Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg

This museum is built on the foundation of the first public building in North America devoted to the treatment of mentally ill patients.  The first patient was admitted October 12, 1773. I chose some interesting things to share with you, by no means is it complete. 

Christmas tree covered with handmade folk art ornaments.

A typical colonial tea table with tea service.

Surprise - frog included!

Sea turtle soup tureen.

Baby in Red Chair, my favorite portrait in the American Folk Portrait Gallery.

Folk art sign for optometrist; displayed over door to draw people inside.

Carousel Cat - Gustav Dentzel hired woodcarver, Salvatore Cernigliaro and he created the first carousel cat.  Many cats followed carved by all the woodworkers so it's unknown if this one is by the master carver.  All Dentzel cats have a raised left paw and grip prey in their mouths.

Cross Rhythms - Folk Musical Instruments

Folk art rhino record player, his tongue moves to the music.

Steve Harley

Imagine our surprise to see both Wallowa Lake and Mt. Hood hanging in a small folk art gallery.  Steve Harley traveled to the Pacific Northwest and was inspired by the natural beauty of where we live.  Only five of his paintings remain and they are all showcased here.

Threads of Feeling

This museum display is scraps of fabric left to identify babies left at London's Foundling Hospital.  When mothers left babies at London's Foundling Hospital in the mid-18th century, the hospital often retained a small token as means of identification, usually a scrap of fabric.  Each piece of material reflects the life of a single infant and it's absent parent.  The token-filled books were heart wrenching to view with less than 1% of mothers returning to claim their children.

Beautiful fall tree at Colonial Williamsburg bus stop.

Here I am with Thomas Jefferson, he's signing the Declaration of Independence.  I wonder if he'll let me sign this famous document?

Wildlife on Jamestown Island

We took a driving tour of the island to see the place settled by John Smith establishing the first permanent English colony in North America.  This national park is still an active archeological site.

Yorktown Victory Monument

Colonial National Historical Park includes a parkway that connects Jamestown to Yorktown marking the beginning and end of the British colonial experience in America.  The Victory Monument commemorates the surrender of Cornwallis's Army at Yorktown ending the Revolutionary War.

James River Plantations

Shirley Plantation is Virginia's oldest plantation established in 1613.

I like the pineapple on the roof!  The pineapple is a symbol of hospitality and welcome.

That's cotton left in the field after the harvest, at first we thought it was snow!

Berkeley Plantation

Berkeley Plantation is one of the first great estates in America and the ancestral home of two US Presidents, William Henry Harrison and Benjamin Harrison.

We saw another license plate today: Kentucky.  Only 2 states to go - Hawaii and Alabama.