REBUILDING THE PAST

For a time, Bob and Darlene Pors lived in the style of Virginia’s colonial capital, and when they moved back to Pennsylvania, they wanted to re-create Williamsburg’s sophistication. A replica of the 1750s Orrell House is the stunning result.

Dawn C. Adiletta

THE BARON REVISITED: STIEGEL GLASS IN COLONIAL AMERICA

Although an enterprising German immigrant created one of America’s most successful glass works before the Revolution, few besides glass collectors and museum curators are familiar with the “Baron” and his colorful table wares.

Ware Petznick

A BRIGHTER LIGHT

A recent restoration brought back the vibrancy of Emily Dickinson’s birthplace and lifelong home, where she composed the poetry now recognized as among America’s best. Understanding this house, and that of her brother next door, helps illuminate her verses.

Jeanmarie Andrews

DOWNSIZING IN STYLE

After 37 years in their magnificent colonial home in Michigan, Lyn and Karen Beekman opted to build a smaller house meant for single-floor living and less maintenance. The new design—an early-1700s-style cape—is even more faithful to its period than their first home.

Jeanmarie Andrews

A PLACE OF REMEMBRANCE

The International African American Museum, built on the sacred ground of the most prolific slave trading port in America, Charleston, shares the full history of enslaved Africans, from their roots across the Atlantic to their descendants’ achievements today.

Jeanmarie Andrews

MAKING COTTON KING

Eli Whitney’s cotton gin was neither the first nor the best mechanism for pulling seeds from cotton bolls, though school textbooks still give him the credit. We take a deeper look at the gin’s development and its impact on the growth of America’s cotton empire.

Winfield Ross

CHICKENS: FROM COCKPIT TO KETTLE

Chickens came to America with Columbus, and colonists and soon spread them everywhere—though the fowl were favored as much for their fighting prowess as for their flavor. It took a few centuries before they took over the top spot on American dinner tables.

Rebecca Rupp

FOUNDING FATHER OF FOXHOUNDS

Before fighting for our country’s independence and leading its fledgling government, George Washington liked nothing better than hunting with his dogs. His efforts to breed the perfect hound have earned him recognition as a founding breeder.