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Colonial Towns
Life in English colonial towns in the 1700s was
a mixture of the old world and the new. Step back in the past
and visit them today.
To tour Colonial Williamsburg, go to
http://www.history.org/. From the Home Page, click
on "Almanack." Scroll down and click on "See
the Places." Colonial Williamsburg has been restored to
appear as it did in the year 1773. Visit some houses, including
Benjamin Powell's house. What did he do for a living? Why
might you find his job title strange?
Stroll down Duke of Gloucester Street. Visit at least five buildings
along it. Click on the links to see what the building looks like.
Describe what these visits tell you about eighteenth-century southern
life.
Now head north to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Go to http://www.ushistory.org/tour/.
Scroll down the Index listings to visit Arch Street Friends Meeting
House. How is this building different from the Williamsburg buildings?
Philadelphia also has a historic mile with many places to visit
(much like the Duke of Gloucester). Choose three places to visit
from the Index. Write down interesting facts about each of the
places that you choose.
How was Williamsburg different from Philadelphia? How are the
two places similar?
Extension Activity
Create two brochures extolling the virtues of living in Williamsburg
and in Philadelphia — as they might have been done around
1773.
