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Learn about book making during the 18th century and George Washington's own writings. 

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Offered

Cost

Included with general admission

Located At

Historic Area

“I conceive a knowledge of books is the basis upon which other knowledge is to be built.” George Washington, 1771

Activities

Exploring Book Trades with Colonial Williamsburg

9 a.m. -12 p.m. & 1 p.m.- 5 p.m.

12-Acre Field

How were books made in the 18th century? Visit with special guests from Colonial Williamsburg’s Historic Trades team to learn about printing and bookbinding.

18th-Century Journaling 

9:30 a.m. - 11:45 a.m., 1 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. 

12-Acre Field

Learn about Washington’s travel journal from his 1754 trip to the frontier and create a journal about your visit to Mount Vernon.

Washington's Words

Saturday 12 p.m., 1 p.m., 2 p.m.
Sunday 10 a.m., 12 p.m., 2:30 p.m.

Interpretive Center 

Join George Washington’s personal secretary Tobias Lear for a dramatic reading of Washington’s only published book The Journal of Major George Washington from 1754.

Story Time

11 a.m., 2 p.m.

Bowling Green

A special meeting is taking place in Boston in December 1773. As a young printer's apprentice spreads news of the meeting through the town you'll discover what the meeting was about while learning about different 18th-century trades.