17th-Century Home Unearthed in Colonial Williamsburg

Last spring, crews broke ground on a new archaeology center in Colonial Williamsburg that will house the living history museum’s collection of artifacts, as well as laboratories, classrooms and exhibitions. While constructing the center, they made an unexpected—and fitting—discovery: the remains of a 17th-century building and a variety of artifacts from the same period.

Archaeologists are continuing to excavate the site in Virginia, which had been covered by a parking lot since the 1960s. So far, they’ve unearthed a 32- by 24-foot brick foundation (which includes a cellar) and a well located about 40 feet away, according to a statement from Colonial Williamsburg.

Researchers estimate the home may have been built as early as 1660, which would make it the oldest known colonial structure in the area, according to Live Science’s Jennifer Nalewicki. At that time, Williamsburg was known as “Middle Plantation.” (The site was later renamed for William III and became the colony’s capital in 1699. In 1780, the capital relocated to Richmond.) They suspect the building stood until the 1720s or 1730s.

“It’s just wild for us to have found something like that—and appropriate, too,” says Jack Gary, executive director of archaeology at Colonial Williamsburg, in a video announcing the find.

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They also found imported ceramics, wig curlers, diamond-shaped glass window panes and the handle of a silver teaspoon. These artifacts suggest that the 17th-century residents of the house were likely wealthy. 

“A lot of the materials are really the types of materials that an affluent household would have,” says Gary. “This is an amazing site. The artifacts coming out of it are really significant for us to be able to tell the story of what life was like before Williamsburg was ever even founded in 1699. This house was here before then.”

Once they finish excavating and preserving the site, crews will build the new archaeology center on top of it. Most of the foundation will be obscured, but a small section will be visible through a glass floor area.

“Our visitors will be able to literally stand on top of history looking down at it,” says Gary. “It will really remind them that, everywhere they go in Williamsburg, there is history literally underneath their feet.”

The 17th-century home is just one of Colonial Williamsburg’s latest finds. Earlier this year, archaeologists unearthed the remains of a military barracks from the Revolutionary War. Excavations also revealed chimney bricks, pottery, horseshoes, horse bits and pieces of jewelry that likely came from officers’ cufflinks, per WAVY’s Kevin Cheek and Ashley Knight.

Last year, the oldest surviving schoolhouse for Black children in the United States was relocated to its new permanent home in Colonial Williamsburg. Additionally, DNA testing conducted by Colonial Williamsburg and other collaborators helped shed new light on one of America’s oldest Black churches.

The new archaeology center is slated to open in 2026. Curated exhibitions will showcase the museum’s artifacts from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. Visitors will also be able to participate in hands-on activities and physically engage with artifacts in the public archaeology teaching lab.

“Most people don’t realize how much work happens in the lab,” said Gary in a statement last year. “Only 40 percent of a project takes place at the excavation site. The other 60 percent happens in the lab. Right now, our visitors engage with us in the field, but there’s no way for them to follow these projects to completion because we don’t have a facility that can accommodate them. This new archaeology center will change all of that.”

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Sarah Kuta is a writer and editor based in Longmont, Colorado. She covers history, science, travel, food and beverage, sustainability, economics and other topics.