Press Releases

Bentonville Battlefield State Historic Site is excited to announce the return of its nature-themed event, “Bentonville in Bloom.” The event on Saturday, April 23 will showcase the natural resources and wildlife that can be found at Bentonville. As battlefield preservation has grown to more than 2,000 acres, the wildlife communities found within those acres have also been conserved. Visitors to “Bentonville in Bloom” can learn more about the ecosystem from experts on the flora and fauna of eastern North Carolina.

Bicycling is one of the simplest and cheapest ways to travel. But early bicycles, with their wooden wheels and frames and poor steering, were much different from today’s sleek, multi-geared vehicles made of lightweight composite materials and offering a variety of safety features.

On March 30, Foothills Conservancy of North Carolina and the North Carolina Division of Parks and Recreation closed on the purchase of 2,249 acres in McDowell County to become part of Bobs Creek State Natural Area. This purchase is the last of three acquisitions for the new state natural area and increases its total size to more than 6,000 acres. The first two phases of the project, about 3,700 acres, were purchased in 2019.

Polk County has been chosen as the subject of a comprehensive survey of historic buildings and landscapes planned from 2022-23. 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.

The State Library of North Carolina, in partnership with the North Carolina Library Association's Roundtable on Ethnic and Minority Concerns and with consultation from Dr. Love Jones of Interwoven Consulting, has created the Racial Equity in Libraries Toolkit.

To celebrate National Poetry Month, the State Archives of North Carolina, in collaboration with the North Carolina Arts Council, will host "History in Verse," featuring N.C. Poet Laureate Jaki Shelton Green. The virtual program on documentary poetry is set for Thursday, April 7, at 7 p.m. This online event will explore Green’s own work in documentary poetry — poetry that captures a historical moment by combining primary source materials with verse. Green will discuss the relationship between poetry and historical events and read some of her own work.

The CSS Neuse Civil War Interpretive Center is excited to premier a dinner theater event that has been two years in the making.

A free online program hosted by the Western Office of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources will examine the history of the railroad in western North Carolina.It is widely recognized that the railroad opened the mountain region to the outside world, but few realize the Western North Carolina Railroad between Salisbury and Murphy was built primarily with convict labor.

A fun activity soon will return to Reed Gold Mine. Visitors again will be able to pan for gold from April 1-Oct. 31, Tuesdays through Saturdays, weather permitting. Tickets are $3 per pan (plus tax) for individuals 8 and older and are available for sale at the site gift shop counter. Space is limited and there is a limit of two tickets per person. There are no advance reservations and tickets will be sold first-come, first-served. Session times will be sold and filled in order throughout the day.

A repaired historical highway marker recognizing a North Carolina civil rights leader soon will be reinstalled at its original location. Originally dedicated in 2011, the marker honors civil rights leader Ella Baker. It was damaged in 2019 and placed in storage. A ceremony unveiling the repaired marker will take place April 8 at 11 a.m. in Littleton, her childhood home. The marker is being returned to its location on Main Street (U.S. 158) near East End Avenue.