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Old Dominion in the Seventeenth Century (Documentary Problems in Early American History)

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So much of the time we receive our history distilled by other people's views. Of course there's nothing wrong with this, but sometimes it is refreshing to read what the people at that time thought was happening. Documents like the ones collected in Warren Billing's book are often the only way we know of certain events and practices, especially in seventeenth century Virginia, when so little was recorded and so little is known.

Mr. Billing's notes on the chapters give context and an experienced evaluation, but the best thing is to dig into the documents themselves. The chapter on the lifestyle and treatment of the African people in Virginia is especially interesting and brings up a section of history usually forgotten or ignored. Because so many of our founding fathers were from Virginia, the seventeenth century background is important to understand the laws and lifestyle they were coming from.

Virginia is well known as a center of colonial revolt in the eighteenth century. This book shows the often forgotten story of the just as important previous century through the eyes of those who experienced it.