We Were Here First!: Trials and Triumphs of Exhibiting the History of Seventeenth-Century America in the Chesapeake

1699: When Virginia Was the Wild West! The Dewitt Wallace Gallery, Colonial Williamsburg, 1 May 1999-13 February 2000. Project Director and Historian, Cary Carson; Curators, Jonathan Prown and Jan Gilliam; Curator for Archaeology, William Pittman; Curator of Museum Education, Lisa Gusler; Exhibit Designer, Richard Hadley; Illustrator for comic book, Brian Stelfreeze, Gaijin Studios, Atlanta, Georgia.

HAVING RECENTLY MOVED TO NEW HAMPSHIRE AFTER TEN YEARS IN VIRGINIA, I am slowly getting acclimated to the New England view of the world. When a Boston TV station reporter asked a fourth grader about the true meaning of Thanksgiving, the student launched into the familiar saga of how the Pilgrims, fresh off the Mayflower in Plymouth, Massachusetts, shared their hard-won bounty with the noble Indians. Suddenly from not too deep in my Southern psyche came the outcry, "We were here first!" This was followed by, "Why doesn't most of America recognize this?" After spending almost twelve hours in this exhibition, I see how the Pilgrims' story--escaping religious persecution, landing in New England where farming was hard, and finally sharing a meal with the Indians who had come to their aid--is a more inspiring tale than what took place in seventeenth-century Virginia. Of course, the realities in New England were not any less violent or desperate than in Virginia. Dreams for a better life were no less real in the Tidewater region than in New England. Over time, however, the Pilgrim's story became a more uplifting one to tell; it has even inspired a "Pilgrim Barbie." As 1699: When Virginia Was the Wild West illustrated, this history lesson is often difficult to manage.

In 1997 the historians and curators of 1699: When Virginia Was the Wild West decided to commemorate the tricentennial of the establishment of the town of Williamsburg. ¹ As a panel card suggested, 1699 explained the "untold story of Williamsburg's legendary founding," which was part of the story of the "taming" of Virginia, the development of towns in an otherwise agrarian, plantation culture. This culture, complete with large houses and fashionable, imported accoutrements, was only possible because large numbers of enslaved laborers kept the planters wealthy at the expense of almost everyone else, including poor whites and Indians. The steady progression of economic disparity culminated with Bacon's Rebellion in 1676. Regulated by English laws and institutions, towns like Williamsburg provided job opportunities for many who had had their small farms absorbed by the large plantations. Thus the seventeenth-century gentry, known today as the FFVs (First Families of Virginia), stopped the insurrections by the "have-nots" with town development, a new merchant class, and English institutions and laws. This story of greed and control has been written about extensively, but it does not naturally lend itself to being told in an exhibition format because the facts are complex, and there are not always artifacts to support the ideas visually.

The risk that audiences might not follow the story as the curators intended is inherent to many history exhibitions that attempt humanities themes that might work better in print. The gamble is that the visitor will grasp those ideas that are communicated well in galleries and learn something new along the way. The staff was justified in taking a chance with 1699. A large budget, plenty of great artifacts and clever design strategies combine to make a rewarding experience for adults and children. ²

Colonial Williamsburg with its demographically diverse audience should have been the perfect location to tackle the history of Chesapeake culture from 1607 to 1699. However, the unfortunate reality was that f the impressive number of activities available in the village itself, it was difficult for visitors to find the time to see the exhibition thoroughly. Once one found 1699: When Virginia Was the Wild West...