Press Releases

Educational activities, photo opportunities and reenactors bring World War II to life at the N.C. Maritime Museum, Saturday, Aug. 11, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. The event is free and open to the public, with family friendly activities from learning what life was like on the home front, to surviving the front lines. 

When students return to Kimberly Park Elementary School in Winston-Salem this school year, they will have visible reminders of a project that brought the farm to the city.

What do Nina Simone, headache powders, Blackbeard, moonshine and Grandfather Mountain have in common? They all had a role to play in the history of North Carolina.

The remnants of the Confederate ironclad CSS Neuse sit in a climate-controlled facility in downtown Kinston, a far cry from the bottom of the Neuse River. How it got there is explained in a new exhibit at the CSS Neuse Civil War Interpretive Center designed by East Carolina University graduate student Samantha Bernard. She is enrolled in the maritime studies program through the history department at ECU, and the exhibit explains the process and purpose of underwater archaeology.

The North Carolina African American Heritage Commission has received a $33,558 federal grant from the national Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) for its project "A Tale of Two Ships: Developing a Research & Interpretation Plan for Revealing Hidden Histories of One Ship with Two

Who needs TVs or tablets? Unplug at Duke Homestead’s “Family Day: Historic Games.” This free event takes place Saturday, July 28, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and is perfect for kids aged two to 10. 

Morrow Mountain State Park added 45 acres of land south of Mountain Creek to its holdings this summer. The new property includes more than 3,000 linear feet of frontage on Mountain Creek, a pristine stream home to rare mussels.

Pilot Mountain State Park in Surry and Yadkin counties will celebrate its 50th anniversary this month with a day full of events at the park. The area near the big and little pinnacles in the Sauratown Mountains became a state park in 1968. The park now consists of more than 3,800 acres and includes a section along the Yadkin River.  

From Stede Bonnet to Blackbeard himself, people have long been fascinated with pirates, which are part of North Carolina history. Who were they? Where did they live? What did they wear? How did they become pirates? Discover pirates as the streets of the town of Bath will be filled with them for the “Pirates in the Port” program July 21, 10 a.m.

A War for Empire that crossed five continents and lasted seven years is remembered at Fort Dobbs State Historic Site, the state’s only link to the French and Indian War. What can be learned about the 1756 construction, and the 50 men garrisoned at the fort? These are the lessons often left to archaeology and the recovery of materials inhabitants left behind.