Henricus Historical Park Celebrates Successful 400th Commemoration

Henricus Historical Park would like to thank the event participants and visitors for making Publick Days and the site’s 400th commemoration a success. The weekend kicked-off with the arrival of Godspeed from Jamestown Settlement with remarks by representatives of the Virginia House of Delegates; Chesterfield and Henrico Counties; the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation; Daughters of the American Revolution and the Chickahominy Indian Tribe. Despite rainy conditions, nearly 4,000 people enjoyed the weekend’s family-friendly activities ranging from musket and cannon firing demonstrations to Virginia Indian songs and dance. Through today, school groups will participate in guided tours of the Godspeed and colonial and Virginia Indian settlements. Henricus would like to thank the more than 100 living history interpreters, dozens of volunteers, sponsors and donors, Board of Trustees and dedicated staff for creating a memorable, educational and entertaining event.

Preparations at Henricus Kept Site Safe From Hurricane Irene

Staff at Henricus Historical Park worked furiously last week to protect the site from Hurricane Irene. With Publick Days and the site’s 400th anniversary only weeks away, protecting the grounds, structures and artifacts were of high concern. In preparation, artifacts were removed from all buildings and stored in the education center. Tarps were placed over three Yehakins (or longhouses) in the Virginia Indian site and secured to the ground with stakes. The site’s cannon was moved to a protected location. Hard work by the staff paid off with the Yehakins unharmed and only minor damage from a fallen tree incurred to the tobacco barn. Chesterfield County removed the tree on Monday. Many thanks to the Henricus staff for their hard work preparing for Hurricane Irene!

Governor's Cabinet Visits Henricus

On Tuesday, August 23rd several members of Governor McDonnell’s cabinet visited Henricus Historical Park for a tour and briefing about the historic site. Members of the cabinet included James Cheng, secretary of commerce and trade; Todd Patterson Haymore, secretary of agriculture and forestry; and Robert Sledd, senior policy advisor for economic development to Governor McDonnell. The discussion was lead by George Drumwright, Jr., Henricus Board of Trustees member and deputy manager for community services at Henrico County; John Siddall, chairman of the Henricus board; and Charles Grant, acting executive director at Henricus. Cabinet members received a briefing on the historic firsts which took place at the Citie of Henricus followed by a discussion about the missions of the Henricus Foundation and museum itself. The group also covered how Henricus is partnering with the Virginia Film Office on the upcoming movie, “To Have and To Hold,” which will be filmed at the Park this fall. As always, Henricus welcomes the opportunity to introduce the site to leaders of our community.

For Educators and Historical Interpreters: Roundtable Discussion with Stuart Peachey

Stuart Peachey, director of Historical Management Associates, Ltd., will host a roundtable discussion for educators and historical interpreters of the 17th-century on Sunday, March 27 and Monday, March 28 from 7:00-9:00 p.m. at Henricus Historical Park.

Historical Management Associates based in Bristol, England serves as a living history consultancy, farming and historical landscape restoration organization and publisher of historical material for museums and educators. The company has restored historic landscapes at Grayhill Farm, Clayacre Orchard and Coney Orchard in Europe. The publishing arm of the organization currently distributes approximately 250 volumes of historical material. After publishing “Textiles and Materials of the Common Man 1580-1660” in 2001 the company began reproducing and supplying a variety of historical fabrics.

Peachey will also be conducting a lecture, “The Farming English People of 1622 Virginia,” during the “Henricus Colledge – First University Chartered in North America” event on Saturday, March 26 and Sunday, March 27 at 2:00 p.m. at Henricus Historical Park. Admission is $8 for adults and $6 for children 3-12. Visit www.henricus.org for more information about 400th commemoration events.

Cost for each roundtable discussion with Peachey is $15 per person. Pizza and soda will be provided in addition to childcare if needed. If you would like to attend a roundtable discussion, please RSVP to Terry Marr of Henricus Historical Park by March 18: marrt@chesterfield.gov or (804) 748-1613. Henricus Historical Park is located at 251 Henricus Park Road, Chester, Virginia 23836.

Meet Margaret E. Carlini, education supervisor at Henricus Historical Park

Q: Why is education an important part of the mission at Henricus Historical Park?

A: As a living history museum, Henricus Historical Park operates as an educational institution serving the community at large, including children and adults. Everything we do, from our SOL-aligned education programs to camps and general visitation emphasize age-appropriate, hands-on, team-building activities. Period-dressed interpreters make history come alive through demonstrations in the re-created 17th-century settlement.

Q: What types of groups typically participate in the education programs?

A: More than 18,000 children visit Henricus Historical Park each year. From more than 10 school districts, students in pre-kindergarten through high school, book programs at Henricus. Public, private and home schools, including day care centers and student and adult clubs and organizations visit the Park. Henricus is currently partnering with school districts and other museums to provide history training for educators statewide.

Q: How are you incorporating the site’s 400th anniversary into programming?

A: We’ve taken into account the diverse cultures living in the area and how they traded not only goods but ideas with each other. History programs feature the interactions and individual personalities of Pocahontas, Powhatan, Sir Thomas Dale and the Reverend Alexander Whitaker. The expanded Virginia Indian site and newly constructed Rocke Hall will be integral to new and existing programs. Henricus is partnering with the Virginia Indian community, other museums, colleges and organizations, to provide a rich depth of understanding about our programs.

Q: What are your favorite aspects about working at Henricus?

A: I really enjoy meeting a wide variety of people and participating in many different projects. Mornings may be spent teaching programs to second graders in the Virginia Indian site, while teacher institutes, grant writing sessions and lesson planning may occupy the afternoon. In all aspects, it is a fulfilling career. You are not only a part of the revisualization of the past, but making the past relevant to the future.

Q: What do you envision for the future of the Park?

A: I envision growing interest from the local community, state and nation in Virginia’s historical past and its important role in shaping our country. To meet this demand, we look forward to providing a wider range of services – historical research, videos, exhibits, archaeological surveys, environmental programs and more general public and school programs. We hope to encourage a broader interest in Henricus Historical Park for many years to come.

Rocke Hall – Home to Reverend Alexander Whitaker

Henricus Historical Park is proud to reveal an image featuring construction of Rocke Hall. This two-story structure re-creates the home of Reverend Alexander Whitaker. As minister to the settlement, Reverend Whitaker was an influential and highly respected man. His position as minister made him the logical choice to provide a home for Pocahontas when she was brought to Henricus in 1613. He tutored Pocahontas in the English traditions and oversaw her conversion to Christianity. As a close acquaintance of John Rolfe, Reverend Whitaker probably introduced Rolfe to Pocahontas, his future bride. Rocke Hall is on schedule to be completed in time for the next 400th commemoration event about Henricus Colledge on March 26-27.

Welcome to 2011 and the blog for Henricus Historical Park!

Henricus Historical Park would like to invite you to several upcoming events commemorating our 400th anniversary – so mark your calendars now!

All 400th commemoration events at Henricus Historical Park are open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. General admission is $8 for adults and $6 for children 3-12. Park admission fees are waived for Publick Days 2011 when the 400th anniversary of the founding of Henricus will be commemorated. Additional details about each event and directions to the Park are available at www.henricus.org.

For more information about all Henrico County 400th anniversary events click visit: www.henrico400th.com/calendar

Henricus Historical Park 400th commemoration events in 2011:
• March 26-27: Henricus Colledge – First University Chartered in North America
• May 7-8: Mount Malady – America’s First Hospital
• July 23-24: Tobacco – First Successful Commercial Export
• September 17-18: Publick Days and the Godspeed – 400th Anniversary of Henricus

Henricus on YouTube

Hi everyone! Check out our new video YouTube. There are many more to come!



Also, we recently had the Henricus Dauber Dash, sponsored by Sportsbackers, on August 22nd. This was a 'mud run', where participants run a 5 mile course that takes them through all kinds of obstacles, including a giant mud pit. Check out video of the event!

The last thing I think I need to mention is our upcoming Publick Days on September 19th & 20th. Admission is free for the public and we'll be welcoming the Godspeed from Jamestown. More information is available at our website!

Fences of Henricus

You know how those posters of "The Doors of Dublin" are so popular? I thought I'd do a photo essay of the fences around Henricus.

Every fence is different - but every fence is a period style and illustrates a technique used for building fences in the 17th century. Most of the fences our interpreters build are either made with recycled materials found around the site or are from materials harvested on site.



(Mosaic made using the Mosaic Maker)

Springtime in Virginia

Before I do anything else, I have to apologize to everyone for being so slow with posting new things on the Henricus blog. We've been terribly busy with everything on site. I'll give you a brief update of what has been happening...

Happy Spring! (Which is quickly becoming summer...) We've been growing a lot of things on site. Our gardens, under the care of Lindsay, our Agricultural Specialist, as well as the rest of the Henricus Staff, sprouted and grew faster than we knew what to do with what was growing there. The Tobacco Plantation had a full crop of lettuces, spinach, carrots, onions, turnips, and radishes. We're still waiting for our pease to take off, as well as the beans. The Citie Garden, which is located behind the Court de Guard (or the soldier's house) looks equally as terrific.





New Animals! We also have a few new additions at the Tobacco Plantation, whom I should introduce. First is Buttercup the pig, who arrived at Henricus back in April. If you subscribe to our Facebook page, then you've already seen her smiling piggy face. She's a Vietnamese Pot-bellied pig that was donated to our site. While the breed isn't exactly period correct for our site, she is interpreting 17th century pig life on the farm.





We also received 10 new Dorking chicks from Jamestown. They're still babies, but they're the same size as the Old English Bantams. They also don't really understand the whole "going into the coop at night" thing yet, but we're working with them.

Events-A-Rama! Over the past two months, Henricus Historical Park hosted two events. The first, Extraordinary Labors, was held back in April. This event featured the trades and crafts of the 17th century.

The last event we hosted was our annual Musket, Sword, and Pike. It just happened to fall on Memorial Day weekend, which went along well with the military theme of the event. Not only did we have musket demonstrations and cannons firing, courtesy of the Virginia Militia and the New Amstel Militia, but we also had Powhatan Indian weapons demonstrations, tunes from Tom Rivers on Sunday, and numerous other demonstrations by our dedicated volunteers and staff. I was staked out at the laundry back at Mount Malado, the first colonial hospital, where we were interpreting the roles of women in 1614 Virginia, when Henricus was still under martial law.

We really have been busy! In addition to all of that, we also planted our crops for the summer - tobacco and corn. All of our crops are loving the late spring showers we've been getting at least once a week. There is still a lot of construction going on, including the new fireplace in the Court de Guard and the mantle piece in the Planter's House.


Check back soon!

~ Jenny
Historical Interpreter, Domestic Skills