Colonial National Historical Park

Colonial National Historical Park (NHP) administers two of the most historically significant sites in English North America. Historic Jamestowne, the first permanent English settlement in North America in 1607, jointly administered with Preservation Virginia, and Yorktown Battlefield, the final major battle of the American Revolutionary War in 1781.

Independence National Historical Park

Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia preserves the buildings, stories, and memory of the people who struggled and continue to struggle to create a nation based on the ideals of liberty and equality.

Island Loop Drive

• The tour consists of a 3 or 5 mile one way loop around the rest of Jamestown Island and begins when you turn right out of the parking lot. PLEASE NOTE: The speed limit on the Island Drive is 15 MPH. The drive will introduce you to the natural environment which the English colonists encountered. You will also see the "Gallery in the Woods", a series of interpretive paintings illustrating the earliest industries attempted by the settlers. These paintings are located at pull offs along the drive. Please remember that the Island Drive is also used by pedestrians and bike riders. Drive carefully and observe all speed limits. Due to weight limits of the loop drive bridges, large vehicles, such as campers, RVs and buses, are not allowed.

The Moore House

Commissioners met at the Moore House to negotiate the terms of surrender. The British sent Lt. Col. Thomas Dundas and Major Alexander Ross. The allies sent the Viscomte do Noilles (Lafayette's brother-in-law) and Colonel John Laurens. The British argue the terms for many hours, but to no avail.

• The Moore house is a white, wooden planation home. It is a two story home. It has two brick chimneys on each side of the house. Its front façade has 5 windows on the top floor and four windows on the bottom floor with a door in the center. There is a porch area in front of the door. The house has a very large yard that is surrounded by a white wooden fence. There are several large white oak trees in the pack of the house. There is a informational wayside outside the home that says, "Moore House 'I propose a succession of hostilities for 24 hours , and that two officers may be appointed by each side, to meet at mr. Moore's house , to settle terms for the surrender of the post of York and Gloucester.' on October 18th, 1781 after over eight days of continual bombardment, the battlefield was finally tranquil. Washington and Cornwallis now focused on the surrender negotiations taking place at this house, the home of Augustine Moore. Each General has selected two officers to handle the face-to-face discussions lieutenant colonel Thomas Dundas and major Alexander Ross represented the British, while lieutenant colonel John Laurens and second colonel Viscount de Noalles spoke for the allies. Slowing the process was Lauren's insistence, with Washington's support , that the British submit to similar terms granted by the British to the defeated American Army at Charleston, South Carolina, in 1780. those terms had deprived the American soldiers to surrender with the army's personal honor intact. The British argued for better terms, but the Allies prevailed and around midnight, a draft of the Articles of capitulation was completed with 14 provisions, two conditions that denied the British the full honors of War. These two articles required that at the surrender ceremony , the British army would case their regimental Flags, and their military band would play British music instead of professionally saluting the Victor with American and French songs." On the Wayside , is a photo of a draft of capitulation articles in the handwriting of British negotiator major Alexander Ross. there is also a black and white photo the Moore house in disrepair during the Civil War , With the caption underneath saying, " this Matthew Brady image buy photographer Alexander Gardner shows the Moore house the 1862 Siege of Yorktown" The wayside also says, "History of Moore house. the Moore house is an early 18th century home that has undergone many structural changes 50 owners the house was extensively damaged during the Civil War, both by cannon fire and soldiers stripping wood from the house campfire use. By the 150th anniversary of the surrender , the house was in a dilapidated state. In 1931, Park Service undertook its first restoration of a historic building-- the Moore House. 3 years later the project was complete and the house once again appeared as it did in 1781."

The Nelson House in Yorktown

The Nelson House was the home of Thomas Nelson, Jr. (1738-89), Yorktown's most famous son and one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. Nelson's devotion to the patriot cause during the American Revolution contributed significantly to the creation of the United States.

• The Nelson House is a large red brick building and is one of the finest examples of early Georgian architecture in Virginia. (The Georgian style took its name from the four British kings named George, who reigned from 1714 to 1830). It has 9 windows in the front with a large door in the center. There is some cannonball damage to the house on the east facing façade. There is a brick fence around the front of the house and there is garden area on the beside the west lawn.. There is a informational wayside out front that reads... Nelson house , 1730 ' General Nelson ... was excelled by no man in the generosity of his nature in the nobleness sentiments , in the purity of his revolutionary principles , and in the exalted patriotism that answered every service and sacrifice that his country might need' James Madison 1789 Thomas Nelson, Junior's Legacy is a lasting example of a life dedicated to Independence for his country. His support towards political freedom from Great Britain began while a member of Virginia's Colonial legislature. in addition to protesting British taxes and leading Yorktown's Tea Party , patterned after the one in Boston , he was one of Virginia's delegates to the Continental Congress. in May 1776, he advocated Virginia officially support Independence , a proposal that helped lead to the Declaration of Independence signed by Nelson and 55 others. Nelson continue to support the revolution through political channels and used his own funds to purchase military supplies. June 12, 1781, he was elected the third governor of Virginia and face the greatest challenge of his public career- The Invasion of the British army. As governor and general of his State's militia, Nelson participated in the Victory at Yorktown. one day after the British surrendered, Governor Thomas Nelson , Junior wrote to the Continental Congress...' the whole loss sustained by the enemy must be between six and seven thousand men. this blow , I think , must be a decisive one.' in November 1781, Nelson resigned as governor , poor and health and in debt. He died on January 4th, 1789 and was buried next to his father and grandfather at Grace Church , just one block from his home. There is a photo of a letter Thomas Nelson Junior wrote and this explanation... On September 25, 1781 , Governor Thomas Nelson Junior wrote Lord Cornwallis asking that citizens of Yorktown be permitted to return to town to move out their belongings. 3 days later, the American and French armies reached Yorktown end The Siege began. There is a photo of eyeglasses worn by Lucy Nelson, wife of Thomas Nelson. One of the tangible reminders of Thomas Nelson's sacrifice Independence home , which still bear scars from Allied cannon fire during the 1781 Siege. Nelson's grandfather , built the house around 1730. the Nelson family retained ownership the house until 1908. in 1968, the National Park Service purchased the house forward it to its eighteenth-century appearance. There is a black and white photo of a old kitchen chimney which was located beside the house. It has the caption... In the 18th century there were six outbuildings Northwest side of the Nelson house. By the early nineteen hundreds, only the chimney from the kitchen remained. There is also a photo of the signature of Thomas Nelson Junior.

The Yorktown Victory Monument

The Victory Monument still stands as a fitting symbol to the French and American victory at Yorktown on October 19, 1781 - a victory that resulted in American Independence.

• On a small field stands the Victory Monument. It is a 98 foot monument made of white granite. Around the monument in four corners are a list of some of the dead who gave their life at Yorktown. On the monument are various symbols about the victory. I. The base carries an inscription on each of its four sides: A. One dedicates the monument as a memorial of victory. B. A second presents a succinct narrative of the Siege. C. A third commemorares the treaty of alliance with France. D. The fourth tells of the resulting treaty of peace with England. II. The pediments just over the inscriptions carry: A. Emblems of nationality. B. Emblems of war. C. Emblems of the alliance. D. Emblems of peace. "The base is thus devoted to the historical statement." III. The podium is a "symbol of the birth of freedom." It carries the sculptur of thirteen "female figures" hand in hand in a solemn dance to denote the unity of the thirteen colonies. Beneath their feet is the inscription "One country, one constitution, one destiny." IV. The column which springs from the podium, is a "symbol of the greatness and prosperity of the nation after a century of various experience, when thirty-eight free and independent states are shining together in a mighty constellation." There is a star for each state which was in the Union at the time the monument was designed. On the field of the shaft and among the stars, as reminder of the past, is the "shield of Yorktown covering the branch of peace." V. Atop the shaft is the sculptured figure of "Liberty herself" -- attesting to the existence of the nation as "a proof of the possibility of a government of the people, by the people, for the people." There are two waysides near the monument. The Victory Monument wayside says... "Resolved, That the United States in Congress assembled, will cause to be erected at york, in Virginia, a marble column, adorned with emblems of the alliance between the United States and his Most Christian Majesty; and inscribed with a succinct narrative of the surrender of earl Cornwallis to his excellency General Washington, Commander in Chief of the combined forces of America and France; to his excellency the Count de Rochambeau, commanding the auxilliary troops of his most Christian Majesty in America, and his excellency the Count de Grasse, commanding in chief the naval army of France in the Chesapeake." Just 10 days after the Victory at Yorktown , the Continental Congress directed a monument be built To commemorate The Siege and the American French Alliance. However, funds were not legislated for its construction until 1880, as the Centennial anniversary the battle approach. A congressional Committee of legislators from the original 13 colonies delegated oversight of the project to the Secretary of War , who in turn , chose architects , Richard M. Hurst and Henry Van Brunt , and Sculptor John Quincy Adams Ward to design the new monument. The country's spirit of reconciliation in the aftermath of the Civil War affected the design, as evidenced by the inscription , " One country , one Constitution , one destiny", on The Monuments shaft. On October 18 , 1881 , the cornerstone for The monument was dedicated during events commemorating The 100 anniversary of The Siege. On the night of July 29, 1942 , lightning decapitated the Statue of Liberty and destroyed her arms the damaged was replaced with a redesigned statue 15 years later. There is a black and white photo showing the ceremony of the laying of the cornerstone on the wayside. And two black and white photos showing the damage to the Victory Monument after the lightning strick. The Second wayside says, Yorktown Victory Monument this Monument authorized Continental Congress, October 29, 1781, just after the news of surrender reached Philadelphia. Actual construction began 100 years later and was completed in 1884. The original figure atop the victory shaft was severely damaged by lightning. A new work replaced it in 1956. The shaft of Maine granite is 84 feet in height to which Liberty adds another 14 feet.

Historic Jamestowne

• Historic Jamestowne
• The Historic Jamestowne Visitor Center is open. The Historic Jamestowne ENTRANCE GATE opens 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. daily. Historic Jamestowne Gift Shop is open 9 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. daily. Glasshouse is open 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Yorktown Battlefield

• Yorktown Battlefield
• Yorktown Battlefield Visitor center is open for access to the Eastern National Bookstore which is open 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Years Day. The Moore House, Cemetery Lodge, and Poor Potter are closed, but their grounds are open for visitation. On some weekends, the Nelson House will be open.

• Glasshouse Ruins
• Site of the original glassworks. Site is self guiding with waysides and items to see within the building.

• Island Loop Drive
• Jamestown has a one-way three/five mile scenic loop drive of the Island. This loop drive is open to pedestrians, bicycles and motor vehicles. Safety issues prohibit buses, motor homes or vehicles over 5-tons from using the Loop Drive. From the Historic Jamestowne parking lot, follow the signs to the loop drive. All state and local traffic regulations apply.

• Glasshouse
• Visitors can see the remains of the original furnaces used by those early glassblowers and watch as modern glassblowers produce wine bottles, pitchers, candleholders and various other glass objects.

• Birding
• The park's location along the Atlantic flyway affords visitors the opportunity to see wintering, migratory, and breeding birds along park roads.

• Colonial Parkway
• The Colonial Parkway is a scenic roadway stretching from the York River at Yorktown to the James River at Jamestown.

• Walk Main Street in Yorktown
• Historic Yorktown is available year round. The Nelson House is open as staffing permits. There are informational waysides along Main Street.

• Drive the Red Route of the Yorktown Battlefield Auto Tour
• Open year round until sunset, the Yorktown Battlefield Red Route Auto Tour is a 7 mile drive that takes visitors to the most important spots on the Yorktown Battlefield. Allow at least 45 minute to complete this tour. There are information waysides at each of the stops and along the route.

• Drive the Yellow Route of the Yorktown Battlefield Auto Tour
• Open year round until sunset, the optional Yorktown Battlefield Yellow Route Auto Tour is a 9 mile drive that takes visitors through the Allied Encampment areas. . Allow at least 30 minute to complete this tour. There are information waysides at each of the stops and along the route.