Topics Related to Living History

Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site will host two living history programs on Saturdays during April. Both programs will run from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.On April 12, the site will present “The Women of Brunswick,” which will showcase the women who lived and worked in the colonial port. Throughout the day, visitors are invited to interact with interpreters who will demonstrate various tasks typical of the time, including woodworking, processing indigo and fabric dyeing, apothecary, and more. A colonial dance lesson will be offered from 2-2:30 p.m.
Bennett Place State Historic Site will commemorate the 160th anniversary of its Civil War surrender with two public programs on April 25-26. These programs mark the end of the 160th-anniversary commemorations of the American Civil War in North Carolina by North Carolina State Historic Sites.
The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources’ America 250 NC initiative has dispersed nearly $1.2 million in a second round of grant funds across 58 counties in the state. The grant-funded projects include new cultural events, physical and digital exhibits, historical markers, and more all inspired by North Carolina’s revolutionary history and the themes of America 250 NC. The America 250 NC Grants are designed to spark programs and activities on a local level to create a memorable and meaningful commemoration of the nation’s 250th anniversary in 2026.
 On April 12, 1776, the 4th Provincial Congress in session at Halifax, N.C., passed a resolution that became known as “The Halifax Resolves.” In this document, North Carolinians declared their grievances against British rule and encouraged their delegates in the Continental Congress to vote for independence. It was the first official action of any of the 13 colonies calling for independence.
Throughout March, in celebration of Women’s History Month, agencies within the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources will showcase the remarkable contributions of North Carolina women through special programs and exhibits.
Experience history come alive at the Bentonville Battlefield State Historic Site 160th anniversary program March 15-16. Thousands of living historians from across the country will descend on Bentonville Battlefield for one of the nation’s largest battle reenactments.     
The North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, Museum of the Albemarle, and Elizabeth City State University, in partnership with PBS North Carolina and Working Films invite teachers and community members to a free screening of American Coup: Wilmington 1898. The film shares the little-known story of a deadly race massacre and carefully orchestrated insurrection in North Carolina's largest city, Wilmington, in 1898.
Fort Dobbs State Historic Site will offer a glimpse of the harrowing days of the Anglo-Cherokee War on March 1 with a living-history commemoration.
On Saturday, Feb. 15 at 2 p.m., Bennett Place State Historic Site will host a free lecture with local historian Ernest Dollar entitled “Jublio: Moments of Freedom, 1865.”Dollar, who serves as director of the Museums Section for the City of Raleigh, will highlight how enslaved people found and claimed freedom for themselves in the final days of the Civil War in North Carolina. This program will explore perspectives of African American men and women’s first moments of freedom as part of the site’s Black History Month programming.
Historic Halifax State Historic Site will mark the 200th anniversary of the Marquis de Lafayette’s historic visit to the town with special programming on Thursday, Feb. 27.