"Treasure of Flowerdew," from Time magazine, 20 November 1972

Dr. Norman Barka with a model of the manor house

Manor house model

America's "King Tut"

In 1971, Lefty Gregory and Norman Barka, both of Southside Historical Sites and the College of William and Mary, uncovered a site at Flowerdew Hundred containing the stone foundation of a manor house. Offering some of the earliest glimpses of colonial America outside of Jamestown, the intriguing discovery received national attention, including coverage in Time magazine. Archaeologists originally believed the structure to be the earliest example of permanent architecture in British Colonial America. They hypothesized that it featured a massive cruck framing system--long, inward-leaning timber beams that form the roof line--set directly on top of the ground with earthen walls supported by siltstone foundations, as seen on this reconstructed model. Through the second half of the 20th century, physical models served as an important presentation tool for archaeology.