A Learning Link to Colonial National Historical Park

Although the Fourth of July fireworks have faded away, you can still experience the excitement of early America at Colonial National Historical Park in Jamestown and Yorktown, Va. Jamestown was the site of the first permanent English settlement in North America. Yorktown was the site of the final major battle of the American Revolutionary War. Together they represent the beginning and end of colonial America.

At Colonial National Historical Park you can go back in time with a costumed tour guide, watch artisans shape glass just as people did in the 1600s, hear the blast of the largest siege cannon used by the Americans at Yorktown, or maybe participate in a military drill.

You can watch archeologists dig in Jamestown, then look through the gallery where new artifacts are taken and washed, cataloged and studied. You can learn all about pottery-making in Yorktown while you make your own clay pot. Don't miss the exhibit in the visitor center that tells the story of the battle at Yorktown through the eyes of a 14-year-old boy serving in the colonial army. And this summer you can walk inside one of George Washington's tents and see how it might have been set up during the American Revolution.

Did You Know?

* One of the ships that arrived at Jamestown, the Discovery, later sailed along the East Coast, charting Cape Cod in 1609. Those charts may have assisted the Mayflower's landing in Massachusetts in 1620.

* The bell tower of Jamestown Memorial Church, built in 1639, is the only 17th century structure still standing in Jamestown.

Learn More!

* Read "The Village: Life in Colonial Times (Adventures in Colonial America)," written by James E. Knight and illustrated by Jan Palmer.

* Visit the park online at www.nps.gov/colo.

* Ask your parents to take you to Colonial National Historical Park in Jamestown and Yorktown, Va.

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This Learning Link was provided by the National Parks Conservation Assn., www.eparks .org, an organization dedicated to protecting, preserving and enhancing the national park system.