College of William and Mary - Colonial Echo Yearbook (Williamsburg, VA)

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I ' lP. Che Colonicil Crlia. 1921 I 8 i i§ CoUicr of ©ID JamcstoUin Cburdj This, the only surviving rehc of the first public building erected by men of the English race in America, was built soon after 1647. This tower, being part of the tower of the fourth Church, was of brick baked on the Island, forty-six feet in height, and eighteen feet square at the base. The narrow arched portal shows its original design to have been for use by sharpshooters with- in, against the Red-skins. The Church itself, built toward the east of the tower, was thrice destroyed by fire, once by a torch in the hand of Bacon, the Rebel. With the removal of the seat of government to Williamsburg, the old building, falling into dilapidation, ceased to be used. In 1907, the Ter- centennial year, tower and church were restored, accord- ing to the original designs, by the Association for the Pre- servation of Virginia Antiqui- ties. ■3 i iBnig iSf fiy«» ' iB? ' iQrai? firWjr;fine; i--. lu j julj liiili: Pace 27

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Ct)e l otoDer li)orn Perhaps no other ancient pile in the Old Capital so fully represents the vicissitudes of all things human as does the old powder magazine. Con- structed in 1714 — the same year as Bruton Church — of brick in Flemish bond, octa- gonal in shape, with walls twenty-two inches in thickness, it deserves national fame al- most as much as does the far more widely known powder magazine of Lexington. Mas- sachusetts. The next day after the battle of Lexington, Lord Dunmore, at the end of his patience with the rebellious colonists, removed all muni- tions of war from it to His Majesty ' s armed schooner ly- ing in York River. This was for Virginia what the fight at Concord Bridge was for Mas- sachusetts. By turns a market house, a meeting place for the newly organized Baptist congregation — for whose permanent church building its engirdling wall supplied the foundations, — a dancing school, an arsenal for Confederates and Federals alike, and, last, a stable, the old pile served faithfully the passing generations ; and now, as an interesting museum of relics of bygone stirring days, it richly deserves its dignified ease and the affection in which it is held by all who know it. : Page 26 s

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gigjfS:mmj;i! aM!i!AMi! f)t Colonial BttiO, 1921 mmjmiM ' MjiJi i MJi MJi imM : Monument at gorktotun This noble monument, erect- ed by Act of Congress and dedicated, October 19, 1881, with impressive ceremonies to celebrate the centennial of the Surrender of Lord Cornwallis. stands on a commanding pro- montory overlooking the York, at the beginning of the rolling fields in which the armies of Great Britain grounded their arms. It was from this memorable scene that General Washington returned to Mount Vernon after the Surrender of Corn- wallis, and wrote to Lafayette : I have become a private citizen on the banks of the Potomac in the shadow of my own fig tree, free from the bustle of camp, and the busy scenes of public life. I am solacing myself with those tranquil enjoyments, of which the soldier, who is ever in pur- suit of fame — the statesman, whose zvatchful days and sleep- less nights are spent in devis- ing schemes to promote the welfare of his own, perhaps the ruin of other countries, as if the globe was insufficient for us all. and the courtier, who is always watching the coun- tenance of his prince in the hopes of catching a gracious smile — can have very little conception. I have not only retired from public employ- ment, but am retiring within myself, and shall be able to view the solitary walk, and tread the paths of private life with heartfelt satisfaction. En- vious of none. I am determined to be pleased with all, and this, my dear friend, being the order of my march, I will move gently down the stream of life, until I sleep with my fathers. ■is i. i! (3 Page 28 S5 ; ;fr ffi s yifir » ijifrsfiis