The American Revolution Museum at Yorktown will present “Cheers! The Spirited History of Alcohol in Colonial Virginia,” a special program in the Talking History Series next Thursday, April 24.
Nick Powers, curator of Collections at the Museum of the Shenandoah Valley, will share the spirited history of Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, which has been infused by alcohol since the early 18th century.
The program begins at 6 p.m., and tickets are $15 per person with advance registration required.
In 1716, colonial governor Alexander Spotswood led an expedition across the Blue Ridge Mountains to claim the valley for the British Empire. Spotswood and his companions toasted King George I with musket volleys, wine, brandy, claret, cider and champagne. From these boisterous beginnings, alcohol impacted Virginians of all social classes. It swayed faith, politics—including George Washington’s first publicly elected office in 1758—and the objects used to display, consume and store it.
The American Re...