Williamsburg History Tour

Williamsburg began as Middle Plantation, an outpost of Jamestown, in 1633. It was adjacent to a palisade that the settlers built across the peninsula between the James and York rivers. Because of its strategic location and the strength of its defenses, Middle Plantation soon became important to the colony. In 1676 rebel Nathaniel Bacon and his followers held a convention there, and a year later the General Assembly met after Bacon burned the statehouse at Jamestown. When the capital of the colony was removed from Jamestown in 1699, a new planned city was laid out at Middle Plantation named Williamsburg in honor King William III. For 81 years it was the seat of government and the social and cultural center of Virginia. In 1780 Gov. Thomas Jefferson relocated the capital to Richmond, 50 miles to the west at the fall line of the James River. 

Williamsburg Featured Attractions

Brush-Everard House dates from 1718 and is a good example of an 18th-century middle-class home.

Burton Parish Church was erected 1712-15 to replace and earlier church that stood nearby.

Busch Gardens Williamsburg represents four 17th-century European countries; England, France, Germany and Italy. It features more than 100 rides, shows, attractions and exhibits. Thrill rides include Alpengeist, an inverted roller coaster, which takes riders through a series of spins, inversions, drops and vertical loops through Alpine peaks and snow and ice-covered rocks. Other rides include King Arthur’s Challenge, a fast-paced adventure with special effects and 3-D flight simulation; Roman Rapids, a white water ride through Roman ruins; the Big Bad Wolf, a free-flight roller coaster ride through a Bavarian village while suspended from an overhead track; Drachen Fire, a steel roller coaster standing 150-feet tall; and the Loch Ness Monster, a serpentine, double-looping roller coaster.

The Capitol was completed in 1705 and was destroyed by fire in 1747. Reconstruction lasted until 1753, but this second building also burned. The Capitol of 1705 has been rebuilt on the original foundations and furnished in period.

Courthouse of 1770 Costumed interpreters demonstrate the workings of local 18th-century government and justice, culminating in a reenactment of a typical courtroom proceeding.

The Historic Trades Sites revive the arts, trades and crafts of old Williamsburg. Costumed trades people explain and skillfully demonstrate the 200-year-old methods. The following trades are in the Historic Area; building trades, apothecary, blacksmith, gunsmith, harness maker; cabinetmaker, wigmaker, milliner, printer and bookbinder, miller, shoemaker, silversmith, cooper, foundry and wheelwright.

Enjoy Your Williamsburg History Tour