JAMESTOWN — In celebration of Virginia Archaeology Month, Jamestown Rediscovery is inviting the public to explore how archaeology changed the story of Jamestown Oct. 4.
The event, celebrated alongside the Virginia Department of Historic Resources and historic sites across the commonwealth, will offer opportunities to watch ongoing excavations at the site of a 17th-century cellar, and see artifacts brought to life through living history demonstrations and walking tours.
Archaeology Day programs are included with admission to the Preservation Virginia portion of Historic Jamestowne, according to the Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation.
All Day Programs
- Archaeology in Action — Share in the moment of discovery at the original 1607 James Fort. Meet the Jamestown Rediscovery archaeologists and learn about ongoing excavations as well as the latest discoveries.
- “A tractable trade” — Learn firsthand about the trials of the first English settlers and their experiences exploring the Chesapeake from Anas Todkill, one of the settlers who explored the bay with Captain John Smith.
- Forged in History — Blacksmithing was one of the earliest trades practiced at Jamestown. Join blacksmith Shel Browder for demonstrations and a discussion of the metalworking done at the site of the original James Fort forge.
- Native Lifeways of the Chesapeake — Join Daniel Firehawk Abbott of the Nanticoke people from Maryland’s Eastern Shore to learn about the material culture and lifeways of the Tidewater Algonquians as well as their interactions with the settlers of Jamestown.
- “Pales, posts, and railes” — Building a fort proved a necessity for the colonists within a month of their 1607 arrival. Timber Frame Carpenter Danny Whitten and 17th-century building fabricator Jesse Robertson will demonstrate the tools and methods used by the first colonists to build everything from the fort walls to buildings.
Tours
- 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. — Archaeology Walking Tour — Join archaeologists Mary Anna R. Hartley and Eleanor Robb for an in-depth tour of the 1607 fort site and learn about this season’s excavations and new discoveries.
- 2 p.m. — Powhatan and English Walking Tour — Join Public Historian Mark Summers for a program discussing the interactions, trade, and conflict between English colonists and the Powhatan Paramount Chiefdom based on archaeological evidence.
Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation notes Archaeology Day programming is sponsored by The Edward Maria Wingfield Endowment Fund, established by The Wingfield Family Society to honor Wingfield as soldier, investor and first president of Jamestown.
