{"id":322,"date":"2012-06-30T18:16:22","date_gmt":"2012-06-30T18:16:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.websitefix.net\/clients\/Generic\/?page_id=322"},"modified":"2019-11-20T17:49:51","modified_gmt":"2019-11-20T17:49:51","slug":"natural-history","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.sunraydirect.com\/HamptonRoadsVA3\/BHGNativeAmerican\/?page_id=322","title":{"rendered":"Natural History"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>HISTORICAL ATTRACTIONS \/ THE HISTORIC TRIANGLE<\/strong><strong> <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The  pearl of \u201cHistoric Virginia\u201d nestles on the peninsula between the York and  James Rivers. Here, in the area known as the Historic Triangle, you\u2019ll discover  a cluster of sites that preserve the deepest roots of our modern American life:  Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown Island, and Yorktown.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Colonial Williamsburg<\/strong><strong> <\/strong><br \/>\nGreeting  and accommodating more than one million visitors each year, the \u201cwalking  community\u201d of Colonial Williamsburg is a peerless and magnificent showpiece of  18th century life. This re-creation of 17th and 18th century Virginia comes  alive in lovingly restored buildings that reflect colonial homes and business  life. Costumed interpreters make it possible to enjoy a realistic encounter  with an artisan or craftsman of the time, from blacksmiths to weavers and  candle-makers.<\/p>\n<p>Although  Williamsburg is celebrated as the nation\u2019s largest historic tourist attraction,  its transformation and phenomenal success began with the vision of a local  priest in the 1920s named WAR Goodwin. Perceiving automobiles as destructive to  American life, he ironically approached Henry Ford with a request for funds to  restore the 18th century atmosphere that once prevailed in Williamsburg. Ford  refused.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless,  Goodwin\u2019s idea sparked the imagination of another wealthy investor, John D.  Rockefeller, Jr. After donating more than $70 million to the Williamsburg  restoration project over a number of years, John D. Rockefeller and his wife  Abby Aldrich moved into the Bassett Hall in the mid-1930s. Rockefeller later  established an endowment so that restoration and preservation would continue  after his death. This legacy, known today as the Foundation for Colonial Williamsburg,  combines with The College of William and Mary to form the financial and  economic powerhouse behind the community.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Jamestown<\/strong><strong> <\/strong><br \/>\nShort-lived  but historically monumental, Jamestown was the site where the 104 boys and men  disembarked from the Discovery, the Godspeed, and the Susan Constant to form  the first permanent English settlement in the New World. Before disease,  starvation, and attacks by Native Americans completely devastated the small  group, the survivors moved inland to the area we know as Williamsburg.<\/p>\n<p>Nearly  400 years later, the original Jamestown is a collection of ruins, historical  markers, visitor&#8217;s centers, and archaeological digs. Nearby, Jamestown Island  National Historic Site offers \u201cliving history\u201d tours. On site are paintings,  models, dioramas, and intriguing 17th century objects. The only standing  structure that remains from the 17th century town is the old church tower, part  of the original brick church.<\/p>\n<p>The  modern visitor\u2019s center known as Jamestown Settlement offers a museum with  changing exhibits, a reconstruction of the 1607 James Fort, a Native American  village, and full-scale replicas of the three ships that carried the early  settlers to Jamestown.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Yorktown<\/strong><br \/>\nFounded in the late 1600s when the General  Assembly in Jamestown passed the Port Act, Yorktown quickly became a bustling  tobacco port. However, the site\u2019s claim to fame would not come for nearly 100  years in the fall of 1781. It was from Yorktown that General George Washington  reported back to the Continental Congress: \u201cI have the honor to inform  Congress, that a reduction of the British Army under the command of Lord  Cornwallis, is most happily affected.\u201d This battle news was followed by an  official exchange at Surrender Hill, marking the end of the Revolutionary War.  In the words of the clich\u00e9, \u201cThe rest is history.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yorktown  was later besieged by Union troops led by General George McClellan. Many of the  fortifications from this era, and even from the Revolutionary War, remain  intact. In addition to historic landmarks, visitors discover living history  exhibits and costumed actors who enthusiastically reenact every role from  continental soldiers to colonial farmers. Historic taverns, churches, meeting  rooms, and homes are sprinkled throughout the Colonial National Historical  Park.<\/p>\n<p>For  more information on one of our nation&#8217;s most richly historic area, the  following resources will be helpful:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Colonial Williamsburg Foundation<\/strong><br \/>\nWilliamsburg  757-229-1000<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.history.org\/\">www.history.org<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Colonial National Historical Park<\/strong><br \/>\nYorktown  757-898-3400<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nps.gov\/colo\">www.nps.gov\/colo<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Yorktown Victory Center<\/strong><br \/>\nColonial  Parkway<br \/>\nYorktown  757-898-2410<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nps.gov\/yonb\">www.nps.gov\/yonb<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Jamestown National Historic Site<\/strong><br \/>\nYorktown  757-856-1200<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nps.gov\/jame\">www.nps.gov\/jame<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Williamsburg Area Convention &amp; Visitor&#8217;s Bureau<\/strong><br \/>\nWilliamsburg  757-229-6511<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.visitwilliamsburg.com\/\">www.visitwilliamsburg.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>HISTORICAL ATTRACTIONS \/ THE HISTORIC TRIANGLE The pearl of \u201cHistoric Virginia\u201d nestles on the peninsula between the York and James Rivers. Here, in the area known as the Historic Triangle, you\u2019ll discover a cluster of sites that preserve the deepest roots of our modern American life: Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown Island, and Yorktown. &nbsp; Colonial Williamsburg [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sunraydirect.com\/HamptonRoadsVA3\/BHGNativeAmerican\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/322"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sunraydirect.com\/HamptonRoadsVA3\/BHGNativeAmerican\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sunraydirect.com\/HamptonRoadsVA3\/BHGNativeAmerican\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sunraydirect.com\/HamptonRoadsVA3\/BHGNativeAmerican\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sunraydirect.com\/HamptonRoadsVA3\/BHGNativeAmerican\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=322"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.sunraydirect.com\/HamptonRoadsVA3\/BHGNativeAmerican\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/322\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":893,"href":"https:\/\/www.sunraydirect.com\/HamptonRoadsVA3\/BHGNativeAmerican\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/322\/revisions\/893"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sunraydirect.com\/HamptonRoadsVA3\/BHGNativeAmerican\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}