Colonial Dumfries - Williams Ordinary

Colonial Dumfries - Williams Ordinary. . Williams Ordinary is believed to have been built in the 1760s, although the exact construction date is unknown. The building’s symmetrical façade features header bond, a brick pattern rarely found in Virginia. This building was one of the most prominent structures in colonial Dumfries and reflected the port town’s importance and wealth., While the building is known as Williams Ordinary, records are unclear as to whether local tavern keeper George Williams occupied this structure during the 1700s. The building’s name has changed to indicate various owners or uses. It has been called Love’s Hotel, Old Love’s Tavern, the Brick Tavern and the Stagecoach Inn. Research on the building is ongoing. , (caption of picture, lower left) , Williams Ordinary was called Albert’s Hotel when this photograph was taken in the early 1930s. , Courtesy of the Library of Congress, (caption of picture in center) , This detail from a 1751 map illustrates how important tobacco was to colonial ports such as Dumfries. From Peter Jefferson’s and Joshua Fry’s Map of the most inhabited part of Virginia containing the whole province of Maryland with part of Pensilvania, New Jersey and North Carolina. Courtesy of the Library of Congress, Colonial Dumfries, Founded in 1749 by Scottish merchants, Dumfries’ port rivaled those in Boston and New York. Dumfries became the Prince William County seat in 1759. Sailors, slaves, merchants and members of the influential Lee, Fairfax, Mason and Washington families frequented the town. By 1763, falling tobacco exports and silt clogging the port began Dumfries’ slow economic decline. , What’s an Ordinary?, The term ordinary was common in Europe and early America. These establishments provided travelers with an ordinary meal and sleeping space. Such places were also called taverns or inns. Ordinaries were the social centers of a community where patrons met and exchanged news. Many taverns operated in Dumfries, but those operating in this building were likely among its finest. , (caption of picture, lower right) , Ordinary patrons danced, gamed, drank and visited, as artist John Lewis Krimmel (1786-1821) showed in this c. 1820 watercolor of an American country tavern. , Courtesy of the Library of Congress