INSIDE JYF SUMMER 2023

INSIDE JYF

SUMMER 2023

from the EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Summer is upon us at the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, and we look forward to sharing the compelling experiences that await guests at our museums and insight to the work behind our historical interpretation and our artifact collection.

In this issue of INSIDE JYF, you’ll discover the cultural convergence of clay and the evolution of pottery techniques in the 17th and 18th centuries, as well as period tools used to convey complicated stories in our collective past.

From stern to bow, take a look at Jamestown Settlement’s ships fleet to see how the three square-rigged vessels are ready to welcome visitors aboard during the summer season ahead and efforts to preserve these national landmarks.

Explore the ways educators and historical interpreters are forging partnerships across the state and region to embolden learning opportunities.

Summer is filled with a slate of events and programs, many in conjunction with the ongoing Reign & Rebellion exhibition. From Civic Season, running Juneteenth to Liberty Celebration in July, to the Picnic on the Pier in September, there’s something here for everyone.

If what you read inspires you, we encourage you to join many others in supporting our mission and museums by making a gift to the Annual Fund. Your support ensures that we expand our educational reach to more students and teachers and share powerful stories of America’s past.

Warm wishes,

Christy S. Coleman Executive Director

INSIDE JYF

EMILY MCCARTY TRACY PERKINS Editors

JOAN HEIKENS JANET KANE

Production Management

HOLLAND WINSLOW

Designer

STAFF CONTRIBUTORS

Alexis Becker

Cindy Daniel

Constance Graham

Katherine Egner Gruber

Jamie Helmick

Heather Hower

Erin Koch

Lianne Koch

Lisa Lucas

Maggie Meyers

Cathy Fox Rawlins

Deana Ricks

Meghan van Joosten

WRITERS/PHOTOGRAPHERS

Felicia Abrams, Julie Basic, Alexis Becker, Morgan Culbertson, Cindy Daniel, Stefanie Dunn, Katherine Egner Gruber, Jamie Helmick, Heather Hower, Gretchen Johnson, Janet Kane, Homer Lanier, Emily McCarty, T.J. Savage, Katie Schinabeck, Lee Ann Shelhorse, Eric Speth, Bly Straube, Meghan van Joosten, Destiny Williams

Enjoy INSIDE JYF? Support the museums by donating to the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, Inc. If you no longer wish to receive INSIDE JYF in print or would like to convert to digital, email insidejyf@jyf.virginia.gov or call (757) 253-4139.

INSIDE JYF

Volume 4, No. 2 – printed May 2023

The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, an educational institution of the Commonwealth of Virginia accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, fosters through its museums—Jamestown Settlement and American Revolution Museum at Yorktown—an awareness and understanding of the early history, settlement, and development of the United States through the convergence of American Indian, European, and African cultures and the enduring legacies bequeathed to the nation.

JAMESTOWN-YORKTOWN FOUNDATION

P.O. Box 1607, Williamsburg, VA 23187 (757) 253-4838

jyfmuseums.org

of

CONTENTS

About the Cover

JYF photographer Katie Schinabeck captured this detailed view of Jamestown Settlement historical interpreter Roger Ballance making Powhatan-style pottery in the re-created Paspahegh Town. Roger harvested the clay locally, which he then cleaned, rolled into coils, smoothed out to form the pot and decorated with textured paddles. Techniques and knowledge from Indigenous communities inform enhanced pottery demonstrations for museum visitors. Inside, read the “Convergence in Clay” article to discover how pottery connects the cultures who came together in 17th-century Tsenacommacah. 4

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Threads of History

Discover how the art of spinning and weaving played an important role not only in daily life but in the political life of families in early America.

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Shipshape for the Season Ahead

From new paint to new sails, Jamestown Settlement’s founding fleet is primed for the tourist season ahead.

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Powerful Partnerships Create Relevancy

Learn how a JYF partnership with the James River Association and York County Public Schools enhances STEM education for students.

Executive Director Bestowed Top Prize

Executive Director Christy S. Coleman was awarded the David McCullough Prize for Excellence in American Public History. Learn more about her impact on public history that led to this prestigious honor.

JYF ‘on Point’ with Generous Gift Stone hunting tools expand the JYF collection and offer new insights to early human history, thanks to a gift from Liza and Wallace Gusler.

Staff Spotlight: Behind the Numbers Through exceptional teamwork and interdepartmental collaboration, the Finance Department provides a strong foundation for JYF.

Donor Spotlight: Following Their Hearts Joe and Pat Wesolowski share how following their heart led them to join a community of JYF supporters and create a legacy in their new home.

Photo Credit: Andre Flewellen

CONVERGENCE IN CLAY

Cultural connections are often hidden in plain sight. At first glance, everyday items like ceramics may seem ordinary, but upon closer inspection provide invaluable insight into the cultural practices and exchanges of societies all around the world. Pottery was a staple for three main cultures that we highlight at JYF —Indigenous, African and European—and afforded financial opportunities, status and artistic expression as these cultures and their pottery practices converged in Virginia in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Form and Function

Across all three cultures, pottery evolved as a functional replacement to earlier stone, woven and wooden containers. Ceramic pots made superior cooking vessels and provided drier storage than earlier fiber containers. A wide variety of pottery forms developed, including shallow bowls, cooking jars and extremely large storage vessels. Some styles developed were unique to certain cultural experiences, such as Indigenous peoples developing conical-bottomed cooking pots to nestle into a bed of hot coals.

For Indigenous, African and European communities, pottery united form, function and artistic expression. Artisans crafted ceramics by making pinch pots and adding coils, sometimes using molds. A cultural exception for Europeans and others was the use of the potters’ wheel. Since most pots had a similar production process, what really made pottery stand out was the individualized expression of the craftsperson.

Artistic Expression

Some potters decorated their pieces by incising motifs, like human or animal figures and geometric or abstract shapes and handles or lids were often molded or attached. In Indigenous pottery,

Jamestown Settlement interpretive volunteer Caden Cozart mixes ingredients in an English-style redware bowl in the re-created James Fort.

decoration often took the form of pressing materials onto the surface, such as cordage, fabric and nets to create texture. In West Central Africa, polishing pots was a principal form of decoration, and a deep, burnished effect could be achieved by rubbing the surface with animal fat or soot and then re-firing to achieve a deep glossy finish. European potters painted ceramics with slip, a creamy mixture of fine clay and water, or a lead-based glaze. Images, designs, paint and styles all blend to tell the story of people, their connections and their preferences. As the people of these different cultures interacted, they experimented with each other’s practices or artistic styles.

Cultural Convergence

English colonization of Virginia forever impacted the lives and traditions of all three cultures. As the English became

politically and economically dominant in Virginia, Indigenous and African peoples had to adapt to a vastly different cultural dynamic. From the 17th century, a coarse earthenware called colonoware combined the characteristics of European, American Indian and African pottery traditions. Its production in Virginia highlights the impacts of European colonization, as Africans and Indigenous people produced colonoware with their own methods in popular European styles for trade, sale and daily use. Found on archaeological sites in many contexts across Virginia, colonoware is a distinct marker of colonial connection and cultural convergence, a subject of ongoing study today.

The convergence of pottery styles from multiple cultures has continued on the Atlantic coast since the 17th century

In the re-created Paspahegh Town at Jamestown Settlement, historical interpreter Roger Ballance works on the process of adding a coil to a pinch pot.

like an unbroken clay coil. Black artists have been blending historical African pottery with contemporary styles and individual expression. Black potters during the 19th century in the Old Edgefield District of South Carolina, such as poet and potter David Drake, produced ceramics that are physical manifestations of their knowledge, experiences and creativity. Many Black potters today continue to combine pottery traditions from Africa and America, designing pieces that display the rich history and

cultures of numerous African and Caribbean nations, work through the legacies of slavery and represent their personal lives and experiences.

Members of the Pamunkey Tribe, most commonly women, have created pottery out of clay dug from their reservation along the Pamunkey River. French traveler Durand du Dauphine recorded that “The women...make pots, earthen vases and smoking pipes.” Durand also noted that

Scenes in Jamestown Settlement’s introductory film “1607: A Nation Takes Root” portray women living in the 17th-century Kingdom of Ndongo, as they prepare food utilizing a ceramic pot.

Indigenous peoples sold these pots to English colonists.

“John the Bowlmaker” was possibly one such Indigenous potter making wares for sale to the English colonists in the 17th century. Probate inventories and other historic records attest to the presence of “Indian pots” in English households and in 1769, account books reveal that “earthen pans” were purchased from Indigenous peoples for Lord Botetourt in Williamsburg.

By the mid-19th century, the demand for the Pamunkey handmade pottery decreased as mass-produced pottery became more accessible. The craft waned until 1932, when the Pamunkey began making pottery to sell to tourists. The Commonwealth of Virginia helped establish a pottery school where Pamunkey tribal members learned methods to increase the speed of manufacture of their traditional pottery. Once the school was established, the Pamunkey Pottery Guild was founded to organize and manage the potters, production and the market. Today tribal artisans follow both the ancient and modern traditions.

Enduring Legacy

Today at Jamestown Settlement, historical interpreters use pottery to bring an awareness and understanding of Powhatan cultures in the 17th century. Roger Ballance, a historical interpreter for the re-created Paspahegh Town, recently began to combine oral history and knowledge from Indigenous communities to enhance the pottery program for visitors. He has created ceramic pieces in an increased variety of shapes and sizes, championed the sourcing of local clay and explored different methods of decoration. As the program expands, he hopes to move into the reproduction of colonoware, beginning with a re-creation of a Native-made Bartmann jug.

Used for utilitarian purposes and artistic expression for cultures all over the world, pottery is one lens that allows us to explore the unique and shared traditions of American Indian, African and European peoples who converged at Jamestown and early Virginia.

Jamie Helmick, Director Indigenous Peoples Initiative

—Alexis Becker, Communications Specialist Museum Operations and Education

—Katherine Egner Gruber, Curatorial Manager

Threads of History

Upon entering the house on the Revolution-era farm at the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown, our visitors almost immediately recognize the various spinning wheels and the weavers loom that are present. However, they may not realize that this technology has been around for centuries prior to the war and that both free and enslaved farmers could be equally skilled in the art of spinning and weaving.

With a closer look and perhaps a try at the walking wheel or the flax wheel with one of our living-history interpreters, they begin to understand the steady hand and expertise that is involved in spinning flax, cotton or wool into thread or yarn that could one day move over to the loom for the weaving of fabric or be used for another household need like yarn for knitting and darning, or thread for sewing and needlepoint.

Apprenticeships of five to seven years were typical to be considered a professional weaver, however, weaving became more common for Indigenous, free and enslaved peoples across the colonies during the war. The effects of seeking American independence and going to war with Great Britain were many, including losing the ability to acquire imported goods that most households were familiar with purchasing at storefronts in Yorktown and Williamsburg.

Fabric had become much more expensive and, in some instances, unavailable to middle-class farmers in Virginia, so families turned to the production of their own linen and wool fabrics and threads on a very small scale. While unable to meet all their own needs, families on the homefront managed to patch and extend the life of clothing and bedding, sacrificed and became more self-reliant as way of supporting our fight for independence.

—Gretchen Johnson, Revolution-era Farm Supervisor —Homer Lanier, Visitor Experience Manager

Gretchen Johnson spins fibers outside the Revolution-era farmhouse at the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown.

Shipshape for the Season

Along the James River, Jamestown Settlement’s re-created ships are primed for the summer season, ready for the thousands of visitors to climb aboard to learn about the 1607 voyage to Virginia.

The Susan Constant, flagship of the three square-rigged fleet, showcases new paint and the Godspeed and Discovery, new sets of sails.

A tedious effort was undertaken during the winter and spring to inspect the structure and stabilize the wood of the Susan Constant, now nearly 33 years old, and paint the hull of the ship. City Wide Decorators, which specializes in painting historic wooden structures, took on the job to paint the hull of the 120-ton ship and its inscribed decorations and the gallery on the ship’s stern.

The Godspeed and Discovery are ready for wind in their new sails, which were completed this spring by Latell & Ailsworth Sails in Deltaville, Virginia, and installed by Jamestown Settlement maritime, volunteer and interpretive staff. All sails are fabricated from Oceanus sail cloth, which is woven from polyester fiber to simulate natural canvas.

The Godspeed, scheduled to sail to Norfolk Harborfest® to join the Parade of Sail in June, sets six sails including the fore course, main course, spritsail, mizzen, fore topsail and

on this date in JYF HISTORY 1956

In the 66-year history of Jamestown Settlement, which opened as Jamestown Festival Park, there have been two generations of the Susan Constant, a 100-ton vessel first constructed in Norfolk in 1956 and the second, a 120-ton vessel built along Jamestown Settlement riverfront in 1990, still in use today. The current Susan Constant underwent maintenance this past spring to stabilize wood and paint the ship’s hull, and requests for proposals were recently issued for further repairs to sustain and preserve the flagship of Virginia’s founding fleet.

Robert G.C. Fee of Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock draws the plans for the replicas of the three ships that brought the first permanent English settlers to Jamestown, Virginia. On the drawing board is the Susan Constant , 100 tons, flagship of the tiny fleet. Image by Robert C. Fraser.

Jamestown Settlement maritime, volunteer and interpretive staff install Godspeed’s fore course sail in advance of Jamestown Day in May.

main topsail. The Discovery, the smallest ship in the fleet, sets three sails — the main course, mizzen and main topsail. The crew of historical interpreters manning the three ships are eager to work the sails with visitors through hands-on demonstrations and opportunities to learn the ropes of a 17th-century mariner.

Kaia Moseley, ships supervisor, enjoys sharing the story of the four-and-ahalf-month journey across the Atlantic and how sailors followed trade winds to navigate to Virginia. “When visitors help us set and trim the sails at the dock, it really helps them make a connection to the skilled work performed by people of the past.”

The original fleet set sail from London on December 20, 1606, with 105 passengers and 39 crew members for a 144-day transatlantic voyage to Virginia. After two weeks in the Chesapeake Bay and exploration of inland waterways, the three merchant vessels arrived at the selected settlement site on May 13, 1607. The expedition was a business venture sponsored by the

Want to support the Jamestown Settlement ships and maritime program? The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, Inc. Annual Fund offers opportunities to designate a gift for specific museum projects, such as ship maintenance and preservation. jyfmuseums.org/donate

In anticipation of the 350th anniversary of Jamestown and the opening of Jamestown Festival Park in 1957, the first re-creation of the Susan Constant takes shape in April of 1956 in a Norfolk, Virginia, shipyard. Image courtesy of The Mariners’ Museum.

Virginia Company of London.

City Wide Decorators of Mechanicsville, Virginia, paints distinctive decorations on the Susan Constant .

STEM PROGRAM + Powerful Partnerships = Relevancy

Science, math and the arts enrich our lives every day, and the same holds true for history. Blending these foundational subjects creates a richer picture of the past. For decades, JYF has approached history education and the programs offered to general visitors and students alike with a multidisciplinary lens. This year, JYF deepens its commitment to multidisciplinary inquiry through a three-year partnership with the James River Association and York County Public Schools.

Last fall, York County Public Schools curriculum specialists approached JYF and James River Association about developing an educational experience together. This collaborative project provides students with an opportunity to visit Jamestown Settlement and the James River Association to explore the impact of people on their environment and the impact of the environment on people.

During the program at Jamestown Settlement, students explored the resources in Tidewater Virginia with a specific focus on the James River, oysters and sturgeon. Students learned how the salinity of the river changes throughout the year depending on weather and tidal patterns and the impact on the lives of people living along the James.

These conversations continued at the James River Association as they studied the impact of commercial

farming on oysters and the oyster restoration programs, challenges for sturgeon spawning and what makes a wetland.

This partnership became so much more than just showing how history and science can be used together to understand the past. As students left at the end of the program, instructors heard them talking about the impact

Students at the James River Association learn about the changes in tools used to cultivate oysters and the impact of over-cultivation on the oyster population.

Katie Ferrell/James River Association

of pollution on the rivers and the importance of having access to fresh water. In the end, this was more than a history program. It was a call to action for environmental stewardship and the responsibility they have as community members to ensure these resources are accessible to everyone.

—Felicia Abrams, School Programs Manager

How Can You Help?

“The collaboration between Jamestown Settlement, James River Association and York County School Division provided the opportunity for all fourthgrade students to engage in a hands-on, interdisciplinary experience that involved environmental resources used in the past and the connections to the environment today. One example was their investigation of oysters as a sustainable food source for early Jamestown settlers and how oysters provide water filtration to support the health of the James River watershed today.”

—Courtney Vega-Gonzalez, York County School Division Coordinator of Science

Support for programs and partnerships like these are made possible thanks to contributions by donors to the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, Inc. Annual Fund and restricted gifts for education. Visit jyfmuseums.org/support-jyf or contact Development at (757) 253-4139.

Museum educators Mary Barlow and Eric Ely prepare an experiment to show the density of salt water compared to fresh water, helping students understand salinity changes in the James River throughout the year and encouraging critical thinking about solutions for the changes in water.

Christy S. Coleman BESTOWED TOP HONOR

Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation Executive Director

Christy S. Coleman has been honored with the David McCullough Prize for Excellence in American Public History from The Carpenters’ Company of Philadelphia. Coleman, formally recognized during an April 26 ceremony in Philadelphia at the Museum of the American Revolution, is the third recipient to receive this esteemed recognition. The prestigious honor, established by the late Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David McCullough, celebrates individuals and organizations whose work engages the public and significantly impacts their understanding of American history.

“Christy Coleman is at the forefront of public historians and educators who are crafting a more nuanced and inclusive narrative of our complex American story,” said Michael Norris, executive director of The Carpenters’ Company, noting its importance with the approach of the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution.

Beyond her work at JYF, Coleman has held leadership roles at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History and the American Civil War Museum. The Carpenters’ Company

stressed her efforts as an innovator and leader in her field and a tireless advocate for the power of museums, narrative correction, diversity and inclusiveness. She has earned numerous awards for her decades of impact, including three honorary doctorates. In 2018, Time magazine named Coleman one of the “31 People Changing the South,” and Worth magazine named her one of “29 Women Changing the World” in 2019. An accomplished screenwriter and public speaker, her work has extended into the world of broadcast, appearing on national history programs and documentaries, such as “Grant” and “Abraham Lincoln,” and serving as a historical consultant for the award-winning film “Harriet” and Showtime’s “Good Lord Bird.”

Founded in 1724, The Carpenters’ Company helped construct major structures in Philadelphia, including Carpenters’ Hall, Christ Church steeple and the Pennsylvania State House (Independence Hall). Finished in 1774, Carpenters’ Hall was once home to Benjamin Franklin’s Library Company of Philadelphia, the American Philosophical Society, and the site of the First Continental Congress, one of the most critical steps in achieving colonial independence.

Photo Credit: Andre Flewellen

JYF ‘on Point’ WITH GENEROUS GIFT

Artifacts from these early nomadic hunters are quite rare in Virginia compared to the later Archaic and Woodland periods because of the culture’s relatively low population. Only 12,789 Paleoindian points have been registered as authentic in the United States and about 2,000 of those were found in Virginia. This gift will allow us to explore Paleoindian life in Virginia and the development of hunting technologies in response to the disappearance of ice age fauna.

The Gusler donation also includes seven stone axes dating from the Middle Archaic (6,000-2,500 B.C.E.) to the Late Woodland (900-1600 C.E.) periods. This chronology reflects the tool’s technological development that enabled greater efficiency in clearing forests, thereby encouraging the growth of food-bearing bushes and trees and drawing game closer to Indigenous settlements.

Our understanding of history is always evolving as new information is uncovered, from items previously hidden away or buried underground. Case in point, scientists are still debating when and how the first people arrived in North America. Known as Paleoindians, their culture was first documented in 1927 at a site in Folsom, New Mexico that dates to circa 9,5008,000 B.C.E. In 1932, an even earlier site was discovered in Clovis, New Mexico. This site, inhabited about 11,200 years ago, had distinctive lance-shaped fluted spear points found in association with woolly mammoth bones. These Clovis points also have been found in Virginia, including Cactus Hill (44SX0202) in Sussex County where some radiocarbon dating indicates the presence of pre-Clovis people 17,000 years ago. The large, elegant spear points were probably used to hunt the megafauna of the ice age, such as mastodons and mammoths.

Thanks to a generous gift from the collection of Liza and Wallace Gusler, the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation now has one Folsom projectile point and four Clovis points, one of which was found in Washington County, Virginia.

One of the axes has special meaning for Wallace Gusler, whose appreciation of Indigenous material culture began as a boy walking the plowed fields of Roanoke and Botetourt counties. At age 11, Wallace started working part-time at Logan’s Barn Antiques near Salem, Virginia, so he could purchase the ax on layaway. Robert H. Logan became Wallace’s first mentor in the field of antiques, which led to over 40 years with the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation serving variously as master gunsmith, curator of mechanical objects, curator of furniture and director of conservation.

—Bly Straube, Ph.D., FSA, Senior Curator

Paleoindian points dating 13,500 - 10,600 B.C.E. found in Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Texas. JamestownYorktown Foundation.

Wallace Gusler’s career was inspired by this full-grooved ax, which dates to 4,000-2,500 B.C.E. and found in Blackstone, Virginia. Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation.

The Folsom Discovery of 1908

Before 1927, scientists believed that mankind did not arrive in North America until 4,000 years ago. It took discoveries by a Black cowboy in New Mexico to revise that thinking by 7,000 years.

The cowboy was George McJunkin. Freed from slavery at the end of the Civil War, he gained notoriety as a bronc buster and roper. He was also an avid collector of rocks, fossils and Indigenous artifacts he found on the rugged Western landscape he worked.

On August 27, 1908, McJunkin was a manager of the Crowfoot Ranch in Folsom, northern New Mexico, when the area was hit by a deadly storm that produced 14 inches of rain. While surveying flood damage, he noticed huge bison bones exposed at the bottom of a gully 11-feet deep.

The unusual bones led him to seek interest in his discovery from the scientific community, this would not happen until five years after his death. In 1927, scientists from the Colorado Museum of Natural History began formal excavations of the site, hoping for a paleontological specimen to display. Unexpectantly, they discovered signs of man! The find was represented by a stone spear point — now called the Folsom point — lodged between the ribs of an extinct Ice Age bison (Bison antiquus) that lived 11,000 years ago.

George McJunkin’s discovery and advocacy for the Folsom Site contributed significantly to the sciences of archaeology and anthropology in the study of early man in North America.

George McJunkin, shown here in about 1907, was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City in 2019. Public Domain/Courtesy of Georgia and Bill Lockridge, former owners of the Crowfoot Ranch.

Picnic on the Pier

Returns in September Blues, Barbecue & Stunning Views

Shake out your picnic blankets and get primed for a blend of blues, barbecue and stunning sunset views at this year’s Picnic on the Pier at Jamestown Settlement.

On September 22 from 6 to 8 p.m., The Bobby BlackHat Band is sure to have toes tapping, fingers popping and hips shaking along the James River waterfront.

As Virginia’s Blues Ambassador, Bobby BlackHat is an award-winning recording artist who blends the influences of Chicago, Memphis, Piedmont and Delta-style blues with a little gospel for an experience that’s unforgettable. Armed with a harmonica and vocal prowess, BlackHat has opened for music legends, including B.B. King, Taj Mahal, Delbert McClinton and Patti LaBelle. He’s also a retired U.S. Coast Guard Commander, serving as a presidential military aide and a recipient of the Coast Guard Medal for Heroism.

Picnickers can savor delicious barbecue and beverages from Williamsburg favorites, Old City BBQ and the Virginia Beer Company.

While previous versions of the after-hours event have taken on names from Jazz on the James to Rock the Dock, the goal has remained steadfast to offer a place for good food, drink and company along the Jamestown Settlement waterfront.

Tickets are $50 per person (or two for $90), include music, barbecue dinner and one drink ticket. Tickets and VIP ticket options are available at jyfmuseums.org/picnic-on-the-pier.

— Stefanie Dunn, Assistant Director of the Annual Fund

Guests of the 2022 Flagship Sponsors: Chesapeake Bank | Chesapeake Wealth Management and Riverside Doctor’s Hospital Williamsburg.

Picnic on the Pier is sponsored by Patti and Terry Hall and realtor Sue McSwain with additional support from Movement Mortgage.

Museum Exchange Nurtures History Skills

Collaboration is at the heart of the work at the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation and recently has extended roughly 165 miles across the state to the Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton, Virginia. Once part of the same agency, the shared history between the museums has opened doors to create opportunities to support educational events and professional development.

Gretchen Johnson and Terry Thon of the Revolution-era farm lent a hand spinning wool and weaving baskets during the Frontier Culture Museum’s first Fiber Festival in April. “It’s great seeing other museum’s programs,” Johnson said. “It can validate what you’re doing well, but it also can teach you new techniques and ways of connecting with visitors.”

In March, the Staunton team turned out in force for Jamestown Settlement’s Military Through the Ages to represent Crocket’s Western Battalion during the Revolutionary War.

Trading techniques for historical clothing was the focus of a 2022 Frontier Culture Museum visit to Jamestown Settlement, where the JYF historical clothing team shared knowledge of garment assembly, patterns and fabric sources.

The partnership is meaningful with deeper connections. Davis Tierney, Frontier Culture Museum director of interpretation and former Jamestown Settlement youth interpreter in the fort, stressed the importance of the partnership. “It’s very easy for folks who have always worked in the same place to not be able to see past the doors of their own museum,” Davis said. “They’re not aware of the good ideas or trends taking place elsewhere.”

Chas Ritinski, JYF training and development manager, planned a reciprocal field trip to each museum this past year to share ideas on programming and day-to-day challenges. “Expanding our perspective beyond our own museum to see how other sites interpret our shared history is what these collaborative efforts are about,” he said.

—Cindy Daniel, Living History Events Manager

Terry Thon, a Revolution-era farm interpreter at the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown, weaves a basket in the Frontier Culture Museum’s 1820s farmhouse during its first Fiber Festival.

A New Perk at Yorktown 1781 CAFÉ BY AROMAS

Guests will find a new perk at the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown with the opening of 1781 Café by Aromas.

1781 Café will offer a new coffee-centric menu, building on the success of AromasWorld restaurants on Prince George Street in Williamsburg, the Swem Library at William & Mary and The Captain’s Den in Newport News.

Opening its doors in mid-May, 1781 Café offers patrons affordable and delicious food and beverage options, including grab-and-go food options for individual guests and groups, in a comfortable, cozy setting.

While the museum café has long been a favorite option for midday lunch break, guests now can stop by throughout the day to purchase a cold or hot coffee drink or a delicious smoothie with a snack.

Museum-goers watching the immersive “Siege of Yorktown” film, complete with smells of coffee from the Revolutionary War trenches, can act on their senses to find a variety of coffee options nearby at the cafe.

Adult and school groups can pre-order healthy boxed lunches and enjoy those at the picnic areas adjacent to the museum’s re-created Continental Army encampment, Revolution-era farm and near the bus loop. 1781 Café, open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. during museum hours, joins Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation as a new museum dining option. The café at Jamestown Settlement is administered by long-time hospitality partners, JCM, Inc., the owners of Second Street Bistro in Williamsburg and Newport News.

—Janet Kane, Senior Retail Operations Manager

At left, Michelle Sieling and Dan Schafer, AromasWorld co-owner and vice president, respectively, enjoy coffee in the newly renovated café space at the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown – the 1781 Café.

FINANCE TEAM’S FORMULA FOR SUCCESS

Finance Department, from left to right, includes Trish Beck, Brenda Fochtman, Judy Langston, Saiju Antony, Lisa McGhee, Will Nixon, Adriane Lott, Sara Shrader, Ed Caldwell and Tammy McCormick.

Deeply intertwined in the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation is the Finance team, supporting day-to-day operations and procurements to ensure the two museums and employees have resources and run efficiently.

A tightknit team of 10 manage the state agency’s budget of $22 million. Whether processing payroll to ensure nearly 325 staff receive their pay or procuring frozen iguanas for historic foodways programming, there is nothing that the museums do that our Finance team does not support in some way.

Will Nixon leads the team as director and beams with pride at the breadth of work that comprises the five entities that the team manages—from budget and payroll to acquisitions and procurement. When talking numbers with Will, he could not stress enough that it really comes down to the people. “At the end of the day, we are here because we are invested in our mission and helping our frontline people succeed when interacting with the general public,” he said.

Nixon’s tenure with JYF dates to 2012, when he served as a volunteer intern tasked with evaluating capital expenditures and request for proposals for the future American Revolution Museum at Yorktown. He transitioned from intern to employee in 2014, working his way to director in 2022.

Despite challenges that come with state and federal budget deadlines, differing priorities, adhering to laws and policies that govern their work, and meeting a range of customer needs, the team remains nimble and steadfast in its mission while supporting one another personally and professionally.

“Everyone works well together and cares about what is going on at work and in life,” noted Tammy McCormick, small purchasing specialist, who referenced popular staff potlucks.

Beyond the spreadsheets, providing service that is customer-forward, transparent and empathetic is paramount to each Finance team member’s work, noting that they try to imagine what their customers are experiencing and treat them as they would wish to be treated. “We strive to take the best care of our customers whether they be internal or vendors,” shared Ed Caldwell, financial services specialist.

Since 2021, the team of 10 has welcomed five new members, each bringing with them fresh perspectives and a wealth of experience and knowledge. Collectively, they have nearly 62 years of JYF finance experience alone, not to mention the depth and range their additional expertise provides.

While the past year has been full of change, most feel it has only made them stronger, which is expertly reflected in their work.

—Lee Ann Shelhorse, Talent Acquisition Manager Human Resources and Professional Development

Welcomes 97 New American Citizens

American flags waved red, white and blue as 97 new American citizens took the Oath of Allegiance at a naturalization ceremony at the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown in May. The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation Honor Guard and Field Musick Virginia led a patriotic procession with candidates emigrating from 47 countries, from Afghanistan to Zambia, to a ceremony to make their American citizenship official, complete with cheers, celebratory remarks and artillery salutes. The artillery amphitheater was full of family and friends, onlookers and even Ms. O’Hanlon’s 8th-grade class from George P. Phenix School in Hampton, offering a real-world civics lesson.

Carol Edlow, a longtime JYF museum educator, served as keynote speaker, reflecting on her family’s own experience and emphasizing the courage of these new American citizens, especially the naturalization process.

“I want to give homage to that attribute today courage—the kind of courage that it takes to make the decision to leave your homelands, customs and cultures that are so dear and familiar to you, to go forth and thrive in a new land,” she said. "I urge you now to go forth and add new stories of your own to the fabric of this quilt that we call America."

The event, planned to be an annual occasion each May, was hosted by the Yorktown Comte de Grasse Chapter, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, and the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation in partnership with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services of the Department of Homeland Security.

A picture-perfect moment is captured by new American citizens Kidst Paulos Getemo and Mintesnot Nyno, who emigrated from Ethiopia.

The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation

Honor Guard and Field Musick Virginia lead a patriotic procession of candidates to take the Oath of Allegiance to America and receive official certificates of citizenship.

Forgotten Stories of Pilots Shine in Yorktown Station

A ship’s bell, speaking trumpet, lead line and a manumission for a man named Caesar Tarrant.

These tangible objects donning a table at the Continental Army encampment at the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown are used with others to convey the little-known stories of Revolutionary War pilots, many of whom were Black or Indigenous.

The Revolutionary War was effectively won at Yorktown, a town situated on the shores of the York River with easy access to the Chesapeake Bay and beyond. While Washington’s army surrounded British troops on land, the aligned force of the French Navy and budding Virginia Naval blockade on the water helped cement a definitive victory for the patriot cause.

The specialized knowledge and in-depth skill that these men had of local and regional waterways gave them value, power and autonomy that they would not have had ashore in a White-dominated society.

A manumission document for Caesar Tarrant, a Hampton Roads man and skilled pilot who was hired by the Virginia Navy, fought in several Chesapeake Bay military operations and freed for his “meritorious services” during the war, is among the reproduction objects used as a springboard to share contributions of forgotten men during the war. Other stations explore recruitment, exploring Black soldiers who fought on both sides of the war; transportation efforts by wagoners, who were free and enslaved; and the ravages of disease, including smallpox which devastated troops at Yorktown.

Programs go beyond the history books to share diverse narratives throughout the year and during events, such as Liberty Celebration on July 4 and Yorktown Victory Celebration October 14.

—T. J. Savage, Continental Army encampment Supervisor

Historical Interpreter Alicia Klimenko flanks a Continental Army encampment station lined with maritime piloting and navigation tools, from a chart of coastal Virginia to round and grape shot.

No land force can act decisively unless it is accompanied by maritime superiority.

—General George Washington

HELP STUDENTS BEAT THE SUMMER HEAT WITH COOL HANDS-ON HISTORY

School is out for summer, but educational enrichment continues at JYF!

Your support of the Annual Fund provides the necessary resources and materials to create engaging, interactive, mission-driven history programs for students, all year-round.

Whether you give monthly or annually, your gift makes an impact—support JYF’s Annual Fund today!

Following Their Hearts Connects Donors With JYF Community

“Follow your heart and do what you enjoy.”

For Joe Wesolowski, it’s not only his advice to others looking to contribute to the Jamestown Yorktown-Foundation but also his own reason for joining the giving community.

After retiring to Williamsburg in 2016 with his wife, Pat, Joe decided to give back to his new community by sharing his passion for history and woodworking. In looking for opportunities, Joe connected with the mission of JYF and decided to volunteer. Through the ship maintenance program, he assists with the maritime program’s various building projects. Eric Speth, director of Maritime Operations, shared that Joe recently “craft[ed] a beautiful and historically appropriate replacement for the Susan Constant’s belfry. “The program couldn’t function without the generous support of more than forty volunteers like Joe, who provided nearly 8,000 hours last year and shared their wide range of knowledge, skills and experiences.”

Through volunteering, Joe learned more about JYF and worked with, as he says, “great, friendly people devoted to what they do,” which inspired the Wesolowskis to expand their relationship by joining The Mathews Legacy Society.

A former finance director, Pat knows that although the foundation receives support from the state, “there [will] always be a need for additional funding” to sustain its work. Additionally, growing up in the Midwest, neither felt they were taught about the history of Jamestown and its impact on the founding of America, which they believe is important for everyone to know.

Through a planned gift to the sailing endowment, they are setting up support now that will help provide long-term sustainability and ensure JYF remains a space for visitors to learn about the complex history of America’s founding.

In following his own advice, Joe and Pat joined a community of JYF supporters and created a legacy. As they know, there are many ways to support and engage with the JYF community—what could that be for you?

To find out more about ways to give, contact Senior Director of Development Julie Basic at julie.basic@jyf.virginia.gov.

Joe Wesolowski examining the modern GPS equipment on the Susan Constant , generally covered by the new belfry.

Pat and Joe Wesolowski.

The Susan Constant ’s new belfry, crafted by Joe Wesolowski.

Juneteenth

JUNE 14 AT JAMESTOWN SETTLEMENT, join us 7-8:30 p.m. for a thought-provoking evening of history and performance exploring the precarious nature of freedom from 17th-century Jamestown to Juneteenth.

Reign & Rebellion Special Exhibition & Events

THROUGH SEPTEMBER 5 AT JAMESTOWN SETTLEMENT & AMERICAN REVOLUTION MUSEUM AT YORKTOWN, experience a series of captivating public programs complementing the Reign & Rebellion dual special exhibition that spans the centuries to explore how the Stuart monarchy shaped the struggles and determination of all who converged in early Virginia.

‘Outlander’ Trivia Night

JULY 29 AT AMERICAN REVOLUTION MUSEUM AT YORKTOWN, take part in “Outlander” trivia, wear your favorite 18th-century outfit (kilts strongly encouraged ) and delve into discussions on how this TV series relates to historic events before and after the Stuarts reign.

Counter Cultures: Rebellion

SEPTEMBER 2 AT AMERICAN REVOLUTION MUSEUM AT YORKTOWN, explore rebellious ideas of the past and present and enjoy music, art and stories of “counter culture.”

sponsored by

Liberty Celebration

JULY 4 AT AMERICAN REVOLUTION MUSEUM AT YORKTOWN, salute the 247th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence with a patriotic lineup of interpretive programs and artillery demonstrations to celebrate Fourth of July.

Charles I Mourning Ring, circa 1648/49. Collection of the Maryland Center for History and Culture, Gift of Miss Clara Goldsborough Holloway.

DIRECTOR’S SERIES

Dr. James Horn

SEPTEMBER 20 AT JAMESTOWN SETTLEMENT, join Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation Executive Director

Christy S. Coleman and Dr. James Horn for an intriguing exchange on how the story of Jamestown has evolved over time with new scholarship.

Michael W. Twitty

OCTOBER 18 AT JAMESTOWN SETTLEMENT, join Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation Executive Director

Christy S. Coleman as she hosts Michael W. Twitty for compelling conversation to explore how Twitty connects his personal roots through food.

Yorktown Victory Celebration

OCTOBER 14 AT AMERICAN REVOLUTION MUSEUM AT YORKTOWN, enjoy Revolutionary War exhibits, artillery firings, military programs and music to mark the 242nd anniversary of America’s momentous victory at Yorktown. Commemorative events continue on October 19 – Yorktown Day – with a parade and patriotic exercises in Historic Yorktown and Yorktown Battlefield.