词汇提示

1.prosperous 繁荣的

2.Powder magazine 弹药库

3.fairs 集市

4.auctions 拍卖

5.drafted 起草

原文

Colonial Williamsburg

Travelers in the desert or the jungle sometimes see the remains of old cities.

These cities were once large and prosperous, but something has changed.

Perhaps the climate got drier or wetter; perhaps the trade routes, which had brought merchants to the city, now went elsewhere; perhaps enemies destroyed them; or perhaps disease or famine drove the people away.

Other cities, which were once important, have become less so in time.

Jamestown,Virginia, the first English colony in America is now only an historic site.

It began as the capital of Virginia.

But when fire destroyed the government buildings in 1699, the capital was moved to nearby Williamsburg.

Williamsburg was an important town for many years.

The British Governors lived there, and two of them worked on the plans for the town and its buildings.

The College of William and Mary was established there in the 1690s - the second oldest college in America.

As the capital, Williamsburg contained many public buildings, including a courthouse, a jail, a powder magazine, the governor's palace, and the government building.

Of course, there were many private houses as well.

From 1699 until 1780, Williamsburg was the capital of Virginia.

Many people came there for government and legal business.

It was also a social center with dances, fairs, horse races and auctions.

The Governor and his wife provided expensive dinners and entertainment for their guests.

Most of the important people in Virginia owned tobacco plantations.

In 1612, John Rolfe had first raised tobacco to sell to England.

Soon tobacco farming was Virginia's most important business.

Most planters were able to build large houses and buy slaves to do their work.

One plantation owner is said to have owned 300,000 acres of land and 1,000 black slaves, as well as having large amounts of money.

The planters were the leaders of this colonial society, and they resented British interference in their local government.

When England imposed taxes on the American colonists in 1765, it was a Virginian, Patrick Henry, who spoke against them.

His words, "Give me liberty, or give me death" helped to inspire the American Revolution.

As complaints about British rule increased, it was Virginians who led the rebels.

George Washington became commander of the revolutionary army, and Thomas Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence in 1776.

In 1780, the capital of Virginia was moved to Richmond.

Williamsburg was now simply a small college town of local importance.

Not much changed in Williamsburg for many years.

In the twentieth century, the Reverend Dr. Goodwin, who was the priest at the Williamsburg Church, had the idea of restoring Williamsburg to the way it appeared in colonial days.

Goodwin approached John D. Rockefeller Jr. with his idea, and Rockefeller agreed to finance the project.

Beginning in 1926, the old buildings of Williamsburg were restored to their original form.

First were the college buildings, then the Raleigh Tavern, the government building, the governor's palace and so on.

Buildings that had been destroyed over time were reconstructed from plans and descriptions.

Soon the restored buildings were opened to the public.

Guides,dressed in eighteenth century costumes, show visitors through the buildings and gardens.

Visitors can also travel to nearby tobacco plantations.

Now tourists who pay admission to visit this wonderful historic town finance much of the work of restoration and conservation.

翻译

殖民地威廉斯堡

在沙漠或丛林中的旅行者有时会看到古城的遗迹。
这些城市曾经是大而繁荣的，但有些事情发生了变化。
也许气候变得更干燥或更潮湿;也许曾经把商人带到城市的贸易路线现在去了别的地方;也许是敌人摧毁了他们;也可能是疾病或饥荒把人们赶走了。
其他一些曾经很重要的城市，随着时间的推移，已经变得不那么重要了。
弗吉尼亚州的詹姆斯敦，英国在美国的第一个殖民地，现在只是一个历史遗迹。
它最初是弗吉尼亚州的首府。
但当1699年大火烧毁政府大楼时，首都就搬到了附近的威廉斯堡。
威廉斯堡多年来一直是一个重要的城镇。
英国总督住在那里，其中两人负责规划小镇及其建筑。
威廉玛丽学院于17世纪90年代在那里建立，是美国第二古老的学院。
作为首都，威廉斯堡有许多公共建筑，包括法院、监狱、火药库、州长官邸和政府大楼。
当然，也有许多私人住宅。
从1699年到1780年，威廉斯堡是弗吉尼亚州的首府。
许多人来这里是为了政府和法律事务。
它也是一个社交中心，有舞会、集市、赛马和拍卖。
总督夫妇为客人提供昂贵的晚餐和娱乐。
弗吉尼亚的大多数重要人物都拥有烟草种植园。
1612年，约翰·罗尔夫(John Rolfe)首次种植烟草，并出售给英国。
很快，烟草种植成为弗吉尼亚最重要的产业。
大多数种植园主能够建造大房子，并购买奴隶来干活。
据说一位种植园主拥有30万英亩土地和1000名黑人奴隶，还拥有大量资金。
种植园主是这个殖民地社会的领袖，他们憎恨英国对当地政府的干预。
当英国在1765年向美洲殖民者征税时，是弗吉尼亚人帕特里克·亨利(Patrick Henry)反对他们。
他的名言“不自由，毋宁死”激发了美国革命。
随着对英国统治的不满不断增加，领导叛乱的是弗吉尼亚人。
乔治·华盛顿成为革命军队的指挥官，托马斯·杰斐逊在1776年起草了《独立宣言》。
1780年，弗吉尼亚的首府迁至里士满。
威廉斯堡现在只是当地一个重要的大学城。
威廉斯堡多年来没有太大变化。
在二十世纪，威廉斯堡教堂的牧师古德温(Goodwin)博士有一个想法，要把威廉斯堡恢复到殖民时期的样子。
古德温向小约翰·d·洛克菲勒提出了他的想法，洛克菲勒同意为这个项目提供资金。
从1926年开始，威廉斯堡的老建筑被恢复到原来的样子。
首先是大学大楼，然后是罗利酒馆，政府大楼，总督宫殿等等。
随着时间的推移，被摧毁的建筑物根据计划和描述进行了重建。
很快，修复后的建筑向公众开放。
导游穿着18世纪的服装，带领游客参观建筑和花园。
游客还可以前往附近的烟草种植园。
现在，那些付费参观这个奇妙的历史小镇的游客为修复和保护工作提供了大量资金。

Level 4-Day 85.Colonial Williamsburg

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