The Transcendentalists and Their World is both an intimate journey into the life of a community and a searching cultural study of major American writers as they plumbed the depths of the universe for spiritual truths and surveyed the rapidly changing contours of their own neighborhoods. No American community of the nineteenth century has been recovered so richly and with so acute an awareness of its place in the larger American story. Robert Gross is joined in conversation by Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Gordon Wood.

Please join our founders and engravers for a “timely” exploration of sundials - how they were cast and engraved, and how they were used HERE.

The three most important Supreme Court Justices before the Civil War—Chief Justices John Marshall and Roger B. Taney and Associate Justice Joseph Story—upheld the institution of slavery in ruling after ruling. These opinions cast a shadow over the Court and the legacies of these men, but historians have rarely delved deeply into the personal and political ideas and motivations they held. Join us for our livestream of Professor Paul Finkelman's book talk at Monticello HERE.

“If it is love that binds people to places in this nation of rivers, and in this river of nations, then one enduring expression of that simple truth is surely the canoe.” This beautiful short film by Canadian filmmaker Goh Iromoto captures the powerful human bond created by North America’s well-known watercraft and symbol, the canoe. Through the stories of five paddlers across the province of Ontario, Canada - a majestic background both in its landscape and its history - the film underscores the strength of the human spirit and how the canoe can be a vessel for creating deep and meaningful connections. Watch this beautiful, evocative film HERE.

Join the CW historic carpenters as they use period tools and techniques to produce the materials needed to construct a drying shed for the new brickyard location HERE.

94-year-old Sir David Attenborough has probably seen more of wild nature across the planet Earth than anyone living, and he is deeply concerned for our common home. “The science is clear, and has been communicated for the past 30 years, and still we’re not moving in the right direction.” That is the stark message put forward in Breaking Boundaries: The Science of Our Planet, the latest project by David Attenborough. This documentary offers simple solutions we can put in place to help protect Earth’s life support systems. The film features Professor Johan Rockström, who volunteers his team to advise Netflix on its sustainability strategy. Watch it HERE on Netflix.

Please join for an encore presentation of our popular virtual tour through Monticello's second and third floors. From the iconic Dome Room to the unexpected cat doors, we'll share a glimpse into the upstairs world at Monticello. Staff will discuss the lives of the enslaved and free people who lived and labored in the bedrooms, hallways, and out-of-the-way corners most visitors never get to see HERE.

Please join the Colonial Williamsburg gunsmiths for a look at the rifle gun in colonial Virginia as they sort through the myths and realities surrounding its design and use HERE.

Yorktown, Virginia was the location for the American and French army's most significant victory of the Revolution on October 19th, 1781. This victory, led by General George Washington, would set the United States on the path to independence. Join General Washington and General Lafayette as they discuss the campaign of 1781 and the siege of Yorktown HERE.

Please join this week’s Online Reading of Greek Tragedy with Sophocles’ psychological drama, “Electra.” Electra is one of the most important mythological figures in drama, appearing as a chief protagonist in tragedies from Aeschylus to Eugene O'Neill. Set in the city of Argos a few years after the Trojan War, Sophocles’ play tells the story of a bitter familial struggle for revenge and justice. Hosted by Joel Christensen, with special guest Robert Groves. Presented by the Harvard Center for Hellenic Studies, the Kosmos Society, and the Out of Chaos Theatre. Stream this live and archived video HERE.

The Dig is a poetic dramatization of the 1939 archeological excavations in Suffolk that would yield the greatest treasure ever discovered in Great Britain, and "one of the most important archaeological discoveries of all time.” It tells the story of Mrs. Edith Pretty, who purchased land at Sutton Hoo ("Southern Farmstead") with her husband a decade earlier in order to excavate a series of curious mounds in the low-lying landscape. After her husband's death, Mrs. Pretty engages a self-taught, local amateur excavator, Mr. Basil Brown, to explore the mounds. At the threshold of the Second World War, Pretty's vision and Brown's experience open to them a glimpse of eternity. Watch it HERE on Netflix.

Roses. The ancient Romans propagated them, Shakespeare wrote about them, and Thomas Jefferson had numerous varieties planted at Monticello. Please join us for our premiere livestream featuring Monticello’s Curator of Plants, Peggy Cornett. Ms. Cornett will discuss Thomas Jefferson’s love of roses, Monticello’s mountaintop gardens, and the beautiful rose garden flourishing today at the Thomas Jefferson Center for Historic Plants HERE.

Please join this week’s Online Reading of Greek Tragedy with Aeschylus’ drama, Seven Against Thebes. When Oedipus, King of Thebes, realizes he has married his own mother, he blinds himself and curses his sons to divide their kingdom inheritance by the sword. The two sons, Eteocles and Polynices, in order to avoid bloodshed, agree to rule Thebes in alternate years. After the first year, Eteocles refuses to step down, leading Polynices to raise an army to take Thebes by force. Thus the tragedy begins. Hosted by Joel Christensen, with special guest Naomi Weiss. Presented by the Harvard Center for Hellenic Studies, the Kosmos Society, and the Out of Chaos Theatre. Stream this live and archived video HERE.

Please join in the discussion about education with panelists Nicole Brown, a character interpreter portraying Bray School teacher Ann Wager for Colonial Williamsburg, and MA student in American Studies at William & Mary, Deborah Canty-Downs, a teacher at Katherine Johnson Elementary School, and educator with The Bob and Marion Wilson Teacher Institute of Colonial Williamsburg, and Dr. Julie Richter, Director of the National Institute of American History & Democracy and Lecturer at William and Mary’s Harrison Ruffin Tyler Department of History. Please RSVP here to watch live: https://fb.me/e/HdgOnmUy

The first full-length documentary film ever made about legendary conservation thinker Aldo Leopold, Green Fire explores Leopold’s extraordinary career and his enduring influence – tracing how he shaped the modern conservation movement and continues to inspire projects all over the country that connect people and the land HERE.

In her ambitious one-volume historical survey, These Truths: A History of the United States, award-winning historian and New Yorker writer, Jill Lepore offers a magisterial account of the origins and rise of a divided nation, an urgently needed reckoning with the beauty and tragedy of American history. In this wide-ranging conversation, she will discuss the nuanced issues related to questions of conquest and slavery in our nation’s founding as well as the lessons she has gleaned in researching her newest book, If Then: How the Simulmatics Corporation Invented the Future concerning the origins of predictive analytics and behavioral data science in the Cold War era. Please register and join the conversation HERE.

Did you ever wonder what mannequins wear under those historic garments? Have you thought about the ways fragile antique clothes are cared for in a museum setting? Do you know the difference between a conservator and a curator? Join Colonial Williamsburg staff Gretchen Guidess, Conservator of Textiles, Jacquelyn Peterson-Grace, Assistant Conservator of Textiles and Neal Hurst, Associate Curator of Costume and Textiles, for a live discussion on these topics HERE.

Beatrix Farrand (1872 – 1959) was America’s first female landscape landscape architect. Her pioneering career included commissions to design over 100 gardens for private residences, country estates, public parks, botanic gardens, college campuses, and the White House. They include the famous Dumbarton Oaks in Washington, D.C., the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Garden on Mount Desert, Maine, the restored Farm House Garden in Bar Harbor, the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden at the New York Botanical Garden, and significant portions of the campuses of Princeton and Yale. This beautiful new film documents the brilliant work of a brave and pathbreaking American artist. Watch it on Amazon Prime HERE.

Join us for a special livestream with Monticello’s Associate Curator of Decorative Arts, Diane Ehrenpreis. Ms. Ehrenpreis will introduce and offer a behind-the-scenes look at our newest book, “Thomas Jefferson at Monticello: Architecture, Landscape, Collections, Books, Food, Wine.” This visually stunning volume explores Monticello, both house and plantation, and features essays on Jefferson’s cultural contributions by acclaimed cultural and arts luminaries HERE.

Please join this week’s Online Reading of Greek Tragedy with Euripides’ drama, “Phoenician Women.” The title refers to the Greek chorus, which is composed of Phoenician women on their way to Delphi who are trapped in Thebes by the war. Patriotism is a significant theme in the story, as Polynices talks a great deal about his love for the city of Thebes but has brought an army to destroy it; Creon is also forced to make a choice between saving the city and saving the life of his son. Hosted by Joel Christensen, with special guest Anna Lamari. Presented by the Harvard Center for Hellenic Studies, the Kosmos Society, and the Out of Chaos Theatre. Stream this video HERE.

Join us for this evening plenary session from our five-year conference series hosted by The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Omohundro Institute of Early American History & Culture, And William & Mary. We will explore how we interpret the archaeological and historical evidence of the Indigenous peoples of early America, and what approaches we take to provide them a voice. Our distinguished panelists include Fallon Burner, Sean Devlin, Russell Reed, Dave Givens, and Darius Coombs.

Significant moments in history are often fraught with difficulty. What is a celebration for some, may evoke painful remembrance for others. Please join panelists Christy Coleman, Executive Director, Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation, Ed Ayers, Tucker-Boatwright Professor of the Humanities, University of Richmond, and Tommy Norment, Minority Leader of the Senate of Virginia, as they delve into a discussion, moderated by Barbara Hamm-Lee, host of WHRO's Another View. They will examine the legacy of the past, and how the ways used to commemorate our history have been revolutionized by a more aware and inclusive approach, one that examines the past and present, and looks toward the future HERE.

Please join this week’s Online Reading of Greek Tragedy with Aeschylus’ drama, “Libation Bearers.” In In this second play of Aeschylus' Oresteia trilogy, which takes place many years after the murder of King Agamemnon, his son Orestes returns to Argos with his cousin Pylades to exact vengeance on Queen Clytemnestra, as an order from Apollo. Hosted by Joel Christensen, with special guests Anna Uhlig and Oliver Taplin. Presented by the Harvard Center for Hellenic Studies, the Kosmos Society, and the Out of Chaos Theatre. Stream this archived video HERE.

Terry Tempest Williams is the author of numerous books, including the environmental literature classic, Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place. Her most recent book is The Hour of Land: A Personal Topography of America’s National Parks, which was published in June 2016 to coincide with and honor the centennial of the National Park Service. Her writing has also appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times, Orion Magazine, and numerous anthologies worldwide as a crucial voice for ecological consciousness and social change. Watch the Recorded Event Here.

This beautiful film features moving wilderness footage from around the world, accompanied by the haunting music of the early-modern French master, Erik Satie. The melodies of these atmospheric pieces use deliberate, mild dissonances against the harmony to produce a piquant, melancholy effect. The compositions are accompanied by the composer’s performance notes to render each piece "painfully" (douloureux), "sadly" (triste), or "gravely" (grave), communicating an affect of pathos and nostalgia for lost origins. The three Gymnopédies and six Gnossiennes are presently available online HERE.

The documentary ATHOS unveils one of Europe’s last remaining secrets: more than 2.000 monks live on the Holy Mountain Athos in Greece, constituting an independent republic devoted entirely to life-as-prayer. For the first time, a film team has gained access to this monastic republic, where they accompanied several monks in their daily struggle for divinity: their everyday lives in the secluded world are composed of praying, singing and working, but also of cooking and celebrating. The monks take the audience with them on their journey to divinity and give insight into their world of prayer and thought HERE.

Pulitzer Prize-winning author and New York Times bestseller Dr. Gordon S. Wood joins the Museum of the American Revolution for a conversation and Q&A on his new book, Power and Liberty: Constitutionalism in the American Revolution, with Museum Chief Historian and Curator Dr. Philip C. Mead. Wood's latest book distills a lifetime of work on constitutional innovations during the Revolutionary era. Exploring how Americans have experienced the nature of power, liberty, representation, rights, and other issues, Wood presents debates over the foundational legal and political documents of the United States with timely insights on the Constitution HERE.

“Distinctions between Virginians, Pennsylvanians, New Yorkers, and New Englanders, are no more. I am not a Virginian, but an American.” Patrick Henry (May 29, 1736 – June 6, 1799) was an American attorney, planter, statesman, orator, and Founding Father best known for his declaration to the Second Virginia Convention in 1775, "Give me liberty, or give me death!" After the revolution in which he played so important a role, Henry served two terms as the post-colonial Governor of Virginia. Please join the brilliant Richard Schumann of Colonial Williamsburg as he brings the great orator to life HERE.

Trade between various American Indian groups and colonists was an important component of cultural, economic, and political life in colonial Virginia. What kinds of goods were being exchanged? Where and how were they made? How was business conducted among such a diverse group of people with differing aims and agendas? Join our American Indian Interpreters and Historic Trades staff as they seek to answer these questions and others HERE.

Please join this week’s Online Reading of Greek Tragedy with the concluding play in Aeschylus’ powerful Oresteia trilogy, “Eumenides.” In accordance with the advice of the god Apollo, Orestes has killed his mother Clytemnestra to avenge the death of his father Agamemnon at her hands, then finds himself tormented by the Furies for the blood guilt stemming from his matricide. Hosted by Joel Christensen, with special guest, Ellen McLaughlin, Andrew Simpson, and Oliver Taplin. Presented by the Harvard Center for Hellenic Studies, the Kosmos Society, and the Out of Chaos Theatre. Stream this video here.

Harvard Book Store's virtual event series welcomes ROBERT GROSS—the award-winning, bestselling author of The Minutemen and Their World—for a discussion of his latest book, The Transcendentalists and Their World. He will be joined in conversation by MEGAN MARSHALL, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Margaret Fuller: A New American Life HERE.

How can historic sites and museums best present American Indian heritage past, present, and future? Join Colonial Williamsburg’s Supervisor of American Indian Interpretation Martin Saniga and American Indian Interpreters Christopher Custalow and Kody Grant for a discussion about American Indian interpretation in living history settings HERE.

Please join this week’s Online Reading of Greek Tragedy for a collection of surviving fragments of no-longer extant plays. Hosted by Joel Christensen, with special guests Melissa Funke (University of Winnipeg) and Charlotte Parkyn (University of Notre Dame). Presented by the Harvard Center for Hellenic Studies, the Kosmos Society, and the Out of Chaos Theatre. Stream this archived video HERE.

Pictures printed from engraved plates often teach our historic tradespeople more about 18th-century practices than printed words do. Join our engravers as they demonstrate some of the techniques used to create these plates and lead a discussion with several tradespeople on period printed images, what they can teach us about the past, and their limitations HERE.

The idea of celebrity has been around since the dawn of creation and was as much a driving cultural force in the 18th century as it is today. Join America’s first celebrity actress, Nancy Hallam, as she discusses her career on the 18th-century stage and the repercussions of being a public figure on her private life HERE.

There are no known first-hand accounts of Christmas holidays written by a member of Monticello’s enslaved community or a descendant. Yet other primary sources shed light on a season that was at once a complicated mix of labor, resistance, celebration, and family reunion. Please join for a live Q&A with Emmanuel Dabney, Museum Curator at the Petersburg National Battlefield, and Brandon Dillard, Monticello’s Manager of Historic Interpretation, as we discuss winter holidays for those who lived and labored in bondage.

Please join this week’s Online Reading of Greek Tragedy with Sophocles’ stunning dramatic work, “Oedipus Colonus,” widely regarded as among the masterpieces of ancient Greek tragedy. Like Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” the characters and plot of this powerful dramatic series have become archetypes of world culture. Hosted by Joel Christensen, with special guest Laura Slatkin (New York University). Presented by the Harvard Center for Hellenic Studies, the Kosmos Society, and the Out of Chaos Theatre. Stream this archived video here.

Ann Wager (ca. 1716–1774) took up teaching after the death of her husband William in 1748, working for two years as governess to the Burwell children at Carter's Grove. She had at least two children of her own, William and Mary. In 1760 the Associates of Dr. Bray, a group of philanthropists in England, followed Ben Franklin’s recommendation to establish a school “for the instruction of Negro Children in the Principles of the Christian religion.” They hired Wager to teach at the Bray School, where, over the course of fourteen years, she taught over 400 African American boys and girls. Please join Mrs. Wager in 1773 as she speaks about her experience over the holiday season, and its connection to her school.

Michael W. Twitty is an African-American Jewish writer, culinary historian and educator. He is the author of The Cooking Gene, published by HarperCollins/Amistad, which won the 2018 James Beard Foundation Book Award for Book of the Year as well as the category for writing. Please join the acclaimed culinary historian, author, and interpreter for this special presentation to learn about how food for the holiday season was prepared and consumed in 18th century Virginia.

The tailors will discuss past and current projects highlighting collaboration with other trades, Colonial Williamsburg's collections and conservation departments, and other museums HERE.

From Philadelphia in 1776 to Paris in the 1780s, Thomas Jefferson spent time in the august company of his “great and dear friend” Benjamin Franklin. Born more than a generation apart and differing on some issues like slavery, they were nevertheless great companions and intellectual colleagues. In this week’s livestreams we’ll explore the relationship between Jefferson and Franklin and its impact on the early Republic. First, please join us for a live Q&A with Thomas Jefferson, interpreted by Bill Barker, and Benjamin Franklin, interpreted by Bill Robling HERE.

Our study of music in Early America continues with this third episode in our five-episode series. Our last two episodes (Episode 343 and Episode 344) helped us better understand the musical landscapes of Native North America around 1492 and colonial British America before 1776. In this episode, we jump forward in time to the early days of the United States. Glenda Goodman, an Associate Professor of Music at the University of Pennsylvania and the author of the book Cultivated by Hand: Amateur Musicians in the Early American Republic, joins us to investigate the role of music in the lives of wealthy white Americans during the earliest days of the early American republic HERE.

Engraving was a historically important method of producing images on paper in artistic printmaking, in mapmaking, for commercial reproductions and illustrations for books and magazines, and also for decorating and identifying objects. Whether the latter use is undertaken for decoration, identification, commemoration, memorialization, or documentation, there are many ways engraving can enhance an object. Visit with Colonial Williamsburg’s Engravers to find out how engraving is done and the role it has played throughout history HERE.

What was music like in Early America? How did different early Americans—Native Americans, African Americans, and White Americans—integrate and use music in their daily lives? Your questions about music inspired this 5-episode series about music in Early America. Our exploration begins with music in Native America. Chad Hamill, a Professor of Applied Indigenous Studies at Northern Arizona University, is an ethnomusicologist who studies Native American and Indigenous music. He will guide us through Native North America’s musical landscapes before European colonization HERE.

Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin’s friendship was significant in the founding of America. Please join us at Monticello for a live Q&A with Philipp Ziesche, Associate Editor of The Papers of Benjamin Franklin at Yale University Library. We’ll discuss Jefferson and Franklin’s collaborations, shared and differing political visions, and their impact on American history HERE.

How are the many buildings in the historic area of Colonial Williamsburg kept clean, safe, and secure? The Historic Interiors & Collections Care staff of the Conservation Department are the heroes here! Learn about what happens behind the scenes before we open our doors each morning, the skills it takes to create the historic settings and displays, and how we work with other departments to provide safe and creative care of collections that are open to guests daily HERE.

Martha Washington (1731 – May 22, 1802) was the wife of George Washington, the first President of the United States. Although the title was not coined until after her death, Martha Washington served as the inaugural First Lady of the United States. During her lifetime, she was "Lady Washington", famous for her courage, good cheer, and hospitality. Please join Mrs. Washington in 1773 as she discusses her family’s difficult year, their hopes for the coming time, and her family's Christmas traditions.

Edith Cumbo (born ca. 1735) was born a free black woman in the Tidewater region of Virginia. By the late 1770s, she was living in Williamsburg as one of only a handful of free blacks in the city. Independent and resourceful, Cumbo headed her household and used her housewifery skills to earn a living. Her story illuminates the lives of free blacks during the American Revolution. Please join host Rose McAphee for her discussion with Nation Builder character interpreter Emily James as they reflect on their decades of experience at Colonial Williamsburg as historical interpreters and researchers. Why do they do it? How is it done? What has changed over the last 40 years?

Christmas is a time of feast, celebration, and remembering. At Colonial Williamsburg, it is a time to learn about the foods of Christmas past! Please join members of our Historic Foodways team live from the Palace kitchen as they prepare a holiday supper fit for a royal governor. How has holiday cooking changed over time, and what would we still recognize today? Bring your questions of prepare for a Christmas feast HERE.

Colonial Williamsburg has a lot of holiday traditions of its own, developed over nearly a century of operations. But our modern holiday practices are very different from the way our 18th-century forebears experienced the holiday season. Please gather round as veteran interpreters Al Lovelace and Robert Watson join Stacy Loveland for this fascinating program about how the holidays were really celebrated by 18th-century Virginians, live and archived HERE.

The Frogs tells the story of the god Dionysus, who, despairing of the state of Athens' tragedians, travels to Hades to bring the playwright Euripides back from the dead. After a debate in Hades, Dionysus decides to take Aeschylus back instead. Pluto allows Aeschylus to return to life so that Athens may be succoured in her hour of need. The rollicking comedy concludes with a round of farewell drinks. Hosted by Joel Christensen, with a cast of thousands! Presented by the Harvard Center for Hellenic Studies, the Kosmos Society, and the Out of Chaos Theatre. Stream this archived video here.

Join Colonial Williamsburg as we celebrate Christmastide this Thursday the 24th at 2pm EST with the premiere of "What We Hold." Follow a journey across Williamsburg to experience how, through personal connection, small gestures can have large impacts. What do you hold? What do you possess? What gesture of common human kindness is within your power to give?

In Japanese tea ceremony, the host serves traditional kaiseki cuisine, sake, and tea to guests. The ritual, established as an art form more than four centuries ago, is believed to be the foundation of Japan’s “omotenashi” hospitality. In this short film, one woman has decided to embark on a unique nationwide pilgrimage to immerse herself in the art. At 70, Tsuruko Hanzawa has loaded her pots, pans, and tools for making tea into a van and set off in her kimono, serving food using local ingredients and tea to the people she meets along the way. This documentary follows Tsuruko for two years as she battles illness to continue her pilgrimage.

A Black Artist’s Haven on a (mostly) White Vineyard. Martha’s Vineyard has long been seen as primarily a summer getaway paradise for the East Coast elite. Its reality, however, is far more complex. Dotted throughout the posh homes in this gorgeous island are substantial communities of minorities. One of the biggest and most popular, the town of Oak Bluffs, has welcomed and inspired generations of Black Americans, including an artist and doll maker named Janice Frame. In the winter issue of Craftsmanship Quarterly, we examine the world of Black artists on Martha’s Vineyard HERE.

Dr. Robert Gross is Draper Professor of Early American History Emeritus at the University of Connecticut, and Founding Member of the Advisory Council of the Innermost House Foundation. He is author of the Bancroft Prize-winning classic, The Minutemen and their World, and now introduces its long-awaited sequel, The Transcendentalists and Their World. We invite you to join the Thoreau Society at Thoreau Farm in Concord, Massachusetts, for this free introduction to a book destined to play a central role in the future of the Innermost House project HERE.