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Interpreting the history of Flowerdew Hundred is an ongoing process. During the last quarter of the twentieth century the current landowners have supported research and promoted interpretation of this important historic site. Archaeological excavations from the 1970's through the mid-1990's have produced vital information concerning the centuries of habitation along these banks of the James River. 20th Century: Interpreting the Past The unique artifacts uncovered during the excavations serve as the central focus for the Flowerdew Hundred Museum exhibits. Ongoing research in the laboratory has added significant data to Virginia's archaeological record, thereby contributing further knowledge to the Commonwealth's historic database. 
Built on a ridge overlooking the James River, the post-type windmill at Flowerdew Hundred commemorates the original mill, considered to be the earliest in English North America. Constructed by English millwright Derek Ogden, the present windmill is representative of a type once common in the English Midlands and incorporates features that reflect the development of windmill technology through the eighteenth century. It is an outstanding example of the art and work of an almost extinct craft, that of the traditional millwright. Both the windmill and the replicated detached kitchen are central to the twentieth-century view of the past four centuries at Flowerdew Hundred. |
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