A New Website About Colonial Taverns

Some taverns from the Colonial era sit on street corners where ancient Indian trails once crossed. Others survive in the center of major cities, their welcome signs standing out incongruously against skyscrapers looming overhead. 

If you do the research, you'll find more than 200 taverns still existing that served the first generation of Americans. Some of them, like the White Horse Tavern in Newport, RI, have hosted patrons for more than three centuries.

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But that research is not easy to do because, surprisingly, there is not a single place on the Internet where you can find a definitive list of these living museums. American Heritage is going to fix that deficiency.

An informal team of writers and videographers has been crisscrossing the Thirteen Colonies (and beyond), dedicating many hours to research, photograph, and describe the most important Colonial and Founding-era taverns — hallowed places where you can still lift a drink to the men and women who built our country.

“The project got started when I was looking for a way to get my two sons more interested in American history,” says Edwin S. Grosvenor, the magazine's editor. “I thought maybe beer would work.”

“As we traveled from tavern to tavern, it was great to see my sons get fascinated with these historic sites,” he continued. “They learned about major dramas that happened in places like Lexington and Philadelphia. And they discovered that many of the men who fought for our freedom were young guys their age.”

American Heritage is now looking for a sponsor or sponsors to help it build a major website and create videos so that more people can discover these wonderful places. 

Starting at the Mount Vernon gristmill built by George Washington (who was America’s largest distiller at the time), American Heritage will film taverns and interview their proprietors from New Orleans to Maine in a quest to find the most historic and authentic taverns.
 

The website will provide detailed listings of the taverns, with photographs, addresses, and the detailed research we are able to uncover.

We will also create more than a dozen videos providing interviews of experts and views of what can be seen at the various locations.

"We're excited about the possibility of connecting Americans to their shared heritage — like we have for 70 years — but with videos and new media," says Grosvenor. "And show them fun places to visit and enjoy a nice meal!"

The team plans to interview archaeologists at the original Jamestown fort to uncover evidence about what beer and spirits were consumed their 400 years ago.  

And make a special effort to research nearly 40 taverns and inns where George Washington is alleged to have visited, including Gadsby’s Tavern where our first President celebrated his birthdays and took refreshment before the long coach ride home to Mount Vernon. 

“There's really no one better to undertake this huge task than American Heritage,” Grosvenor says. “We've been working on this for a long time, but we really need a sponsor or donors to help us underwrite the costs of the research, the writing, the travel, the editing, the video production. It's a big job, but with your help I think we can do something really important.”