Field Trip: Jamestown, VA

After studying Jamestown in history, we took a trip to visit the location of the first permanent colony. The drive took us about 3.5 hours, and we were able to take the children on their very first ferry ride. They enjoyed it very much! The journey across the James River was only about 10-15 minutes, but the children asked that any time a ferry ride was an option on future trips, they wanted to go that route. George got a little too close to the edge and ended up getting splashed.

Our first stop was Historic Jamestowne. It was so exciting to walk across the bridge and see the fort. This is the actual site of the colony, and while most structures are replicas, a portion of the church is original to the colony. 

The children took part in a Junior Ranger program and had work to do to earn their badges. They had to find various things throughout the site and copy what it said or draw a picture. Bridget did good with all of this, George needed assistance with writing, and Liam was an expert at finding things and having Daddy transcribe for him.

The portion of the church with the large window I believe I read to be the original wall. If I'm wrong, I do know that it is still very old. Below is the interior of the church where excavation and research is ongoing.

My children are familiar with Pocahontas and John Smith, but is was neat to learn more about the real people and their contributions. 

There were so many structures and things to explore. 

Liam's favorite part was the cannon. He didn't want to leave it.

 After touring the original settlement, we ventured into  the museum. Most of the things in here were not too interesting for the children, being as young as they are, but they did love the real skeletons and other bones found throughout Jamestowne.

The museum ended our tour of Jamestowne, so we ventured back to the main building to turn in our booklets, get sworn in as Junior Rangers, and receive our badges. They all took this very seriously.

We then checked into our hotel and went to dinner at our favorite restaurant, Food for Thought. 

The following day, we went to Jamestown Settlement. This is a living museum with lots of fun things for the kids to see and explore. They have a massive museum and had a special exhibit on Pocahontas. The rest of the museum does not allow photography, so the only picture I have is of the boys in a canoe by the entrance to the exhibits. The museum is definitely worth going through. They have miniature houses and an English city street. I loved exploring it just as much as the children did.

After the museum, it was time to go outside. We started in the Powhatan Indian Village. There was a lot to do here and I didn't get a picture of everything. We did, however, get our first family picture of the year. I'm rarely ever in front of the lens. The children were not too thrilled about smiling for a complete stranger, which is why we don't take family pictures.

After the Powhatan village, we toured the ships. George got a feel for what it was like to steer a ship 400 years ago. It wasn't easy!

After leaving the ships, we walked to the fort. We watched a musket demonstration and George got to hold a very real and very heavy sword. 

The last time we were here, I got pictures of Bridget and George in child-sized armour. I'm a traditional type of person, so we did it again. This time, Liam got to be a soldier as well, and he was oh so cute!

I'm a sucker for a gift shop. Even if I don't buy anything, I still like to browse through the mostly useless and overpriced toys and trinkets. The boys really took to the weapons. They tried out the tomahawks but realized the muskets and pistols were more fun.

They didn't get a musket, but they did end up leaving with toy pistols. Bridget selected a book on medieval castles.