Jamestown

We left Harpers Ferry yesterday and headed to Chippokes Plantation State Park. It is directly across the river from Jamestown. I have to start planning these drives a little better and stop relying solely on the GPS system in the truck. As we approach the bridge that will cross the river, the GPS shows a picture of a little boat, which is, you guessed it, a ferry. RVs don't really fit on ferries.

So, after an hour detour to a bridge across the river, we arrived. It's a great site and park. It's quiet here, as there aren't a lot of campers this time of year and it's a Thursday.

This morning, we crossed that same ferry in the truck and headed to Jamestown.

We first went to Jamestown Settlement which is a living history museum about a mile from the original settlement. There is a reconstruction of a Powhatan village, the James fort, and replicas of the three ships that brought the original settlers.

Brady is trying out the mortar and pestle to grind corn.

Inside the hut.

This guy was great. He answered questions and stayed in character. The girls loved it.

This is inside the James fort.

This guy loaded and fired this old rifle and asked people in the crowd to time him. It took him 23 seconds to get a shot off. He wanted us to imagine attackers and taking 23 seconds to reload.

The guy with the rifle had this shop with guns, armor, and other artifacts. He was great to listen to.

Inside the church.

You can maybe imagine what these were used for. He explained to us that the native people would sometimes attack quickly and then retreat and often on foot. These were placed around the village off the roads. The villagers knew which fields to stay out of. Archaeologists have gained some insight into the layout of the village based on where these have been found.

This is historic Jamestowne, at the site of the original colony.You can view the site of the original James fort, the 17th century church tower, as well as the site of the original town.