Colonial Williamsburg During Pandemic: The Greens Are Empty

A sight you may never see again --
Colonial Williamsburg greens by the Courthouse, empty during the pandemic

Colonial Williamsburg During Pandemic

Part 1

The Greens Are Empty!

Living here in the Historic Triangle of Virginia I and my family have been blessed to be able to visit Colonial Williamsburg regularly.  We have splendid re-enactors and incredibly talented craftsman. During this shut-down in Virginia, ordered by our governor, we are limited to what we can do and how we can do it. But we are still able to take walks and my son and I walked through Colonial Williamsburg. There were very few people there and those who were observed the new "social distancing" rule of six feet between yourself and the next person.

The Colonial Williamsburg Courthouse -- Empty during Pandemic

What a strange thing to walk up to the courthouse and have absolutely no visitors lingering on the steps of this popular site! This also gave me a chance to get some good pictures. In a normal April, this is a fantastic time to visit because the weather is usually good and the flowers are blooming. More about that in an upcoming post.

Colonial Williamsburg Mary Dickinson building -- Also empty during the Pandemic

Normally, the wonderful re-enactors are bustling about Williamsburg in their colonial-era costumes. We didn't spy any of those folks on our visit but we did run into one of the craftsmen carpenters who chatted with us, something I've never had happen in the twenty years I've been visiting. He pointed out to my son some of the craftsmanship on one of the building's exterior and said that the seven carpenters at CW are in charge of (the woodwork on) hundreds of buildings. That was interesting!

Peyton Randolph home at Colonial Williamsburg during the Pandemic

We took a nice walk and hope to go again sometime soon. The Peyton Randolph home usually has a line of guests waiting outside (on the side not in the front as in this picture) but of course no one there during our April visit.

Empty Street at Colonial Williamsburg during Pandemic

Above is a scene you'll not normally encounter in Springtime at Colonial Williamsburg. It was quite an eery thing to behold. Usually when I'm at CW, I have trouble getting pictures for the blog that don't have modern-attired visitors in them. Granted these are paved streets in the center for our modern times with some cobblestones on the side.

If you recognize the building above, from Colonial Williamsburg, you might remember we "hosted" a Colonial Quills blog Tea Party there (virtually!) a while back. Never fear, Colonial Williamsburg will endure beyond this pandemic. In the meanwhile, be sure to support Colonial Williamsburg with your donations.

Question: What historic locations are you still able to visit near where you live, during this Pandemic?

COLONIAL WILLIAMSBURG ~ Its establishment, decline, and restoration

Establishment:

Jamestown, the first capital of the Virginia colony was established in 1607. It remained there until 1699 when the Virginia Assembly relocated the capital inland to Middle Plantation. The town was later named Williamsburg after England's King, William III.

The rationale was to get away from Jamestown’s swampy conditions which fostered contaminated water, disease, poor living conditions, and flooding. Williamsburg, a mere seven miles inland is located on a peninsula between the James River and the York River, was at a higher elevation than Jamestown.

The Capital

Williamsburg quickly grew to be a center of economic, social, and political life in Virginia, the largest and most populated British colonies in America. 

At one end of its main street, named after his Highness William Duke of Gloucester, was the Capital. At the other end of DOG Street was the

William & Mary

College of William and Mary established in 1693. 

The Royal Governor’s Palace was situated halfway between the two. 

Businesses, churches, a courthouse, magazine, and homes were constructed within the approximate 300 acres. In 1773, the nation's first mental health facility opened in Williamsburg. Large estates or plantations as well as smallholdings developed throughout the area.

The Royal Governor's Palace

Decline:

There were several reasons for Williamsburg’s decline in the latter part of the eighteenth century. In 1780, the capital of Virginia moved from Williamsburg to Richmond, a more central location in the Commonwealth. While some Tidewater residents were resistant to the move, Governor Thomas Jefferson was a strong advocate. The war with Britain was still underway and the enemy was shifting its focus to the southern colonies.  Williamsburg’s proximity to the Chesapeake Bay placed it dangerously close were there to be a naval or military invasion. Another factor was navigable rivers were the primary means of transportation. The James River flows right through Richmond. The Virginia Gazette, a primary publication also moved to Richmond. Williamsburg returned to be a rural quiet college town.

Restoration:

Dr. William A. R. Goodwin served as rector of Bruton Parish Church twice.

Bruton Parish
reconstructed in 1715 remains an active parish

First in 1903 when he led a campaign on the restoration of the church. After serving at a church in Ney York he returned to Williamsburg in 1923. Fascinated by Williamsburg’s historic past, and concerned by its modernization, he feared the town’s distinctive past and charm might be lost. Returning the town to its former glory would require immense financial resources. He first approached Henry Ford about the project to no avail. When he shared his vision to John D. Rockefeller, Jr he got the promise of financing required. Rockefeller authorized the hiring of an architect and the acquisition of key properties. 

Such a massive restoration was unprecedented. Records were searched to reproduce the former structures with accuracy. Thomas Jefferson’s architectural drawings for the Governor’s Palace aided in its rebuilding from 1930-1934. The town was being reconstructed and restored with the aid of historians, archeologists, and craftsmen of every sort.

The undertaking to develop the world’s largest living history museum that began in 1927 and continues to this day. Walking through the structures and streets of Colonial Williamsburg one can meet and chat with skilled artisans and interpreters all attired in eighteenth-century clothing. 

Shields Tavern

Dining at one of the period eateries is a treat. Visitors see a variety of accurately depicted conveyances, as well as animals that would have been a part of the community.

Coming to Williamsburg is like returning to the eighteenth century, filled with many learning and fun experiences--no doubt why so many people return.

Rush Hour in Colonial Williamsburg

Cleveland Bays -- A Rare Breed

In the Summer 2019 issue of Trend & Tradition, the Magazine of Colonial Williamsburg, there is a wonderful article by Ben Swenson. If you are not receiving this magazine, it is sent to donors/subscribers to Colonial Williamsburg and is a much-appreciated benefit. 

The Cleveland Bay horses have been some of my favorites, with their beautiful rich brown coloring with contrasting black manes and socks. They are sturdy, strong, and temperamentally calm--what a great combination. Yet they have become a rare breed! That's because horse enthusiasts in modern times are looking for the best at some particular thing, e.g., fastest. But back in the colonial and Early American times, the Chapman horses or Cleveland Bays were the workhorses and preferred. According to Wikipedia the ancestors of the Cleveland Bays were the  Chapman Horses (which many of you historical fiction fans may be familiar with as medieval pack horses.)

The British royal family has been active in the push to maintain this rare breed (see two of their beautiful Cleveland Bays above). Swenson's article gives details on how Colonial Williamsburg is now actively involved with increasing the numbers of these beautiful animals. Their breeding program has resulted in the birth of a foal names Valiant who was born in late April. I hope I get to see him sometime soon! I am fortunate to live in the area, where so much is being done to preserve history and to keep beautiful horses like the Cleveland Bays continuing in their lineage.

Question: Will you be visiting Colonial Williamsburg soon and would you like to see Valiant?

Virginia's Powhatan Plantation Manor House by Cynthia Howerter

I love visiting historic houses, and was thrilled to spend time at the Powhatan Plantation Manor House near Five Forks in James City County, Virginia - not far from Colonial Williamsburg. As soon as I saw the house, I knew there was something familiar about its appearance, but couldn't put my finger on it.

Powhatan Plantation House

The Georgian-style house was built on a large tract of land about 1735 by its owner, Virginia architect and planter Richard Taliaferro (1705-1779), who spent most of his adult life there. Like many eighteenth century houses in Virginia's Tidewater Region, the exterior is made of brick in the Flemish bond style and has a hip roof with symmetrically-placed chimneys on the sides.

Powhatan Plantation's dining room

Upon Richard's death, his son and daughter-in-law, Richard, Jr. and Rebecca, inherited the property. They raised their ten children in the manor house and continued running the prosperous plantation. Rebecca survived her husband and lived there until she passed in 1810. Powhatan Plantation was sold at that time.

A drawing room in the Powhatan Plantation Manor House

During the Civil War, Union troops under the command of General George McClellan set fire to the house, ruining the interior. The building was restored in 1948.

Another of Powhatan Plantation Manor House's drawing rooms

While visiting Colonial Williamsburg several days after I'd been to Powhatan Plantation, I stopped dead in my tracks as I approached the Wythe House, located along the Palace Green. The reason the Powhatan Plantation Manor House had looked so familiar to me was that the Wythe House, which I've seen many times during my frequent visits to the eighteenth century town, was nearly identical to it.

After a bit more research, I learned that Richard Taliaferro designed and built the Wythe House around 1754. A comparison of the front of the houses shows the exterior similarities.

The Wythe House in Colonial Williamsburg

Powhatan Plantation Manor House

In 1755, Taliaferro's daughter Elizabeth married prominent Virginia lawyer George Wythe (pronounced "with") who was then serving in the House of Burgesses in Williamsburg. (Wythe later went on to sign the Declaration of Independence and helped frame the U.S. Constitution). Taliaferro gave the Williamsburg house to the newlyweds and it's been known as "The Wythe House" ever after.

Richard Taliaferro was described by one of his peers as a "most skillful architect" and was selected  to supervise repairs to the Governor's Palace in Williamsburg about 1750.

Today, the Powhatan Plantation Manor House is the centerpiece of "The Historic Powhatan Resort" owned by Diamond Resorts International. It is located at 3601 Ironbound Road, Williamsburg, Virginia.


All photographs ©Cynthia Howerter

Award-winning author Cynthia Howerter loves living amidst Virginia's rich history. She frequently visits historic sites, accompanied by her wonderful husband and trusty camera. She enjoys sharing her photographs in her articles, believing that topics are more interesting when one can see them.

Are you going through difficult times or know someone who is? Do you need encouragement to get through a tough situation? There's nothing like true stories from people who have been in your shoes and succeeded, especially when things look hopeless. You can purchase a copy of the award-winning non-fiction anthology book that Cynthia co-authored, God's Provision in Tough Times, from Amazon by clicking  here > God's Provision in Tough Times   Available in paperback and Kindle.

Colonial Williamsburg Weaver -- By Carrie Fancett Pagels

On a warm and sunny March day recently, my friend author Cynthia Howerter and I (and her husband and my son!) ventured out to Colonial Williamsburg. I have lived in the area almost twenty years and have been a CW member for much of that time and have visited many times. But the weaver's shop was never open on the days I visited (or I didn't have time to stop). But blessedly, on this day, a talented weaver was present and we got to go inside and also watch a session.

The weaver has to push the long wooden rod forward to move the two intersecting sets of yarn/thread. Below is a closeup of the intersecting threads on the loom.

Weavers, in England, were traditionally men. As our weaver continued the process, she was producing the cream-colored fabric on the larger roll, below! I think it is really lovely. This cloth produced pieces that would then be stitched together to form blankets, e.g., for soldiers.

Wool, cotton, and linen would have been the materials used to weave textiles in colonial America. I love the soft natural color of all three.

Those skeins on the left would have been dyed with natural dyes. They produced beautiful colors, don't they? Check out Colonial Williamsburg's post about their Weaver.











For more about textiles production in Colonial America, check out Pegg Thomas's post on Fulling Houses.

Carrie Fancett Pagels, Ph.D., is an ECPA bestselling and award-winning author of over a dozen Christian historical romances. Her novel, Saving the Marquise's Granddaughter (Pelican, 2016) is set in the 1740s in France, the Palatinate of Germany, and in Colonial America. Carrie is the owner/administrator of Colonial Quills blog and founder of Colonial American Christian Writers group. Her website is www.carriefancettpagels.com

Sally Lunn Bread

Sally Lunn Bread

I first tasted Sally Lunn bread when I visited Colonial Williamsburg in 1976 and I’ve enjoyed

Raleigh Tavern

it numerous times since then. It can be purchased at the Raleigh Tavern Bake Shop on Duke

of Gloucester Street.

Sally Lunn bread was often times the bread of choice in Colonial times. It is an egg-rich, yeast-risen bread that has a varied history.

Our British cousins claim that this spongy bread originated in 1780. The Sally Lunn Eating House

Sally Lunn Eating House

To find out more about this charming tea-house see: http://www.sallylunns.co.uk/

That may be the British assertion; however, there is no evidence to substantiate this claim.

The American version of a Sally Lunn recipe seems to predate it by virtue of a circa 1770 recipe penned by the granddaughter of Virginia’s Governor Spotswood.

Many years ago, I purchased the Williamsburg Cookbook which has many of the popular recipes of Colonial Williamsburg served in their taverns including a great one for Sally Lunn Bread. I use a Bundt pan.

Sally Lunn Bread    

1 c. milk

½ c. vegetable shortening

4 c. flour, divided

1/3 c. sugar

2 tsp. salt

2 packages active dry yeast (2 ½ tsp. each package)

3 large eggs

In a small saucepan, combine the milk, shortening and ¼ c. water. Warm over medium-low heat until a thermometer reads 120 degrees F. (The shortening does not need to melt)

In a large bowl, blend 1 1/3 c. flour with the sugar, salt and yeast. Blend the warm liquids into the flour mixture. 

Beat with an electric mixer at medium speed for 2 minutes. Add the remaining flour and eggs. Mix well. The batter will be thick but not stiff. 

Cover and let the dough rise in a warm, draft-free spot until doubled in bulk, about 75 minutes.

Grease a 10" tube pan, bundt pan. Beat the dough down with a spatula or an electric mixer on low speed. Turn into prepared pan, cover, and let rise in a warm spot until almost doubled in bulk, about 30 minutes. 

Preheat oven to 350.

Bake bread for 40-50 minutes, or until golden brown. Run a knife around the center and outer edges of the bread. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

Sally Lunn is best served warm with butter, preserves, or clotted cream. I have also use it to make French toast with lots of cinnamon, my homage to the French Huguenot refugee.

Enjoy.

THE WILLIAMSBURG MARKET HOUSE

One of many enjoyable things to do in Williamsburg, Virginia is visiting the

The Williamsburg Farmer's Market

Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings. Vendors selling locally grown vegetables, fruit, cut flowers, herbs, specialty soaps, cheeses, bakery products, eggs, seafood, meat and honey take over Market Square on Duke of Gloucester Street, also known fondly to locals as (DOG Street). Shoppers, many with dogs, come to purchase seasonal and

Virginia made products as well as socialize with neighbors and listen to local musicians.  

The first open market structure in Williamsburg dates back to the mid-eighteenth century, but until recent years, the exact location had not been identified. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation meticulously researched to find the precise location and then reconstructed it according to its original plans. The original Market House was built in 1757 and remained until the 1790s when it was moved to the old Magazine. A new Market House was built in the 1830s and remained until the eve of the Civil War.

In colonial times market houses were at the heart of a city or village. Wagons and carts would travel on the unpaved roads from nearby farms or plantations to sell their goods. Local tradesmen and others with products to sell would also operate in the stalls and stands.

The Williamsburg Market House
under construction

Thanks to a generous gift of one million dollars from Forrest Mars, a replica of the 1757 timber-framed structure was recently built near the Williamsburg Magazine (where the armaments were housed). Visitors to the colonial area of the city have watched master carpenter Garland Wood leads a team of carpenters, along with Historic Area's brick makers, joiners and blacksmiths, working thousands of man-hours on this project.And in keeping with historical accuracy, a bell has been installed on top of the market house which will be rung at the start and close of business each day.

 

The Williamsburg Market House

Some produce is sold at the Market House, but their primary wares are souvenirs of Colonial Williamsburg. The Market House replaces the previous outdoor sales tent which stands approximately a hundred yards away.

old outdoors sales tent

The Market House Grand Opening will take place November 20 and 21, 2015 from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm

Market House produce

Inside the Market House

Baking in a Beehive Oven by Cynthia Howerter

During a visit to Colonial Williamsburg, the enticing scent of burning firewood led me to colonial baker William Parker's outdoor beehive oven. One of the commercial baker's employees graciously explained the oven's construction and use while he waited for it to heat.

A colonial baker explains beehive oven baking

Commercial bakers in colonial villages and towns needed a sizeable oven in order to produce quantities of baked goods to sell in their shops. Because a large wood-fired oven throws off an excessive amount of heat, bakers often built outdoor beehive ovens, so named because the shape resembled beehives that were in use at the time.

How to build an outdoor beehive oven

After choosing a spot about 30-45 feet behind his building, Mr. Parker constructed a shelter to protect the oven and its baking operation from rain and snow. We can see from the shelter's scorched ceiling why Mr. Parker put distance between the oven and his shop.

A shelter protects the beehive oven from weather

Next, a raised wood platform was built under the shelter. Once the beehive oven is built on top of this sturdy base, the oven's opening will be about waist-high in order to make the oven easier to use and to spare the baker's back while he attends the oven for long hours.  

Two layers of bricks were placed on top of the wood foundation. The bricks help contain the oven's heat, with the top layer providing the oven's floor. 

To form the perimeter of the circular oven's base, one row of bricks was set in a circle on top of the oven floor and mortared into place. A single opening was left to provide access to the oven's interior.

Beehive oven set on a raised platform

How is the oven's domed roof constructed?

With the round oven base in place, several rows of bricks were laid on top, forming a vertical wall about one foot high. Once the mortar of this wall hardened, sand was heaped inside the circle and shaped into a rounded mound. The height of the sand determined the interior height of the oven.   

Next, bricks were laid on top of the existing brick wall and mortared, row by row, against the sloped sand, taking on the curved beehive shape until the sand was completely encased in brick. Mortar consisting of clay, sand, and straw was spread over the brick exterior and allowed to dry for several days. With the bricks in place and the mortar dried and set, all of the sand inside the dome was removed through the opening.

Time to use the oven

It's time to preheat the oven and start baking! Sticks of hardwood, such as oak, are laid in the center of the oven and set on fire. As a rule of thumb, the length of pre-heating is one-half the time of baking. So two hours of pre-heating are needed for four hours of baking and six hours of baking requires three hours of pre-heating.

Pre-heating the beehive oven

Waste not, want not

When the wood has burned into charred embers and ash, the interior heat of the beehive oven is about 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit. The baker removes the chunks of wood and sweeps the oven floor clean of the ash. Because nothing was wasted, the hot embers and ash were often taken into the kitchen and banked inside the cooking fireplace to keep a pot of food warm. The embers and ash could also be cooled and saved to be made into lye soap.

Burned embers

The oven will have to cool a bit before food can be inserted without being burned. An experienced baker can insert their bare arm inside the oven and tell by the feel of the heat on his skin if the correct baking temperature has been achieved. Another way to ascertain oven temperature is to place small pieces of dough inside the oven and watch whether they bake or burn. Additionally, some bakers toss flour on the oven's floor. If the flour doesn't burn, it's time to bake.

While the oven heats and cools, the baker prepares the foods, starting with baked goods that require the hottest temperature and ending with things that need the coolest. 

A trencher filled with risen dough

Hand-shaped dinner rolls placed on a floured pan

After inserting pans and trays of baked goods into the oven, the baker had to watch the progress of the baking through the oven's small opening and remove items when finished. Although this baker used pans, some bakers set the food directly on the hot brick oven floor.

I hope you enjoyed learning about beehive ovens. My husband will be happy to learn that I will never again complain about the eight minutes it takes my electric oven to preheat. What about you?

Award-winning author Cynthia Howerter is a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). Her colonial-era novel-in-progress was recently awarded first place in historical fiction at the 2015 Florida Christian Writers Conference. Her first book, a non-fiction anthology titled God's Provision in Tough Times co-authored by La-Tan Roland Murphy, was a Selah Award finalist at the 2014 Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference and has been in the top 100 paid Kindle e-books at Amazon.com. It can be purchased from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Christianbook.com.

Visit Cynthia's Website: Cynthia Howerter - all things historical

Photographs ©2015 Cynthia Howerter

Revolutionary City Programing at Colonial Williamsburg - Meet the Director!

Brandon Bruce, Colonial Williamsburg

By Carrie Fancett Pagels
On a recent visit to Colonial Williamsburg, Cynthia Howerter and I literally stumbled upon the set for Revolutionary City. I love these dramas that take place during prime season in Williamsburg but I'd never before come upon a rehearsal (that I know of!)  But it was a providential time for us to arrive because we got to speak with Brandon Bruce, the director, whose official title is Senior Manager Performance Interpretation for the Revolutionary City Programs with The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation.

Brandon explained to us about the upcoming season, which is brand new programming and I will see if I can interpret how I understood this works. Having attended many of the performances of Revolutionary City over the past years since they started it, mainly what you have happening are scenes of real life scenarios dramatized and they change out daily. So you may have a scene taking place where villagers are calling for the tarring and feathering of a Loyalist, for instance, followed by the entourage of actors and tourists AKA guests relocating to another section of Duke of Gloucester Street and perhaps a preacher may be speaking up on stage to the crowd about the merits of liberty, followed by another scene whereupon the crowd moves to the Capitol building and in rides the British making some proclamation on horseback.

In any event, let me describe what is done. Brandon explained that there are nine different rotations, nineteen scenes, five intervals each and the actors can rotate out the scenes with seven, sometimes eight scenes a day (this is a correction to the post.) So depending upon which day of the week you come, you will be seeing different scenes.

If you've never watched a Revolutionary City Programming, imagine you are at Colonial Williamsburg and people begin to gather (also they have microphones so you can here) and a drama unfolds right there in the street--live theater. And the drama unfolds, resolves, and then continues on in another location, live.   The performers are actors who must audition for their parts (auditions are held in Memphis, not in Chicago--correction to post.) These are professional actors and interpreters who come from all over the United States (and some from other countries). A number of the actors also work for Colonial Williamsburg in interpreter roles, so you will see them in various locations around the site.

Brandon has over twenty years experience in theater and managed several troupes in Chicago before moving to the area in the fall of 2013 after he accepted this position. He has acted as well as directed and on occasion he even steps into a role for Revolutionary City, as needed (e.g., several actors out at the same time.) You'll notice he has a notepad under his arm in the picture and he was kind enough to answer our questions while also ensuring the production was going smoothly. Two other writers were on the rehearsal set that morning as well. Brandon told us that the actors/interpreters are all trained in the history of the character in the script but that oftentimes the only thing the writers have to work from is the notation of a real life person's situation, e.g., in one case a specific servant noted in the records and their occupation. The actors/interpreters can and do add to the script based on their own knowledge and experience, which I think is pretty neat and adds a nice element of surprise to the performances.

I believe in addition to adapting to our warmer climate here in Virginia, Brandon has also acclimatized to the tourists and their proclivities at Colonial Williamsburg, because he tried to step aside to let me take a picture of the interpreters in costume, behind him, in this picture, but I told him I wanted him in the picture, too!  Cynthia and I thank Brandon Bruce for taking time to speak with us on a cold wet day when he was in the midst of rehearsals!

We are so glad Brandon made the move to the MidAtlantic and is doing such a fine job directing the Revolutionary City Programs!

Brandon Bruce & Interpreters, Colonial Williamsburg, Revolutionary City Rehearsal

Question: Have you ever seen the Revolutionary City Programs? Have you been to Colonial Williamsburg? Are you planning a visit in 2015? What would you like to see?

Basket Maker at Colonial Williamsburg by Carrie Fancett Pagels

So how could Cynthia Howerter and I RESIST stopping when we came upon this young woman making baskets at Colonial Williamsburg this past autumn?  Of course--we couldn't!

Basket Maker at Colonial Williamsburg

So we came a little closer and asked if she minded if we asked a few questions. Like many of the other skilled craftspeople at CW, she said "of course" and we proceeded to draw closer yet!

You'll notice her clothing is made from natural fibers. We talked a little about how the clothing protected well from the elements outside. In late autumn, one never knows what the weather will be in Virginia.

Cynthia asked if we could have a picture of the back of the basket maker's hat, which was so pretty, and you can see her mob cap (by the way, not called that during colonial times but during the French Revolution and thereafter) and the pretty blue ribbon. Also notice to her left a closer view of the tools of her trade.

The top image is of a bottle wrapped in basket-woven material. This allowed it to be carried more easily and offered some insulation. Also looks nice!

At the bottom, you'll note water was kept on hand to keep material moist and supple for weaving. Unfortunately we weren't there during the weaving process, demonstrated earlier in the day. But we did enjoy seeing the results of all the efforts.

All kinds of products could be carried in baskets. And different additions were done to them dependent upon their need. For instance, the unusual looking basket at the right is equipped with a rope, which would have made it easier to carry over the shoulder.

Isn't this basket at the left pretty? I love the gingham, too. Different baskets would have been lined. Even today we benefit from similar containers. My laundry basket, for instance, is a rectangular woven basket with a canvas liner.  But there were no plastics back then! So all kinds of things needed to be placed in baskets.

Here's a close up of several of the pretty baskets, at the right. These are more typical types but still look very hard to make. I have a few hand-made baskets. I cherish these gifts from friends, knowing how hard those baskets are to weave!



Question: Do you have any hand-made baskets and/or do you have any favorites? Why? In my upcoming release, The Lumberjack's Ball, there is a basket on the cover. We're doing a Cover Reveal on 3-17 on this blog, Overcoming with God blog, and several others. Mark your calendars and you might win the basket of goodies if you leave a comment on each blog! Leave a comment today to win a copy of The Fruitcake Challenge, which is first in the Christy Lumberjack Series!

Carrie Fancett Pagels is the administrator of the Colonial Quills blog and founder of Colonial American Christian Writers group. She blogs here on CQ and on the Overcoming with God blog. She loves running around to colonial places with pals like authors Cynthia Howerter and Janet Grunst!