When Wesley Greene picked the location for the Colonial Garden and Colonial Garden Shop in the Historic Area in the early 1990s, there was not much open land on Duke of Gloucester Street….
‘Therapy’ and ‘Outlet’ Becomes a Calling for Weaver
Karen Clancy’s skills and interests were a natural fit for being a weaver.
By Lisa O. Monroe
A bargain with a college roommate may have brought Karen Clancy to Williamsburg. But it was her mother’s love of history and the creative spark she ignited in her daughter that started Clancy on a path to become the Revolutionary City’s head weaver, dyer and spinner.
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Wigmakers weave authenticity into their work
By Lisa Oliver Monroe
Welcome to Betty Myers’ world, where it can take up to 250 hours to do her job – and she works at the only place where the work is done….
Stitching Stories: The Milliner’s Tale
When Janea Whitacre’s family moved to Virginia when she was 9, one of the first places they visited was Colonial Williamsburg’s Historic Area. She vividly recalls a yellow print gingham dress worn by a female interpreter that seemed a touch too tight in the bodice. She loved clothes even at that age, and told her parents then and there that she would one day work among the tradesmen and tradeswomen she saw in the Historic Area.
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Remembering those who came to call
A collage reminds Mary Humelsine of the people who have visited the Historic Area.
By Lisa O. Monroe
Ronald Reagan, Lyndon B. Johnson, Gerald R. Ford, Hubert Humphrey, John Wayne, Walter Cronkite, Nelson and Winthrop Rockefeller, Winston Churchill, Queen Elizabeth II of England and the Queen Mother….
Judging a book by its cover
By Lisa O. Monroe
Becoming a bookbinder seemed like a natural choice for Bruce Plumley. Both of his parents were bookbinders….
Shoemaking and Colonial History Make a Good Pair
The oldest surviving shoes date to 10,000 B.C. They were made of braided sagebrush bark and were discovered in Oregon. This is the sort of information D.A. “Al” Saguto lives and breathes.
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Meet the Tin Men
The tin man of fictional Oz may have yearned for a heart, but not the tin men of Colonial Williamsburg.
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Recycling in Today’s Colonial Williamsburg
Eric Hunter cleans up after the sheep in Wetherburn’s pasture. The waste he and cart driver Ed Merkley collect is composted for use in gardens.
By Lisa O. Monroe
It’s a chilly April morning a little before 7 a.m. when I seat myself in a golf cart next to Richard Nicoll….
Virginia History Day: Projects tackle Rights and Responsibilities
By Lisa O. Monroe
On April 26, some 250 excited and nervous students will stream into Thomas Nelson Community College’s Historic Triangle Center to present the culmination of a year of work….