Yorktown, VA

Whew! We are so glad to be back at our motorhome.  The temperature today is 90 degrees and the humidity is 64%.  Not a great day to be outside walking around.  I have not written about the weather lately and that’s because it has been so pleasant (low 80’s and low humidity) and only an intermittent rain shower during the night or early morning.  We are told the remainder of the weekend will be the same as today.   Time to find some indoor activities to do on our last day here in the Williamsburg area.

Our venture today is to Yorktown , the third city of the historic triangle in this area.  Yorktown was founded in 1691 and was a busy 18th century tobacco port.  It is best remembered; however, for the Siege of Yorktown which ended the Revolutionary War.   Less than 100 years later, the town was again under siege when Union General McClellan landed his troops at Fort Monroe in 1862.

Yorktown overlooks the York River and is the home of many charming shops, restaurants and galleries along with a sandy beach along the riverwalk where you can enjoy sunbathing and swimming in the River. 

To arrive in Yorktown, we again take the Colonial Parkway driving along the treed lined road soon coming in site of the York River and this large naval ship at the end of a long pier. 

Yorktown offers two major historic sights to take in – Yorktown Victory Center – a museum that chronicles the American Revolution through exhibits and the Yorktown Historical National Park – a park service center with short video entitled “Seige at Yorktown” about the end of the War, a self guiding driving brochure taking you to all the battles sights and/or a guided park ranger led tour of the battlefield. 

We watch the video at the Center and then take the self guided tour of the various sights including the Augustine Moore House where officers of both the American and British armies negotiate the surrender terms for Cornwallis’s army. 

The  table where the negotiating took place.

After touring the Battlefield, we return to the Visitor Center where we take the free shuttle which stops at various places in the charming town of York.  I am disappointed that a museum with history of the Chesapeake Bay is closed.  Taking the Shuttle up the hill, we alight at Historic Main Street which is the old part of Yorktown where we stop in at the York County Historical Museum which is housed in the basement of the building and on the first floor is a shop full of locally handmade items of every assortment.  I was really impressed with the quality and variety of items for sale and purchased a small quilted wall hanging for the RV. 

An interesting old building in this area is the Custom House with wood planks on the floor about 12 inches wide and a couple of inches thick in order to hold the multitude of items that were brought to the House for taxation.   A lovely elderly lady wants to give me the long version of the history of the building but since Ron is waiting outside in the heat, I politely say that my husband is waiting outside and I just want to take a quick browse.  She is very gracious about it. 

We walk around a bit more, but the heat and humidity have taken a toll on our stamina so we take a few more pictures and head back to the Shuttle Stop.  At the Grace Episcopal Church and Cemetery we find this headstone.     Note the date the lady died and how old she was considering the time.  It boggles your mind to think that this headstone has been here for so long.

The Shuttle returns us to the Visitor Center at the Battlefield and we drive around town a bit more stopping at the Victory Monument which celebrates victory in the American Revolutionary War.  It was installed in 1884 and the rings around the spire represent the 13 original colonies. 

We then head home stopping at Dairy Queen for a shake to cool off our overheated bodies.  Boy did it taste good.  Another educational day for the Ballards.