So I was dinking around with images of some watercolors from the Civil War by William McIlvaine, Jr. and I thought I recognized one of the locations and knew, if I was right, that the changes over 154 years would be much less than would be seen by most other places.
Colonial Williamsburg’s 301-acre (122 ha) Historic Area includes buildings from the eighteenth century (during part of which the city was the capital of Colonial Virginia), as well as 17th-century, 19th-century, Colonial Revival structures and more recent reconstructions. (Wikipedia)
This watercolor by a 49-year-old McIlvaine is of Williamsburg’s Duke of Gloucester Street in 1862. During the Civil War, McIlvaine served as a member of the New York 5th Regiment of Volunteers, so his paintings were of the locations where he served.
This Google Street’s image of Williamsburg’s Duke of Gloucester Street is from as close as I could match to the spot where McIlvaine did the watercolor above . The Church is Bruton Parish Episcopal Church.
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Hi Mike – you’re right not much has changed .. fascinating to see both the shots – amazing what we can do today … cheers Hilary
One of our favorite places in Virginia — and, now, one of Karen’s sisters lives only a few miles from this spot. We’ll probably be making a trip out there some time in the next couple of years.