Williamsburg Jigsaw Puzzles

From Middle Plantation to colonial capital

English settlers founded Middle Plantation in 1632 as a fortified settlement on high ground between the James and York rivers. The College of William & Mary received its royal charter on February 8, 1693, and is the second-oldest institution of higher learning in the country after Harvard. In 1699 the colonial capital moved to Middle Plantation, which was renamed Williamsburg for King William III. The town received a royal charter as a city in 1722. It stayed the capital of Virginia until 1780, when the government moved to Richmond, and Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson both served as governor while it was still the capital.

Restoring a lost colonial town

The Rev. W. A. R. Goodwin, rector of Bruton Parish Church, dreamed of saving the old town and found a partner in John D. Rockefeller Jr. Rockefeller committed to the large-scale restoration on November 22, 1927, and the plans were announced to the public in June 1928. The project restored or rebuilt about 500 buildings, with 88 of the originals still standing, and removed hundreds of later structures. The Governor's Palace burned on December 22, 1781, but it was rebuilt on its original site and opened to visitors on April 23, 1934. Today Colonial Williamsburg anchors the Historic Triangle with nearby Jamestown and Yorktown.

Five things you might not know about Williamsburg

1. The Wren Building at William & Mary, built from 1695 to 1699, is the oldest college building still in use in the United States.
2. Fire struck the Wren Building in 1705, 1859 and 1862, and the walls survived the first two blazes.
3. Phi Beta Kappa was founded at William & Mary by students John Heath and William Short on December 5, 1776.
4. At the time of the 1781 fire, the Governor's Palace was serving as a hospital for soldiers wounded at the Siege of Yorktown.
5. The present Capitol was dedicated on February 24, 1934, and is a 1930s reconstruction of the colonial building that burned in the 1740s.

Sources: Wikipedia: Williamsburg, Virginia · Wikipedia: Colonial Williamsburg · Wikipedia: Governor's Palace (Williamsburg, Virginia) · Wikipedia: Wren Building · Wikipedia: College of William & Mary