A broken helmet is discarded and forgotten, only to be resurrected 400 years later by curious archaeologists on Jamestown Island. Curator Michael Lavin describes the effort.

Two gravestones are unearthed during a construction project. Historians and curators work to solve the mysteries below. Emily Williams tells their story.

The founders demanded freedom for themselves, but not for their slaves. Early protests show that the enslaved noticed the flaw in the logic. Historian Harvey Bakari introduces the Boston Slave Petitions.

We sit down with the first president and ask him questions submitted by podcast listeners. Listen as Ron Carnegie interprets George Washington.

George Washington shares his thoughts on the role of government and his hopes for the future in part two of this listener-question interview. Ron Carnegie interprets the first president.

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin talks with us about the challenges of applying the founders’ vision to modern governance. Even after two centuries, the America they envisioned still matters.

The American Revolution came from an old British tradition. Hear how the English were in the habit of rebelling in “A Very British Revolution,” a tour at The Colonial Williamsburg Art Museums led by Emma Ross.

Bruton Parish Church is as storied a building as any in Williamsburg, with a history of idealistic restorations and later revisions. Carl Lounsbury describes the evolution of this living church.

Colonial wives were confined by strict legal codes, but widows and spinsters enjoyed some unexpected freedoms. Author Karin Wulf talks about the outliers in her book, “Not All Wives.”

Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper says negative politics erodes citizens’ faith in government. Hear his views on the founders, participation, and local involvement.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Books were treasure when each tome was made in 28 separate stages. Hear how the trade is preserved by Master Bookbinder Bruce Plumley.

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.

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.

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.

A painful history is suppressed, until a humble schoolhouse provides a means of sharing a story of mercy. William and Mary’s Professor Terry Meyers details his search for the structure that housed the first Bray School, and his hopes for finding proof at the College of “a bright spot in an otherwise dark narrative.”

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.

Tantalizing new research points to an impossible conclusion: the Reconstruction may have overlooked an original 18th-century building. More remarkable still is the possibility that it may have housed Virginia’s first school for the education of black children: the Bray School. Archaeologist Mark Kostro details the story the soil tells as his team hunts for the […]

Former head of the CIA and Secretary of Defense in Republican and Democratic administrations, Robert Gates is a man who knows something about politics, pragmatism, and compromise. He sits down with us this week to talk about the portability of American values, the constants of conflict, and the nation’s unique fortune in the caliber of […]

Onstage, bombastic actors bellowed. Backstage, privileged gentlemen roamed free. Enter David Garrick, the man who changed acting and reformed the theater. His innovations are with us yet, from footlights to scrims. Supervisor of Performing Arts Kevin Ernst tells the history.

Williamsburg was a town of revolutionaries, but not everyone thought rebellion was a good idea. Men like William Hunter Jr., printer of the Virginia Gazette, stayed loyal to king and country. Actor-Interpreter Sam Miller explains how patriotic fervor made life difficult for those men and women who opposed it.

Ongoing excavations at James Fort reveal a surprising discovery: the site of the 1608 church where Pocahontas married John Rolfe. Chief Archaeologist Bill Kelso shares the excitement of rediscovery.

Civil war is bloody, regressive, and destructive. Revolution is forward-looking, positive, and regenerative. Yet, says historian David Armitage, even the noblest revolution bears traces of the primitive violence of civil war.

America’s colonial history offers a unique perspective on the modern stage. What inspiration, ideas, and cautions can today’s global revolutionaries draw from the 1776 uprising in the British colonies in America? The Center for Strategic and International Studies brings together leaders, scholars, and historians to debate some of the questions facing emerging democracies.

Presidential Historian Michael Beschloss visits Colonial Williamsburg and shares his views on the changes technology brings to politics and the presidency, and ruminates on the importance of place.

Rare and beautiful silver forms share the social history of their users and their makers. Visit “A Handsome Cupboard of Plate,” an exhibit open now at the Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg.

The 2014 Early Music Festival promises to be a lively one. With instruments, scores, and performances of an 18th-century vintage, you’ll be surrounded by the sounds of another century. Enjoy this musical preview featuring Jane Hanson and Michael Monaco from the opera “Thomas and Sally.”

Technologies that used to be beyond reach for museum professionals now can lend new insights into the hidden compositions of materials, metals, and paints. Conservator Kirsten Moffitt explains how a spike on a screen can spot a fake or reveal a discovery.

African American history is weighted with tragedy, but bringing the fullness of life to the stories of enslaved individuals is the mission of the African American History Program under the direction of Stephen Seals.

What do you use to wash the baby, clean the house, color your hair or serve for breakfast? If it’s the 18th century, the answer is alcohol. Professor Sarah Meacham describes her research for the book “Every Home a Distillery.”

The thrilling RevQuest: Save The Revolution™ series opens its fifth season with a new spy plot: The King’s Advance. Dive headfirst into Revolutionary history as you join the service of secret intelligence gatherers. Gather clues, crack codes, meet with covert agents, and text your secrets to receive instructions.

The wheel may be one of geometry’s simplest shapes, but the technology behind its creation is surprisingly complex. Add to that the variations among English wheels, French wheels, carriage wheels and cannon wheels, and the story gets even deeper. Colonial Williamsburg wheelwrights apply their expertise to the challenge of recreating the wheel for a French […]

As Veterans Day approaches, the venerated Virginian veteran himself, Gen. George Washington, discusses his military past and how he believes veterans should be honored today.