DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum to host social and political author lectures

Author and historian Tony Williams will present his final two lectures on America's beginnings in October and November at the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum in Williamsburg.

Williams has written several books on early America, including "Hurricane of Independence," "The Fox and the Covenant," "The Jamestown Experiment" and "America's Beginnings."

At 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 13, Williams will give a speech titled "The Fox and the Covenant: The Epidemic that Altered America's Destiny." Participants will learn about a dramatic smallpox epidemic that raged through Boston in 1721, killing many and tearing apart the fabric of the city, according to a press release.

Williams will also cover the innovative discovery of an inoculation that saved many lives and set up a furious debate between science and religion.

Copies of Williams' books will be available for sale in the museum store, and the author will be available to sign books after the lecture.

Williams will also speak on the topic "Americas Beginnings: Elections" at 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 3. Williams will provide a description of 50 key events that shaped colonial and revolutionary America, according to the release. Books will again be for sale and the author will be available to sign them for guests.

Programs and exhibitions at the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum are supported by the DeWitt Wallace Endowment Fund.

A Colonial Williamsburg admission pass or an annual, museum or Good Neighbor pass will provide access to the programs.

The museum is at 326 W. Francis St., Williamsburg.

For more information, call 800-447-8779 or 757-220-7724 or visit history.org.

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