Press Releases

Governor Roy Cooper signed the following bills into law today at a signing ceremony at the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh: •    House Bill 130: East Coast Greenway/State Trails 

Savor history and nature at a state park, aquarium or the zoo July 4 weekend. Numerous activities are planned across the state that coincide with Independence Day.

Living history returns to Fort Dobbs in Statesville. On June 26, Fort Dobbs State Historic Site will host a living history event showcasing camp life when the fort provided shelter to civilians seeking refuge from a 1759 war between British colonists and the indigenous Cherokee of western North Carolina. Costumed re-enactors representing colonists, along with enrolled members of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians will demonstrate historic weapons, cooking and crafts. The program will run from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Admission is free but donations will be accepted.

Fort Fisher State Historic Site will debut “A Memory A People Could Not Forget: Lumbee Indians at Fort Fisher” on Tues., June 29. This new exhibit depicts the contributions and remarkable story of Lumbee Indians at Fort Fisher.

Kevin Bischof is the new superintendent of Gorges State Park in Transylvania County, according to the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation. Bischof succeeds Robert McGraw, who transferred to serve as superintendent at Mount Mitchell State Park last fall. Skyler Hill, a ranger at Gorges, served as acting superintendent for several months.

North Carolina has long sustained strong maritime industries of major consequence, including ship and boat building. A new book from the North Carolina Office of Archives and History examines that maritime and shipbuilding heritage. “Shipbuilding in North Carolina, 1688–1918,” by William N. Still, Jr. and Richard A. Stephenson, documents a comprehensive and authoritative history of maritime industries that dotted the Tar Heel coast.

The North Carolina State Capitol will host a community art collaboration on historic Union Square, Saturday, June 19 in commemoration of Juneteenth. In 2020, the City of Raleigh designated Juneteenth as a city holiday celebrating the official end of slavery in the United States. Juneteenth (short for “June Nineteenth”) marks the day when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1865 to take control of the state and ensure that all enslaved people be freed.

The State Archives of North Carolina will host a virtual roundtable, “North Carolina’s Colonial Court Records,” Tuesday, June 22, 7-8:30 p.m. Learn about colonial North Carolina and new discoveries from the Archives!

The State Library of North Carolina announces the 2021-2022 Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant awardees. This year's $4,843,343 federal allotment will be distributed on behalf of North Carolina's libraries through programs and services available under the North Carolina LSTA Five Year Plan. The 47 awards go to local library projects that: 

 In honor of Juneteenth, numerous N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources sites across the state will feature events and tours throughout the month of June. Juneteenth (short for “June Nineteenth”) marks the day in 1865 when federal troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, to announce that the Civil War had ended and ensure that all enslaved people were now free. It celebrates the official end of slavery in the United States.