WASHINGTON — When Queen Elizabeth II visited Jamestown, Va., in 1957 to commemorate the 350th anniversary of the first British settlement in North America, she was 31 years old and had been on the throne for less than five years.
A lot has happened since, to her and to Jamestown.
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Wednesday May 02, 2007 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 36 words Type of Material: Correction
Queen's visit: An article in Tuesday's Section A about Queen Elizabeth II's visit to the United States said the queen would visit Jamestown, Va., then head east for the Kentucky Derby. Kentucky is west of Virginia.
On Friday, when the queen returns for the 400th anniversary of the settlement's founding, she will see a much different representation of the colony, complete with Indians and blacks whose fortunes crossed there.
"She got the sanitized version in 1957," said Peter Wallenstein, a Virginia Tech historian whose book "Cradle of America" focused on the convergence of Europeans, American Indians and black slaves at Jamestown. "Now she'll see a more inclusive view of all three of the great racial groups that met there. Jamestown represents the origins of democracy and slavery."
Like historic sites around the world, Jamestown has gone postmodern, incorporating the history of individuals into the history of nations.
"You can't just have celebrations of glorious Englishmen anymore," said Joyce Goodfriend, a historian at the University of Denver. "These remembrances have all taken place before, but in this round we are much more sensitive to the role of Native Americans and African Americans."
More than a decade ago, Virginia officials hired a team of archeologists, led by William M. Kelso, to excavate the Jamestown site. The team's discoveries -- including more than a million artifacts as well as the markings for the original fort -- delighted historians and tourists alike.
"In 1957, everybody thought the original fort had washed into the James River," said Elizabeth S. Kostelny, executive director of the Assn. for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities. "This time, the queen can actually stand where these events happened."
When the queen and her husband, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, visited last time (the Washington Post then called them "the lovely British monarch and her rangy consort"), she spoke about the British settlements in the New World as "experiments and adventures in freedom."
This time, planners are casting Jamestown as the first beacon of a pluralistic democracy. "Anniversary Weekend reintroduces the world to Jamestown, helping visitors discover how the settlement made democracy, free enterprise and cultural diversity defining characteristics of American society," explains a news release from Historic Jamestowne, the umbrella group planning the commemoration.
