Press Releases

The Ocean City Beach Community will be honored for its historic role in North Carolina’s civil rights history with a marker on the North Carolina Civil Rights Trail. Founded in 1949, Ocean City was the only place African Americans could purchase coastal property in North Carolina, 15 years before the Civil Rights Act.

The North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources announced today that Jeff Bell has been named as the next director of the North Carolina Arts Council. Bell currently serves as executive director of the Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park and Museum in Wilson and Arts Innovation coordinator for the city of Wilson. Bell brings more than two decades of arts experience to the role, including leadership positions at 21c Museum Hotel in Durham, CAM Raleigh, and Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University.

Montgomery County has been chosen as the subject of a comprehensive survey of historic buildings and landscapes planned from 2021-23. Funding for this architectural survey comes from the Emergency Supplemental Historic Preservation Fund (ESHPF), administered by the National Park Service, for hurricanes Florence and Michael.

Historians will discuss exciting new research about the Regulator Movement in North Carolina during an upcoming program presented by the State Archives of North Carolina. The virtual roundtable, “The Regulator Movement and New Research,” will be held Tuesday, May 24, noon-1 p.m. What was the Battle of Alamance and why did it occur? Pose your own questions about the Regulator Movement to two experts in colonial North Carolina history during a virtual lunch and learn program.

The North Carolina Historic Preservation Office (HPO) will conduct a comprehensive architectural survey of historic buildings, structures, and sites within the Valdese town limits. The survey will be conducted by Audrey Thomas, Architectural Survey Specialist in the Western Office of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources in Asheville.

Three dormitory buildings at the Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum/Palmer Memorial Institute are included in the 2022 list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places. The list is compiled annually by the National Trust for Historic Preservation to raise awareness of the threats faced by some of our country’s greatest treasures.

A  new interpretive center is coming to Fort Fisher State Historic Site in Kure Beach. Nearly three times larger than its 1965 predecessor, the new center will welcome more than a million annual visitors and showcase museum exhibits about the history of Fort Fisher. In addition, the Underwater Archaeology Branch of the Office of State Archaeology will receive a new conservation lab.

The North Carolina State Capitol is hosting legal scholar Seth Barrett Tillman on Thursday, May 5 at 6 p.m. for "New Thinking on Jacob Henry," a virtual talk about North Carolina's first Jewish legislator. Jacob Henry was our state's first Jewish legislator and was elected to serve in the General Assembly during a time when a Protestants-only religious test for public service was enshrined in our state constitution. Legal scholar Seth Barrett Tillman will be looking at Jacob Henry and the legal and historical questions posed by his service in the North Carolina General Assembly.

Construction and renovation of campground facilities, trails, picnic facilities and the pool at Morrow Mountain State Park will cause extensive amenity closures beginning June 13. Closures will include three family campgrounds, family vacation cabins, and picnic shelter A. The park pool will remain closed this season for renovations. Hikers and equestrians can expect periodic trail closures beginning June 13 for the next 12 months. Over 14 miles of trail re-routes and four miles of trail repairs will be completed during this time.

The Queen Anne’s Revenge Conservation Lab will host its annual Open House on Saturday, April 23, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.