Foods & Feasts of Colonial Virginia at Jamestown Settlement & American Revolution Museum at Yorktown- Nov. 28 & 29
Explore Centuries-Old Cooking Techniques at Foods & Feasts
Long before microwaves, electric stoves and refrigerators, early Virginians prepared meals in clay pots and iron kettles, and preserved food by smoking and salt curing.
This Thanksgiving holiday, dig into the foodways of 17th- and 18th-century America during Foods & Feasts of Colonial Virginia. Explore centuries-old culinary practices and cooking techniques of early Virginia during a two-day event, Friday and Saturday, November 28 and 29.
Below are events being held at both museums. First are the events at Jamestown Settlement followed by events at the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown.
Jamestown Settlement
Discover how food was gathered, preserved and prepared on land and at sea by Virginia’s English colonists and Powhatan Indians. Enjoy live cooking demonstrations throughout the day in re-creations of Paspahegh Town, a colonial fort and along the ships’ pier.
Paspahegh Town
Watch venison, turkey and other game roast over open fires while stews of corn, beans and squash cook in clay pots. Learn the role of corn to the Powhatan life and the many ways it was used, including corncakes and corn dumplings. Throughout the day, discover how Powhatan Indians made stone and bone tools used to obtain and prepare food.
James Fort
See the English colonists culinary traditions brought to Virginia as historical interpreters bake bread in a Devon oven and demonstrate open-hearth cooking of pudding, pies and pottage, based on historical recipes of the late 16th and early 17th centuries.
Ships’ Pier
At the pier, explore how the colony was provisioned. Throughout the day, see the typical fare of life at sea, with salted fish and meat, hard biscuits and dried foods. Discover the fresh provisions that sailors gathered at island stops on the voyage to Jamestown.
Foods & Feasts of Colonial Virginia
Jamestown SPECIAL DEMONSTRATIONSApproximate Time Location Description 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Paspahegh Town, Ships & Fort Foodways of the Past
Enjoy a variety of ongoing demonstrations in the outdoor living-history areas. Roll up your sleeves and lend a hand with grinding corn, preparing stockfish and making sausage!10:30 a.m. Paspahegh Town Powhatan Hunting Techniques
How stealthy can you be? Learn the strategies used by Powhatan men to stalk and hunt game. Watch as historical interpreters demonstrate the use of a bow and arrow.1 p.m. Ships’ Pier Navigation
A well-laden supply ship benefits no one if it gets lost. Learn how 17th-century sailors steered by using all the tools available. Weather permitting.3 p.m. James Fort Defending the Colony
Calling all musketeers, pikemen and targeteers! Join in and drill to help defend the colony against the forces of the Spanish Empire and Powhatan Paramount Chiefdom!
Children ages 5 and under receive free admission to both museums. Residents of York County, James City County and the City of Williamsburg, including William & Mary students, receive complimentary admission with proof of residency.
American Revolution Museum at Yorktown
Step back in time to explore how Continental Army soldiers earned their daily rations and how fresh produce meats from the fields were transformed into stews, pies and breads. Enjoy live cooking demonstrations throughout the day, set amid recreations of a Continental Army encampment and Revolution-era farm.
Continental Army Encampment
Discover the resourcefulness of who turned very little rations of dried beans, salted meat and hard bread into nourishing soups and stews. Watch daily artillery drills and learn how soldiers earned their food.
Revolution-era Farm
At the farm, watch as 18th-century recipes come to life over an open hearth. See how both the farm’s owners and enslaved people prepared their meals. See the similarities and differences between their dishes. Explore the methods used by farming families to preserve and store goods through the lean winter months.
At Jamestown Settlement, discover how food was gathered, preserved and prepared on land and at sea by Virginia’s English colonists and Powhatan Indians. Enjoy cooking demonstrations throughout the day in re-creations of a Paspahegh town and colonial fort and along the ships’ pier.
At the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown, learn how Continental Army soldiers earned their rations and witness the bounty of produce and proteins fresh from the Revolution-era farm transformed into stews, pies and breads.
Foods & Feasts of Colonial Virginia
American Revolution Museum of Yorktown
SPECIAL DEMONSTRATIONSApproximate Time Location Description 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Colonial Army Encampment & Revolution-era Farm Cooking Demonstrations
Visit the kitchen in the Continental Army encampment and see how well soldiers could eat on standard military rations during the war. By contrast, see the civilian side of life at the Revolution-era farm. Watch and participate in seasonal cooking activities in the kitchen and at the enslaved people’s quarter. Observe and discuss the emergence of an American identity through the culture of food.11 a.m. & 3 p.m. Colonial Army Encampment Artillery
Artillery was an important part of the siege at Yorktown in 1781. You might become a part of an 18th-century artillery crew practicing a dry firing. Then, cover your ears as the Continental Army crew fires the weapon.1 p.m. & 4 p.m. Revolution-era Farm Herbal Remedies
Paying the price for overindulging? Investigate 18th-century remedies for colonial ailments. What resources did a farmer have growing on hand to cure you of headaches, indigestion or other unpleasantness?2 p.m. Colonial Army Encampment Pillage, Plunder and Consequences
Were your rations disappointing? Thinking of taking matters into your own hands? You may want to reconsider. Join in a discussion with an historical interpreter and fellow visitors about the purpose of discipline and the difficult choices made by military leaders to feed their soldiers.
Children ages 5 and under receive free admission to both museums. Residents of York County, James City County and the City of Williamsburg, including William & Mary students, receive complimentary admission with proof of residency.
Admission
Children ages 5 and under receive free admission to both museums. Free admission for residents of York County, James City County and the City of Williamsburg, including William & Mary students, with proof of residency.
Explore the heart of our nation’s beginnings and discover the stories of America’s earliest adventures with a variety of ticket and package options.
A Combination Ticket – available online only – is $34.00 for adults and $17.00 for ages 6 through 12, offering seven days of unlimited admission to both Jamestown Settlement and the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown.
America’s Historic Triangle Ticket offers unlimited admission for up to seven days to Jamestown Settlement, Historic Jamestowne, Colonial Williamsburg, Yorktown Battlefield and the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown.
One-day, Single-Site Tickets offer admission to Jamestown Settlement at $20.00 for adults and $10.00 for ages 6-12, and admission to the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown admission at $20.00 for adults and $10.00 for ages 6-12.
For more information, call (888) 593-4682 toll-free or visit www.jyfmuseums.org/events/programs-activities/foods-feasts-of-colonial-virginia for more details.
Jamestown Settlement
2110 Jamestown Road,
Williamsburg, 23185
American Revolution Museum at Yorktown
200 Water Street,
Yorktown, 23690
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