Continental Army Encampment

The life of a Revolutionary War soldier is vividly portrayed in a re-created Continental Army encampment. Historical interpreters describe and depict daily routines of American soldiers during the last year of the war, with demonstrations of military drills, musket and artillery firing, 18th-century surgical and medical practices, and the role of the quartermaster in managing troop supplies.

The encampment represents two companies of soldiers – one quarter of a regiment. The setting includes a dozen soldiers’ tents, an office for an adjutant or secretary, two captains’ quarters and an earthen “kitchen” for one company.  There are several regimental features – quarters for a colonel, surgeon and quartermaster – and a women’s area with makeshift shelters. Women who followed the army were related to soldiers and earned wages by performing domestic chores such as laundry.

Explore the soldiers’ tents, try on a military coat, and join in periodic wooden-musket drills. Visitors also may be recruited to join an artillery crew to learn the steps to prepare a battalion gun or mortar for firing.

Listen to an audio interview with Yorktown Victory Center historian Edward Ayres and Steve Clark of WCVE Community Ideas Station on "Colonial Medicine."


Watch a video about the mechanics of 17th- and 18th-century muskets. Historical interpreters present daily flintlock musket demonstrations in the encampment.