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The Great Colonial Restoration When the late President Roosevelt described Duke of Gloucester Street in Williamsburg, Virginia, as "the most historic avenue in all America" he focused worldwide attention on this little Southern city and emphasized the reason why twenty-seven years and some forty-five million dollars have been spent in restoring it to its 18th century appearance. At one time Williamsburg was as important as New York or Boston or Philadelphia. For nearly a century before the Revolutionary War it was the capital of the Virginia Colony. In it were enacted some of the most dramatic scenes of our history. Associated with it were some of our most famous American patriots. Then for the next century and a half Williamsburg was all but forgotten. In 1926, a movement was undertaken to erase the changes of the years, to restore the historic city as it once was.
