Food & Feasts of Colonial Virginia returns November 24-25, commemorating 40 years of tradition

Here are the week’s top stories.

Foods & Feasts of Colonial Virginia returns November 24-25 for its 40th year.

• Beginning the day after Thanksgiving, Jamestown Settlement and the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown will commemorate 40 years of tradition with the return of Foods & Feasts of Colonial Virginia. The special weekend event, to be held Friday and Saturday, Nov. 24 and 25, celebrates the Thanksgiving holiday by exploring centuries-old cooking practices.
• At Jamestown Settlement, visitors will learn about how food was gathered, preserved and prepared on land and sea by Virginia’s Powhatan Indians, English colonists and West Central Africans. Historical interpreters will showcase the culinary skills English colonists brought to Virginia by demonstrating bread baking in a Devon oven and open-hearth cooking of pudding, pies and pottage. The demonstrations are based on historical recipes of the late 16th and 17th centuries.
• The American Revolution Museum at Yorktown will focus on how Continental Army soldiers earned their rations and how farmers, free and enslaved, transformed bounties of crops into stews, breads and pies and preserved the food for the winter. Demonstrations will be conducted on an earthen kitchen modeled after specifications in Baron von Steuben’s 1779 “Regulations for the Order and Discipline of the Troops of the United States.”
• Guests will learn about period recipes throughout the event. A selection of curated dishes – from starters to main entrees to desserts – is also available online for those who want to try their hand at Colonial-era cooking at home.
• Foods & Feasts of Colonial Virginia was first held in 1983 as a fall harvest festival at both museums, which were known as Jamestown Festival Park and the Yorktown Victory Center at the time. Today – four decades later – the museums continue to keep the seasonal tradition alive by offering hands-on demonstrations that dig into traditional early Virginia cooking techniques and the cultural influences that inspired new American cuisine.
• Want to go? Admission to each museum is $18 for adults, $9 for children ages 6-12 and free for children ages 5 and under. Combination tickets to both museums are available for a discounted rate. Residents of York County, James City County and the City of Williamsburg receive complimentary admission with proof of residency. For more information about Foods & Feasts of Colonial Virginia, visit the event website.  

Busch Gardens Christmas Town has officially opened for the 2023 holiday season.

• The holiday season in Williamsburg has officially gotten a little bit brighter. Christmas Town, one of the largest light displays in North America, will once again transform Busch Gardens with more than ten million twinkling lights.
• The popular event returns on select dates from Nov. 10 – Jan. 7. This year, Christmas Town features two all-new light experiences, new family-friendly shows and an updated menu.
• Several favorite shows, including ‘Twas That Night and Scrooge No More will make a comeback this year, and Gloria! will return for the first time since 2019. The theatrical lineup will also include the all-new Wisemen. Village performances will be offered throughout the day and into the night by carolers in England, Merry Misfits in France and Celtic performers in Ireland.
• New light experiences will include “Polar Pathway: Spectacle of Lights” and “Celebration of Lights” at O’Tannenbaum. More than 25 rides and coasters will also be open, including the new Dar’Koaster, North America’s first all-indoor straddle coaster.
• For additional information about Christmas Town or to purchase tickets, click here.

Local and state officials broke ground on the I-64 widening project.

• Local and federal leaders broke ground Monday on the I-64 Gap Widening Project, which is designed to provide much-needed alleviation of congestion along the corridor while also improving safety and enhancing connectivity. 
• The project, which has an overall price tag of $756 million, involves expanding the corridor from two to three lanes with 10-foot-wide paved shoulders in both directions. Once the work is complete, the Port of Virginia will be seamlessly connected to the rest of the state and nation, boosting economic opportunity in the region.
• During the groundbreaking ceremony on Nov. 14, VDOT Commissioner Stephen Brich praised the project, saying it will provide a safer, more efficient connection between Richmond and Hampton Roads. He was joined by Governor Glenn Youngkin, Secretary of Transportation Sheppard ‘Shep’ Miller III, Congressman Rob Wittman, Delegate Barry Knight, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Virginia Division Administrator Thomas Nelson and Vice Chair of Central Virginia Transportation Authority (CVTA) John Hodges.
• “Through continued investments in our local and regional communities, the I-64 Widening Project will help unlock the corridor to unify the Richmond and Hampton Roads regions and enhance job opportunities and economic prosperity,” said Youngkin. “We’ve only just broken ground on the project and we’re already seeing companies make significant investments along the corridor.”  
• Buc’ee’s, a massive Texas-based convenience store and gas station with a cult following, has already announced it would be opening its first location in Virginia along I-64 in New Kent County amid the expansion project.
• A $185 million AutoZone distribution center just south of I-64 in New Kent County is also in the works.
• The project is the first of three segments that will widen I-64 from four to six lanes between mile marker 204.9 in New Kent County and mile marker 233.3 in James City County. The work on this segment will begin this month, and the anticipated completion date for all three segments is spring 2028.
• “The I-64 corridor serves as a key connector between Richmond, Henrico, Hanover, New Kent, Hampton Roads, and James City counties,” said Secretary of Transportation Shep Miller. “Connecting the Central Virginia and Hampton Roads regions is critical to growing Virginia’s economy, and safety is an important component as well. The I-64 Gap Project will improve traffic flow and operations, including strengthening our emergency evacuation routes and ensuring our communities have a lifeline to safety

Williamsburg Regional Library received a $35,000 grant to enhance its gallery.

• Williamsburg Regional Library (WRL) was selected to receive a $35,000 Tourism Development Fund grant from the City of Williamsburg. The funds will be used to provide interactive and digital elements to WRL’s gallery at the Stryker Center and to support improvements for featuring three-dimensional artwork.
• The new interactive elements will include virtual reality and hands-on activities along with digital displays that will enhance the gallery by offering a modern, dynamic element, according to a WRL news release. They will be added to the gallery in 2024 and will be individually adaptable for each exhibit.
• The three-dimensional display options are designed to offer opportunities to explore artwork from different perspectives so that guests can gain a deeper appreciation for the creativity and craftsmanship involved.
• “This grant funding from the City of Williamsburg will make a visit to the WRL Gallery at Stryker Center a more engaging and meaningful experience by integrating new technology and display options into each exhibit,” said Library Director Betsy Fowler.

Historic Jamestowne is expanding its programs on early American law and race.

• The Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation (JRF) is expanding educational programming focused on the Rule of Law at Jamestown after having received a $25,000 grant from the Virginia Law Foundation.
• A new program, “Legacies of 1619: Law and Race at Jamestown,” will delve into the transformative First Assembly and the codification of race-based slavery that was present within Jamestown’s government buildings. As part of the initiative, the Foundation’s staff will enhance existing tours on the First Assembly, develop new living history programs and offer in-person and virtual teacher training programs in 2024.
• The funding will help make it possible for the Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation to continue its 10-year partnership with the Bob and Marion Wilson Teacher Institute of Colonial Williamsburg (CWTI), which aims to equip educators nationwide with new skills as well as content they can use in their classroom.
• Historic Jamestowne is also partnering with the Legal History Society – a William & Mary Law School student organization – under the leadership of Professor Thomas J. McSweeney. The organization is working with JRF staff to research primary source material from the 17th and 18th centuries, including court cases and legislation that will enhance living history programs and tours.
• “As a legal historian, I am excited about the opportunity to work with the Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation to interpret the rule of law through new educational programs and resources,” Dr. McSweeney said. “The Foundation’s dedication to uncovering early America’s shared history and engaging the public and students in a critical evaluation of our nation’s birthplace is incomparable.”