Show H HISTORIC I STOC LIVE Liv AcAIN GAIN 0 i 7 i x w r j J J aA M Aw a t S The souse Me Mc Clean Clellan's Headquarters I w t 1 r. r Martha Washington's Kitchen w wj j I W f WC C a I r s 's Ancient 1 J ail 4 By ELMO SCOTT WATSON HEYRE turning the clock back t j two centuries centurIes' In Williamsburg Va Within two years this Cradle Cra Cradle dle die of ot the United States will be b bt t restored restored to as nearly an exact tr replica of the thriving colonial town of the Seventeenth century that It once was as is possible for foran foran an nn almost unlimited amount of oft money to make that possible By t t that time approximately will have been spent in the renaissance ren ren- r f als ance of the historic capital of the state of Virginia and for probably the first time In modern history a whole living city will have been turned Into a museum of the glorious past p st where Americans can catch the atmosphere of t a romantic era that has gone forever Over an nn area of s something m tiling like a a mile mUe square all that Is Is n new newt w will be r removed d and and all that Is old put back as nearly as possible as It if was years ears ago Modern buildings are arc to be done away with wholesale and public and and- private ho house se of the olden days are to be replaced In cases where they have ave not not be been n spared by tm time B Back of this hnaz- hnaz amazing m ing transformation n is is' the Ithe story of of the vision 1 of t two men a minister and anCI a philanthropist The minister Is lle Ile Hev William A A. A R. R Goodwin rector of ot the Bruton ParI Parish h church the oldest Episco Episcopal pal church in continuous existence in America and a member of the faculty at the College of ot William m and d Mary the second second oldest oldest Institution of higher learning In this c country He originated the ld idea a. a The philanthropist Is John D D. Rocke- Rocke f feller f Jr who Is supplying the money necessary for the restoration and who Is giving Doctor Goodwin a free freehand hand in directing the restoration Although Williamsburg is a small city Its population pop pap probably never exceeded the present figure fig figg figgure figure ure of some 2000 It is doubtful If there Is any other town In America with which there have ha been associated so many many historic names In Its streets have trod such notables as Washington Jefferson Monroe John Marshall Patrick Henry Benjamin Franklin George Rogers Clark Franklin Frank Frank- lin Un Rochambeau Lafayette George Mason George Wythe the Randol phs the Lees and a host of others whose names are arc a part of f our colonial and Revolutionary war history The site of Williamsburg Williamsburg Wil WIl- was originally known as the Middle Plantations and In 1632 1032 Sir Francis Nicholson at various times governor of at Virginia Maryland and Acadia laid out a town there and named It ItIn itin itin In honor of King William His first Intention was to honor his sovereign by laying out the str streets ts In the form of a a. monogram of W and M but two ravines Interfered with his purpose So Sot t the town was laid out along a main street which he named Duke of Gloucester street honoring the short lived prince Queen Annes Anne's eldest son and two parallel street he named Francis and Nicholson Nicholson Nicholson Nich Nich- olson honoring himself I 1 Cross streets were named flamed Nassau King Palace and Queen streets and the parallelogram bounded by these streets marks the area of the present restoration In 1003 16 3 there was built at the west end of at Duke of at Gloucester street the College of William WIlHam and Mary and chartered by the Joint sovereigns of England after whom It was named At that time a building designed by the famous Sir Christopher Wren was already standing as was the Bruton Parish churls chun-b. In lam 1099 the government govern govern- ment meat of the colony of Virginia which then extended extended extended ex ex- ex- ex tended to the Mississippi river was moved from Jamestown to Williamsburg burg anti and the day of Wil Wil- Williamsburg's glory began At the other othar end of at Duke Duko of Gloucester street was erected the first building In the United States designated ed Capitol which was the seat of the council and the burgesses of the colony from 1701 until the upheaval at the of the Revolution resulted In the house of burgesses being officially dissolved and the legislators went wont down the street to the Apollo room in the Raleigh tavern Besides the capitol and the college tb the most Nicholson street t. t in old Williamsburg Important building In colonial times was the governors governor's governors governor's governors governor's gov gov- palace which stood at the head of the Palace Green a broad avenue running north from Duke of Gloucester street The rebuilding of the palace presents a particular difficulty forno forno for forno no picture exists which shows a complete view of ot It In Its original or enlarged form It was begun In 1705 and completed during the governorship governorship governorship gover gover- of Col Alexander Spotswood founder of the romantic Order of the Golden Horseshoe About 1751 It was reconstructed on a more spa- spa clous dons scale This was during the governorship of Robert the the Dinwiddle Dinwiddie who sent a 8 c certain young Major George deorge Washington on the mission to the French on the Ule Ohio river which led ledo to o his ta taking ln part In the Braddock tragedy and the Fort Necessity adventure The next occupant occupant of the palace after Din- Din waddle was Francis Fran Fauquier of whom Thomas J Jefferson rt then a a student at the college was a prImer prime favorite fa o It n not t only with wwi the governor but with the belles of Williamsburg as ns well Another Another Another An An- other participant In iu the gay social festivities at atthe atthe atthe the palace was Ge George rge Washington who dined there with Lord Dunmore the last British governor cov- cov of Virginia before the break came came between between the colonies colonies' and the mother country When that break came My Lord Dunmore collected his men went to the Powder Horn built bunt by Colonel Spotswood in the Market square and still standIng stand Ing took the colon colony's s 's supply of powder and muskets and silently stole on board ship under undercover undercover cover coyer of night Whereupon a certain PatrIck Henry who lio had already aheady heard the cries of Treason 1 Treason l 1 shouted at certain utterances utterances utterances utter utter- ances of his led a party of militia from Hanover Han Han- over o King William WilHam New Kent and Charles City counties to demand the arms back again He lie didn't get them but lie he did force from the governor governor gov IOV- a 8 payment of pounds for the munitions munitions munitions muni muni- which he took with Ith him to Philadelphia later and deposited In the treasury of the Continental Con on congress And after arter Dunmore had finally fled fied the colony olony It was Patrick Henry who occupied the palace as governor go To ro him in 1 1778 came another young Virginian George Rogers Clark to lay before him lilen his daring scheme for conquering the vast region of the Old Northwest History has recorded recorded re- re cord corded d how well Clark succeeded but It is not so sowell sowell well veil known that his vanquished enemy Gov Henry Henry Henry Hen Hen- ry Hamilton the Hair Buyer General of Detroit Detroit Detroit De De- De- De troit after the s surrender at Vincennes was sent to Williamsburg as a prisoner of war and was confined In the old Jail there which still stands having done Its duty as a prison for more than years In this prison too were confined confined confined con con- fined some of ot the associates of the Uie notorious pirate Black Bluck Beard who were executed in 1718 It Is Interesting to note by the way that these pirates were contributors unwillingly probably to to the the- cause of higher learning for on the account account account ac ac- count books of the College of William and Mary stands the fact that pounds of the original subscriptions for founding the college are arc ci credited cred cled ed edited to certain pirates l I INot Not far from the old Jail stands the thc poor debtors debtors debtors' debtors debtors' debt debt- ors' ors prison almost abutting on the First National National Na Na- tl nal bank The building originally known te to the colonists as Bedlam the first hospital for Insane people in the United States stands on Francis street Three generations of of- of the of-the the Galt Gait family all physicians served servell as chief medical officers of the Insane hospital over an period of a century One of ot the famous buildings of or Williamsburg the Raleigh tavern was destroyed by fire in 1859 It Is to be restored The ordinary in this tavern tavern ern was operated In colonial times by Henry whose hose wares were so favorably known that William Randolph sold acres of ot land to Thomas Thomas s Jeffersons Jefferson's father for Henry biggest bowl vl of arrack punch Raleigh tavern was twice used as' as asan an assembly place for forthe the house of burgesses when the royal governor dissolved the assembly for discussing disloyal petitions and resolutions Including the decision to set aside a day for fasting and prayer In 1 1774 7 4 when news of or the blockade of Boston barb harbor or was received Raleigh tavern t vern was the birthplace of the Phi Beta Kappa the first chapter of the well known scholastic fraternity being established there on December 5 1770 The little old told colonial courthouse on the court green still stands brands On the north side of the court green Is th the 1 colonial home of Edmund Randolph who was fj secretary of state and attorney general In Washington's cabinet Near It is the Peachy house headquarters of ot Rochambeau Just before the battle of Yorktown and also the building in which Gene General al Lafayette was entertained when he revisited America Close to it stands the Griffin house hous house on the Duke of Gloucester street str et where lived Judge Cyrus Griffin n a member of the I Continental The fine colonial brick home borne of George Wythe on the east cast side Iside of the palace green beside the Bruton Parish churchyard remains as it stood when Washington and Lafayette Lafaette together planned the battle of Yorktown there It was built In l 1755 and Its owner twenty years later George Gerge Wythe was a signer of the Declaration of Inde inde- ell Taze hall the birthplace of at Edmund Randolph Run Ran Rundolph dolph also remains practically as it was long before belore the th Revolution Its Interior finish is of or I solid soUd mahogany The home of another member I of the Randolph family Pe Peyton ton Randolph first president of the Continental congress Is not far distant The Tucker house In which the wife of J John hn Randolph lived before her marriage and anda a fine example of early colonial design in the Blair house also remains Bassett hall one of the finest ancient buildings In the town stands at the end of a long lane of trees It was the property of Burwell B Bassett Bas Bas- s- s sett whose uncle George Washington was frequently frequently frequently fre fre- a visitor The rhe great-grandfather great of Martha Washington Is burled buriell In the Burton Parish ParIsh ParIsh Par Par- ish churchyard churchard In 1841 1341 Vice President John Johnr r Tyler ler was living at Bassett hall han when the son of Secretary of State Daniel Webster galloped down the long lane iane of trees to bring him the news of the death of President Harrison and of his own succession The house stands in a park of several hundred acres of woodland The home of Col Wilson Miles Cary Gary a delegate to the Virginia convention In 1776 1770 was frequent frequent- ly Iy visited by Washington when he was studying surveying at William and Mary college a short walk away It Is said that the parents of Mary Gary Cary discouraged the Inconspicuous engineers engineer's wooing of their daughter and that Mary fainted on the porch of this house some years later wh when n she was the wife of Edward Ambler and General Washington rode past on his his triumphal return from his victory over Gen Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown Marys Mary's sister was the wife Ite of f Lord Lor Fairfax Besides the wealth of colonial residences Williamsburg WIN WU- still sun possesses many other old public buildings In William and Mary college stand stan three excellent examples The rhe hall designed by Sir Christopher Wren Is the oldest college building buildIng building build build- ing In America antedating Massachusetts hall at Harvard The Wren building was ravaged three times by fire but its thick walls remained Its architectural design is almost as It was originally nall nally In this building George Washington studied and received his certificate as a surveyor and it also housed three other Presidents Jefferson Monroe Monroe Mon Mon- roe roc and Tyler and the great first chief chic Justice of ot the United States John Marshall In their student student student stu stu- dent d days ys The foundations of the first theater In America built In 1716 are to be used again for erecting a new building as a replica of the original The theater contributed to the gaiety and fashionable life Ute for which was known when It was the Old Dominion capital At the other end of the Duke of Gloucester street facing the college nearly a mile away stands the original little office of the clerk of the house of ot burgesses In which the momentous momentO legislative acts of the period were engrossed It was a familiar working worling place for many of the orators and statesmen whose hose names are forever linked Ih ked with American lode Inde |