Page 131 - The Hunt - Spring 2021

The
Two Worlds of
Colonial Williamsburg
An 18th-century day, a 21st-century night.
On a hot July morning, I awake
to life in the early 1700s. Like a visitor from another planet, I find myself sweating in the oven-hot kitchen
of the Governor’s Palace in Colonial Williamsburg. There I learn that my thick, almost custardy chocolate breakfast drink was prepared in the manner British colonials preferred their chocolate. “We put nutmeg in it, of course,” says chef Frank Clark. “The English put nutmeg in everything.”
In fact, the colonials drank more chocolate than coffee, that other drink from Spanish America. Perhaps it’s because chocolate gave them more energy for a hard day’s work. And they needed it, as the midday meal (“dinner”) wouldn’t be ready until 2 p.m.
The kitchen isn’t actually inside the
palace, which would make the residence
much too warm. It’s located just outside in a separate building. Later in the day, I see the inner and outer workings of daily life in this commonwealth capitol, which owed fealty to King George back in London. I chatted with horticulturist Chip Bixler, who tends a garden composed of mostly ornamental plants. “Every member of the gentry who has a house in town wants a garden like this,” he tells me.
Next is a peek into the apothecary shop, and then the heat of the blacksmith and tinsmith shops. Finally, I stop at Prentis Field, where farmer Ed Schultz has put his horse away for the afternoon. “We grow all the important crops here—corn, cotton tobacco,” he says. And turnips, I point out, as we’re standing next to a patch of them. “Oh, turnips” he says. “We use those for sheep food.”
Gradually, I make it to where I’ll be spending the night. After a change of clothes, I find my way back to the 21st century with a fabulous meal and a glass of fine wine. Then I head to the bar to listen to local jazz ensemble Good Shot Judy. While I’m waiting for the
(Clockwise from
opposite page) The Capitol;
a blacksmith demonstrates his craft; the Governor’s Palace.
elevator at the Williamsburg Inn, I meet a fellow tourist in golf clothes. “Boy, was it hot out there on the course today,” he says.
“If you want hot, you should’ve been with me back in the 18th century,” I think to myself.
My most recent visit occurred the summer before COVID-19 slowed tourist travel worldwide. In the case of Williamsburg, visits did continue, but they were considerably diminished. “Remember, most of our summer activities are outside, where there’s plenty
of space and fresh air,” says John Jimenez, Colonial Williamsburg’s vice president for hospitality. “We had to close a couple of the taverns, but we had dining space outside at the others. Our goal for the coming summer is to again have everything back open.”
Which is good news, as Colonial Williamsburg has been welcoming guests
to its living history museum since the early 1930s—almost 100 years. That’s longer than it served as capital and cultural center for the
Virginia Colony, from 1699 until shortly after the American Revolution. In 1780, the seat of government was transferred to Richmond.
The colonial buildings at the heart of
the old city gradually fell into disrepair.
Yet the city was the only one of 13 colonial capitals that lasted somewhat intact into the 20th century. In the 1920s, a local minister sought to establish some sort of restoration
www.TheHuntMagazine.com 129