One day during our vacation to the Outer Banks, we visited Festival Park on Roanoke Island. Here we went aboard Elizabeth II, a replica (technically a composite representation) ship modeled after the Elizabeth which first arrived in Roanoke in 1585. The design is a 16th century merchant ship. (I borrowed the above picture to show you what the ship looks like sailing. We didn't get to sail.)
Since I write scenes set in the 1600s aboard ships similar to this, I considered this research.
The captain's table complete with all his instruments, food and a rat.
Between decks. The food was cooked here. You can see the pot near the center of the picture. Also most passengers would've stayed here.
The Silver Chalice is Elizabeth II's boat. This small boat would've been used to carry passengers and cargo from the big ship to shore because back then most large ships couldn't get close to shore. Read more about the Silver Chalice here And here you can learn more about Elizabeth II
Festival Park has many areas to visit including The Settlement, which is a replica settlement similar to the ones the English lived in here in the late 1500s when they first arrived. Below is the smithy or blacksmith shop. The park employs actors to reenact what it might have been like, complete with Elizabethan English accents. Very cool!
Tents in the Settlement.
Festival Park also has many squirrels which are almost tame. They love peanuts. This guy followed us around a while.