Historical myths can be more appealing than the historic record. Author Mary Miley Theobald tells some of her favorites.

Master Silversmith George Cloyed explains that silver on the shelf is like money in the bank, and a silversmith’s records can reveal a town’s story.

A disgruntled pirate’s haunted history lingers in the town where his shipmates met the hangman. Carson Hudson and Willie Balderson team up for “Pirates Amongst Us.”

Political parties were new, the losers became Vice Presidents, and negative campaigning was finding its feet in the election of 1796. Professor Jack Lynch has the history.

Wool is spun into yarn before it hits the loom. Karen Clancy cards the fibers and feeds the spinning wheel.

In part two, hidden symbols and invisible ink point to a long-lost fort in North Carolina. Jim Horn concludes the tale of discoveries made and discoveries to come.

A rich, brandied fruitcake is the centerpiece of Twelfth Night celebrations. Barbara Scherer describes the dessert as it was meant to be.

Christmases during the Civil War were marked with equal parts of sadness and hope. “Uncivil Christmas,” a Williamsburg music program, captures the mood in songs of the period. Carson Hudson narrates this musical podcast.

The Governor’s Musick is Colonial Williamsburg’s resident 18th-century musical ensemble. Jane Hanson, Herb Watson, Jenny Edenborn and Wayne Moss perform.

The heart of Christmas remains unchanged, even as each generation lends new customs to the celebration. Historian Lou Powers talks Christmastide in three centuries.

Copperplate engraving is an exacting process that created precise images for an age before sharing pictures was simple. Journeyman engraver Lynn Zelesnikar tells us how it’s done.

Rare and unusual breeds of chickens make their homes throughout the Historic Area. From ornamental pets to supper-table staples, Manager of Rare Breeds Elaine Shirley takes care of them all.

The 2012 summer digging season yielded everything from human and animal burials to sawpits and fencelines. Staff Archaeologist Meredith Poole puts the clues into context.

Setting the table for a 200-year old dinner takes research and clever re-creation. Antique plates and platters bear historic foods in dining settings that reflect the season and the host. Curator Amanda Keller works with a team from the museums to lay out authentic feasts.

A 130-year span of keyboard instruments documents a revolution in colonists’ musical tastes. See the progression in “Changing Keys,” a new exhibit at the Museums of Colonial Williamsburg. Curator John Watson describes the outlay.

Film and television actress Erica Hubbard appears at Colonial Williamsburg in a live performance March 9 as part of Steadfast Spirits Weekend. Hear how she prepares to take on a period role, and the inspiration she finds in Lydia Broadnax’s story.

Painters and Paintings of the Early American South is a new exhibit focusing on the interrelatedness of Southern artists and subjects. See it at the Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg.

Patrick Henry would have the church provide social services that today we relegate to the state. Listen to his religious views presented in his Assessment Bill of 1784. Richard Schumann interprets.

For Thomas Jefferson, religion was a matter between a man and his god, with no interference in between. Listen to Bill Barker’s portrayal.

The Courthouse is a symbol of the presence of the law in the colonial community. Tom Hay tells this original building’s history.

What were the types and tones of interactions among European settlers, native peoples, and Africans in colonial Virginia? American Indian Initiative Manager Buck Woodard sets the scene.

George Washington copied out and adhered to 110 simple rules for polite society. What were they, and do they still apply today? Historian Cathy Hellier dissects the codes of 18th-century conduct.

London’s foundling children were orphans in the midst of a crowded city. The exhibit Threads of Feeling tells their stories, as well as those of their mothers.

Colonial Williamsburg Fifes and Drums introduces the instruments designed to be heard under cannon fire and over musket volleys. Learn the history of their distinctive sound with Amy Miller and members of the Senior Fife and Drum Corps.

Members of the Senior Corps of the Colonial Williamsburg Fifes and Drums play the tunes that directed a soldier through his day, from morning’s first light to the night’s last ale.

The compromise between using authentic materials and following authentic practices requires finding a delicate balance. Cooper Jon Hallman describes the challenges of representing 18th-century trades as realistically as modern conditions allow.

King George is remembered as “The Mad King,” and “The King Who Lost America.” Was he insane, or did his doctors mistreat a medical condition? Author Ed Crews examines the evidence in his article “The Poisoning of King George” in the journal Colonial Williamsburg.

Fort Nelson is under attack, and its defenders are outnumbered 10:1. Should they stay and fight, or retreat? This is the central question in Courage or Cowardice, a Colonial Williamsburg evening program.

Apprentice cook Melissa Blank learns her way around a 200-year-old kitchen.

Myths abound in history’s retelling. Historian and author Mary Miley Theobald shares some of her favorites.

Southerners adapt to summer temperatures in every century. Curator Linda Baumgarten tells us how to dress for the heat in colonial style on this week’s podcast.

History is in the hands of Junior Interpreters all summer long, as the story of the Revolution expands to include a kid’s perspective. Pam Blount tells us how sites involve children in the 18th century and today.

The Indian School at the College of William and Mary was conceived for the religious conversion of Indians. Professor Jim Axtell shares the storied building’s history.

Would Benedict Arnold be remembered as a hero if he had picked the winning side? Interpreter Scott Green shares the rise and demise of a brilliant strategist.

Sharp quills did the bidding of the even sharper intellects of the Revolution’s founding mothers. Listen to the words of Mercy Otis Warren and Abigail Adams, voiced by Abigail Schumann.

Buildings bear silent witness to the history that happens inside them. Conservator Matt Webster makes sure structures live to tell their tales.

The Ossabaw Hog shares its unique genetic legacy with visitors to Colonial Williamsburg’s Great Hopes Plantation. Historic Farmer Wayne Randolph talks about the rare breed.

The first combat submarine was invented as a vehicle to transport underwater bombs. Jerry Roberts of the Connecticut River Museum tells the story of an intrepid American inventor.

Students discover the power of citizenship when they review policy, suggest changes, and find ways to get involved. It’s all happening on a new website: The Virtual Republic.

For the first time in decades, a new historic trade joins the tradition of craft in the Historic Area. This week, meet Steve Delisle, the first tinsmith in the Revolutionary City.

An onsite game embroils players in a Revolutionary spy’s world of danger, loyalty, codes and plots. “The Black Chambers” is game three in “RevQuest: Save the Revolution” series.

Shortages of sugar, rum, gunpowder, textiles, tea and china were among the inconveniences suffered by colonial Americans during the Revolution. Historian Lou Powers describes the deprivations and the substitutions.

George Washington slept here, ate here, planned here, and plotted here through the eight years of the Revolution. A joint project with the Museum of the American Revolution is reconstructing the tent that Washington called home during the war. Learn more about the great man when you see his life in the field.

Anderson’s Armoury opens after years of research and reconstruction. Two of the project’s leads talk about the culmination of a project that changes the shape of the Revolutionary City and the narrative of a country at war.

Though Thanksgiving as we know it would not become a national holiday until Lincoln declared it in 1863, colonial Virginians found many occasions to give thanks. Journeyman cook Barbara Scherer tells us what was on the table, and explains that technically, you’re probably not roasting your turkey at all.

A town’s market house was a bustling hubbub of vendors, shoppers, and business. Colonists from all walks of life mingled on market days: housewives, servants, slaves, and tavern keepers. The market was the heart of the community, and as such, it was tightly regulated and regularly inspected. Architectural Historian Carl Lounsbury introduces the latest reconstruction […]

The Constitutional Sources Project launches a new initiative to present the nation’s founding document in a kid-friendly format. Executive Director Julie Silverbrook says, “These are the laws that operate on you. It’s important that you understand them.”

A gruesome relic informs a desperate history. Historic Jamestowne’s Senior Archaeological Curator Bly Straube describes the find that let scientists and historians confirm the tales of cannibalism in America’s fledgling years.

Historian Cathy Hellier describes the poignant histories of children left without parents. The question of providing for colonial orphans was split between the courts and the children’s caretakers. Listen this week to learn how colonial society looked after its littlest citizens.

What did Pocahontas wear to her wedding? History doesn’t tell us, but research, an educated guess, and a fleet of seamstresses will outfit the bride in a stunning ensemble for the commemoration of the 400th anniversary of John Rolfe’s marriage to Pocahontas in April 2014. Brenda Rosseau of the Costume Design Center describes the choice […]