Colonial Williamsburg in financial difficulty

[Admiral]

We take care of our own by incorporating these things into our vacations. Next week we'll be at the Henry Ford museum, Greenfield Village and the Rouge factory. I'm really looking forward to next year, we are going to start visiting the civil war sites now that our kids are getting older.

I was going to say its partly the parent's fault for not instilling a culture of respecting and honoring the past, but thought some might react negatively.  Kudos to you and your bride!  The future of this country is in our children, raise 'em up right and we have nothing to worry about!

[Steve N]

I agree, we are where we came from, and the American journey even with it's painful portions has been a wonderful journey. Celebrate it, and you will be a better person.

[barnowl]

Almost every company goes through financial difficulties. The main thing is to tackle these problems in time so that the company is not declared bankrupt.

Bye-bye....

[JohnnyEgo]

Wheeeeeeeee Scambot thread resurrection! At least it made me think of Colonial Williamsburg, which is something I haven't thought about in a long time. We used to go there and the giant pottery place every summer when I was a kid, which always felt like a bait and switch for a 'vacation', especially with Kings Dominion right around the corner. I suspect I'd like it more as an adult, but man did I hate it when I was 12.

[AHill]

Bye-bye....

They are still losing money, but they have a pretty large endowment.  In 2017 and 2018, they withdrew money out of their endowment to remain open.  An article written in Jan 2020 mentioned a new president and CEO.  A 2019 Annual report showed a decline in net assets of $11M from the previous year, which was about a 1.8% decline in assets.  The number of supporters / donors has had a steady increase.  In August 2020, they reported annual operating revenue was up, but and fundraising was down.  Not surprising, given COVID restrictions.  Since their endowment is in the $630M range, they can ride the storm out pretty comfortably, IMO.

[Tapper]

I've visited and found it very interesting and was sorry that I had to leave after one day.  I think the lack of appeal is more a reflection on the current state of society right now.  People addicted to their smartphones, Facebook, Twitter, texting, fast food, video games, etc. . . . even some adults, much less kids, have an attention span measured in nanoseconds.  Nobody seems to take the time to think, consider and reflect on the past, even the immediate past of last week, and instead get their inspiration from things that are more flash in the pan but which have little true substance.  Witness the mindless and seemingly endless drama of Washington playing itself out on Twitter, history being made in 140 characters, or less, with little or no context or substance.  Sort of embarrassing, and certainly not something that allows for the thoughtful reflection upon the past, or the present.  So I would suggest that many people have been conditioned not to think, not to reflect, not to seek places like CW to explore the history of this country, but rather to knee-jerk one way or the other depending on who's got the flashiest option.  In the world of elective entertainment, which CW falls into, there should be no surprise that the theme parks win that battle every time in this environment.  I hope CW rides out this downturn, it is something worth saving.

I wonder what the middle and high school American history curriculum is nowadays, as it clearly does not do much of a job celebrating the history of this country to the point where kids would be excited about seeing a living history of colonial times on display.

This has to be at least part of the problem. My wife is from Virginia and has been there numerous times during her school years. We were there together several years ago, my first and only time. Was part of a business conference my wife was attending. I enjoyed the attractions and thought the experience was a good one. Interesting to see the re-enactments of how it was during Colonial times. It certainly had a unique feel to it, as if you were actually living history.

With little true history being taught in schools these days, along with the emphasis on what a terrible country this is and has been, along with the focus on slavery as if it were in vogue today, no wonder attractions like Williamsburg have gone wanting. Everything these days has to be in some form of instant gratification. Nobody wants to learn about the foundation of anything, i.e. how did it get to where it is now. Same for the history of the country. 

One more thing - I've learned an important lesson in my life about organizations, business and otherwise. When any organization, whether it be a business, school system, Boy Scouts, PTA, sports team, military unit, etc. is not doing well, you can ALWAYS find the source of the problem(s) at the very top. Leadership is vital to success. My guess is that CW is not well led. There's a reason you see new coaches and AD's at failing NCAA football programs each year. Foundations should not be an exception.

Doug

[AHill]

Remember also, that Colonial Williamsburg is not just about blacksmithing and woodworking. They also recreate other household tasks e.g. cooking, spinning yarn, leatherworking, farming, etc. There are also museums and restored homes. I wouldn't count this past year as part of any trends, due to the pandemic.

[MsNomer]

My great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather's house is one of the restored ones there. Orlando Jones.