Press Releases

The North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR) announced that its N.C. Trails Committee had awarded 17 grants totaling $1.6 million to local governments and nonprofit organizations for trail projects across the state.

Tracy Minton, the longtime superintendent at Elk Knob State Park, has been named superintendent of New River State Park in neighboring Alleghany and Ashe counties, according to the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation.Minton succeeds Joe Shimel, who was promoted to east district superintendent last year. Ranger Scott Robinson served as acting superintendent during the interim.

The North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR) announced today that it is partnering with the Town of Canton on Chestnut Mountain Nature Park. The park, which is on nearly 450 acres one mile east of Canton, features both hiking and biking trails at the former logging site. The $145,000 investment from DNCR will help complete the park’s final three trails and children’s bicycle playground.

Carolista Fletcher Baum, a fearless advocate for environmental preservation, will be recognized with a North Carolina Highway Historical Marker for her pivotal role in safeguarding the iconic Jockey's Ridge on the Outer Banks. The dedication ceremony for the marker will take place Friday, July 7, at 10 a.m., at 300 Carolista Drive, Nags Head, N.C.

Prepare to have a patriotic Fourth of July celebration through an encounter with history or an adventure with nature at N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (NCDNCR) attractions this year.

This 4th of July, a Raleigh tradition continues! The Capitol will host a ceremony that includes an outdoor naturalization for new citizens. The ceremony will also include a reading from the Declaration of Independence and a wreath laying at the George Washington monument by the Sons of the American Revolution. The Raleigh Concert Band will be performing from 11:30 a.m.-noon, and the ceremony will begin on the south grounds at noon. The Capitol is currently closed to the public.

The North Carolina American Indian Heritage Commission is pleased to announce that the North Carolina Highway Historical Marker Program recently approved highway historical markers for nine American Indian sites in North Carolina. Seven state-recognized tribes of North Carolina, an American Indian school in Sampson County, and an Indian burial mound in Robeson County are all the subjects of new historical markers.

The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources has selected Chrystal Regan as the new executive director of Tryon Palace in New Bern.Regan is currently the Education Section Chief at the North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh, where she led efforts to expand two of the museum’s most prominent annual festivals, the American Indian Heritage Celebration, and the African American Cultural Celebration, to include additional virtual educational programming for people across the state.

The State Library of North Carolina announced the 2023-2024 Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grant awardees today. This year's 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 48 awards, totaling $2,590,904, go to local library projects that:    · Promote Community Engagement,    · Provide Equitable Access, or    · Support Responsive Organizations

To commemorate 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 freed. It signifies the official end of slavery in the United States.