November 2010

This museum features exhibits spanning four centuries, beginning with Native Americans and earliest colonists, and continuing to modern times. Blackbeard the pirate, "contrabands" and the Civil War are highlighted.

Completed in 1834 and named in honor of President Monroe, the entire stone fort is a historic site, but most visitors head straight for the Casemate Museum in the outer walls.

This active military installation was famed during the Civil War as the "Freedom Fort" by blacks escaping from slavery. General Benjamin Butler, refusing to return runaway slaves, kept them as "Contrabands" of war, assuring their freedom.

In addition, Confederate President Jefferson Davis' prison cell is located inside the museum.

The Gloucester County Museum of History is housed in the historic Botetourt Building, a pre-Revolutionary brick ordinary tavern built in 1770 at the county seat. Botetourt Towne, as it was called then, was named for Lord Botetourt, the first governor of Virginia. Permanent exhibits at the museum include Gloucester Archaeology; Civil and Revolutionary War displays; the Old Country Store with Post Office; and Memories of the Hotel Botetourt. Visitors should also be aware of the special exhibits that change monthly.

Some of the priceless treasures for visitors to see include antique boats, guns, traps, art and decoys by various craftsmen, outstanding in their fields. An extensive collection of the resident carver-Delbert "Cigar" Daisey's work can be seen throughout the museum. Other must sees include a restored hunting buggy, a carver's shop replica and the new wing (opened in May of 2002) which is a real by the seashore experience.

Rocket launches at WFF can be difficult to view due to the small size of some sounding rockets. Travel plans should not be based strictly on launch schedules. Times and dates can change due to weather and other factors. Rocket launches can be viewed from WFF Visitor Center grounds during operation hours or from south-facing areas on Chincoteague and Assateague islands in Virginia.

Ker Place was built around 1799 in the Grand Federal style. It has elaborate millwork and sophisticated composition ornamentation on the mantles and crown mouldings. It is furnished to appear as it would have in the early 1800's. Although no Ker furniture is known to exist, the period furnishings reflect what was in the rooms during the time that the Kers lived there. Ongoing research of probate inventories and other personal papers has helped in the recreation. Exhibits on local history are located in the cellar and on the 2nd floor. A maritime exhibit is housed in a separate building. A recreated 19th century garden surrounds the house courtesy of the Garden Club of Virginia.

Visitors are invited to explore the various artifacts that have been collected throughout the museum. Models of sailing vessels, barges, and ferries mix with old railroad cars and many other vestiges of the past, bring the history of this bayside railroad town to life. A huge Busch-Sulzer engine and Westinghouse generator remain the centerpiece of the exhibits, and can be run in demo mode for visitors upon request. Academic and sports paraphernalia are included in the museum as well.

The plantation, first recorded in a 1616 land grant, was originally known as Smith's Hundred. The house was built around 1720 and is a classic example of Virginia Tidewater design: big house, little house, colonnade, and kitchen. It had several owners before Tyler purchased the home and its surrounding 1,600 acres in 1842. He bought the plantation from his cousin, Collier Minge, while he was still in the White House and renamed the plantation "Sherwood Forest" referring to his reputation as a political outlaw. The longest frame house in America, it stretches more than 300 feet and has a dozen outbuildings. The interior reflects the lifestyle of this mid-19th century family.

Shirley Plantation is Virginia's first plantation and one of the first economic engines of the new world. Only six years after John Smith's settlement at Jamestown, the crown grant carving Shirley Plantation out of the Virginia frontier was established. The chronicle of Shirley Plantation best exemplifies the period in our nation's history between the settlement at Jamestown in 1607 and the movement towards American independence from Great Britain in 1776. During its long history and under the leadership of one family, Shirley Plantation has survived the Indian Uprising, Bacon's Rebellion, the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and the Great Depression.

Shirley Plantation is the oldest family-owned business in North America dating back to 1638. Construction of the present mansion began in 1723 and was completed in 1738 and today is largely in its original state and is owned, operated, and lived in by direct descendants of Edward Hill.

One of Virginia's most historic plantations and the site of the first official Thanksgiving in 1619, Berkeley is also the birthplace of Benjamin Harrison, signer of the Declaration of Independence, and President William Henry Harrison, the nation's 9th president. The 1726 mansion is furnished with period antiques. Gardens and the vista of the James River are lovely.