March 23, 1999 Next.
Rented a car today so I could go to Jamestown. I saw a 15 minute film about Jamestown and then went on out to the Settlement. Tour guides, they call them costumed historical interpreters, were available so I hooked up with one of the groups.
First stop was the Powhatan Indian Village. Powhatan because the Indian Chief’s name was Powhatan. They were part of the Aloconquin Indian tribe. Chief Powhatan was the father of Pocahontas. Their houses "yehakins" were used for sleeping and storage. There was a hide-tanning stand where they explained how the Indians used sharp rocks or shells to remove the fur from the hide. Then treated the deerskin by soaking it in a mixture of water and brains from the deer. Enzymes from the brain broke down the hide to make it soft enough to use it for clothing. The only mode of transportation was by foot or canoe. The canoe was made by first burning a little of the center then scraping the burnt wood with stones or shells. Repeating this process until they had a canoe. Of course they had to be careful not to burn through walls of the canoe. If the wall started to get too thin, they would cover the thin area with mud to protect if from the fire.
Next we saw three replica ships the 104 settlers used to travel to the New World. The largest ship, Susan Constant held about half. The Godspeed was smaller, holding around 30, and the Discovery held about 20. The trip to Virginia took 4 1/2 months. The Discovery remained in Virginia to explore the rivers and Chesapeake Bay.

This tunnel goes under Colonial Williamsburg on the way to Jamestown.

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