving Time that was unearthed in 2013.