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Though few battles scarred North Carolina soil, the Tar Heel State's participation in the Civil War has been of great interest to historians. Civil War literature ranges from general reading and campaign narratives to children's books and scholarly texts. The following annotated list includes recent studies and classic readings.
The North Carolina Division of Tourism Film, and Sports Development has organized these historic sites and museums into a system of eight Civil War heritage trails. Four trails follow major highways, and the other four explore specific aspects of the Civil War. For more information on these trails, contact the North Carolina Civil War Tourism Council, P.O. Box 31522, Raleigh, NC 27622 or visit http://www.nccivilwar.com/.
Coastal Plain
Piedmont
Mountains
Averasboro Civil War Battlefield
N.C. 82, Dunn
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 5:00 P.M.
(910) 891-5019
http://www.averasboro.com/
Historic markers and a museum tell the story of the March 1865 battle. Highlights include Chicora Cemetery and Lebanon, the 1825 plantation home used as a Confederate hospital.
Battle of Chicamacomico Races
Civic Center-Route 12, Rodanthe
Hours: (May through October) Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.
(252) 987-2417
Outdoor monument commemorating the October 1861 battle.
Bellamy Mansion Museum
503 Market Street, Wilmington
Hours: Wednesday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M., or by appointment.
(910) 251-3700
Fee: Adults, $6; children, $3; children under 5, free
http://www.bellamymansionmuseum.org/
The Union used this spectacular plantation home as its military headquarters following the fall of Wilmington in 1865.
Bentonville Battleground State Historic Site
5466 Harper House Road, Four Oaks
Hours: (April through October) Monday through Saturday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 5:00 P.M.; (November through March) Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 4:00 P.M.
(910) 594-0789
http://www.ah.dcr.state.nc.us/sections/hs/bentonvi/bentonvi.htm
The largest battle fought in North Carolina and the last major Confederate offensive of the war took place here. Harper House (on the site) served as a Union field hospital during the battle.
Cape Fear Museum
814 Market Street, Wilmington
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Sunday, 2:00 to 5:00 P.M.; also open Mondays, Memorial Day through Labor Day.
Adults, $4; seniors and college students, $3; children 5–17, $1; children under 5, free
(910) 341-4350
http://www.co.new-hanover.nc.us/cfm/cfmmain.htm
Established in 1898 as a repository for Confederate relics, the museum presents exhibits that explore the history of Wilmington, blockade running, and the Battle of Fort Fisher.
Carteret County Museum of History and Art
100 Wallace Road, Morehead City
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 1:00 to 4:00 P.M.
(252) 247-7533
http://www.rootsweb.com/~nccchs/
This county museum features a Civil War exhibit and a research library containing extensive sources for genealogical and Civil War research.
CSS Neuse State Historic Site
2612 West Vernon Avenue, Kinston
Hours: (April through October) Monday through Saturday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 5:00 P.M.; (November through March) Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 4:00 P.M.
(252) 522-2091
http://www.ah.dcr.state.nc.us/sections/hs/neuse/neuse.htm
Built to retake Union-held New Bern, the ironclad sank after its crew set it on fire to prevent its capture. It is one of only three Civil War ironclads on exhibit anywhere.
Dismal Swamp Canal Visitors Center
2356 U.S. 17 North, South Mills
Hours: (Memorial Day through October) Monday through Sunday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; (November through May) Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.
(252) 771-8333
See highlights of the Battle of South Mills, in which Union and Confederate forces fought for control of the Dismal Swamp Canal, a vital transportation link.
Duplin County Veterans Memorial Museum
119 East Hill Street, Warsaw
Hours: Thursday and Friday, 1:00 to 5:00 P.M.; Saturday, 2:00 to 5:00 P.M.
(910) 293-2190
This county museum honors area residents who fought in the Civil War.
First Freedmen's Colony
U.S. 64/264, Freedmen's Colony Park, Manteo
Hours: Daily, sunrise to sunset
(252) 473-2138
Outdoor exhibits explore African American life during the Civil War at the site of the country's first Freedmen's Colony.
First Provisional Government of the Civil War
N.C. 12 and Kohler Drive, Hatteras
Hours: Monday through Friday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.
(252) 986-2131
The site includes an exhibit commemorating the country's first reconciliation efforts under Union occupation and a marker relating Hatteras Island's reaction to the capture of Forts Clark and Hatteras.
Fort Anderson State Historic Site
8884 St. Philip's Road Southeast, Winnabow
Hours: (April through October) Monday through Saturday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 5:00 P.M.; (November through March) Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 4:00 P.M.
(910) 371-6613
http://www.ah.dcr.state.nc.us/sections/hs/brunswic/brunswic.htm
The fall of Fort Anderson in February 1865 allowed the Union to take Wilmington and cut supply lines to the Confederate army. Visitors can see the nearly 90 percent of the earthen fort that remain today.
Fort Branch
N.C. 1416, Fort Branch Road, Hamilton
Hours: (April through first weekend in November) Saturday and Sunday, 1:30 to 5:30 P.M.
(800) 776-8566
http://www.fortbranchcivilwarsite.com/
On the banks of the Roanoke River, this earthen fort protected the CSS Albemarle construction site and a railroad bridge. Seven original cannons are on exhibit.
Fort Fisher State Historic Site
1610 Fort Fisher Boulevard, Kure Beach
Hours: (April through October) Monday through Saturday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 5:00 P.M.; (November through March) Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 4:00 P.M.
(910) 458-5538
http://www.ah.dcr.state.nc.us/sections/hs/fisher/fisher.htm
Fort Fisher, the largest Confederate earthen fort, protected blockade runners bound for Wilmington loaded with goods critical to the South.
Fort Macon State Park
East Fort Macon Road, Atlantic Beach
Hours: (November through March, October) daily, 8:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M.; (April, May, and September) daily, 8:00 A.M. to 7:00 P.M.; (June through August) daily, 8:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M.
(252) 726-3775
http://www.ils.unc.edu/parkproject/foma.html
Union troops captured this casemated fort in April 1862 after a land and sea bombardment. Visitors can view restored rooms and explore a museum.
Fort Raleigh National Historic Site
1401 National Park Drive, Manteo
Hours: Daily, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.
(252) 473-5772
http://www.nps.gov/fora/raleigh.htm
This pre-Colonial site contains exhibits on the Civil War and the Freedmen's Colony.
Josiah Bell House
100 block of Turner Street, Beaufort
Hours: (April through November) Monday through Saturday, 9:30 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; (December through March) Monday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.
(252) 728-5225
http://www.beaufort-nc.com/bha/bell.htm
Tour the circa 1825 house of Josiah Fisher Bell, who served as a Confederate spy, and view an exhibit honoring Union and Confederate veterans.
Liberty Hall Plantation
409 South Main Street, Kenansville
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.; Sunday, 2:00 to 4:00 P.M.
(910) 296-2175
Fee: Adults, $5.00; children under 12, $2.50
http://www.cowanmuseum.com/cowan.htm
Tour the nineteenth-century home of the Kenan family and view exhibits and a video presentation highlighting plantation life during the Civil War. The nearby Cowan Museum (free admission) has an extensive collection of rural artifacts.
Museum of the Albemarle
1116 U.S. 17 South, Elizabeth City
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Sunday, 2:00 to 5:00 P.M.
(252) 335-1453
http://www.albemarle-nc.com/MOA
Part of the North Carolina Museum of History Division, this museum features an overview of the Civil War in the Albemarle region and offers exhibits on slavery and antebellum plantation life.
Museum of the Cape Fear
801 Arsenal Avenue, Fayetteville
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 5:00 P.M.
(910) 486-1330
This museum, part of the North Carolina Museum of History Division, features Civil War exhibits and the remains of an arsenal used to supply weapons and ammunition to the South.
New Bern Academy Museum
Corner of Hancock and New Streets, New Bern
Hours: Daily, 1:00 to 5:00 P.M.
(800) 767-1560
Fee: Adults, $15; children, $6 (admission to Tryon Palace Historic Sites and Gardens)
http://www.tryonpalace.org/pages/welcomepgs/a5_frame.html
One gallery in this museum, part of Tryon Palace Historic Sites and Gardens, focuses on the Civil War in New Bern and associated African American history.
North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources Eastern Civil War Office
Waynesborough Historic Village, Goldsboro
Hours: Monday through Friday, 8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.
(919) 581-1040
This office promotes the Civil War through education, interpretation, tourism, research, outreach programs, and technical assistance.
Ocracoke Preservation Society Museum
49 Water Plant Road, N.C. 12, Ocracoke
Hours: Monday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 5:00 P.M.
(252) 928-7375
http://www.ocracoke-museum.org/
See an exhibit containing artifacts from Fort Ocracoke, now submerged in a nearby inlet.
Onslow County Museum
301 South Wilmington Street, Richlands
Hours: Tuesday through Friday, 10:00 A.M. to 4:30 P.M.; Saturday and Sunday, 1:00 to 4:00 P.M.
(910) 324-5008
View Civil War uniforms, firearms, rosters, letters, and other artifacts in an exhibit highlighting Onslow County's participation in the Civil War.
Poplar Grove Plantation
10200 U.S. 17 North, Wilmington
Hours: (February through December) Monday through Saturday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Sunday, noon to 5:00 P.M.
(910) 686-9518
Fee: Adults, $7; seniors, $6; children, $3; children under 6, free
http://www.poplargrove.com/
Costumed interpreters lead visitors through this antebellum plantation and demonstrate nineteenth-century crafts.
Port-o-Plymouth Museum
302 East Water Street, U.S. 64, Plymouth
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.
(252) 793-1377
Fee: Adults, $1.00; children, $ .50
http://home.att.net/~cwppds/plymouth.htm
This museum interprets the Battle of Plymouth, the CSS Albemarle, and Union occupation of the town.
Somerset Place State Historic Site
2572 Lake Shore Road, Creswell
Hours: (April through October) Monday through Saturday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 5:00 P.M.; (November through March) Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.; Sunday, 1:00 to 4:00 P.M.
(252) 797-4560
http://www.ah.dcr.state.nc.us/sections/hs/somerset/somerset.htm
This historic site examines the people who lived and worked at one of North Carolina's largest plantations and the Civil War's impact on plantation life.
Wayne County Museum
116 North William Street, Goldsboro
Hours: Monday through Friday, 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M.; Saturday, 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.
(919) 734-5023
http://www.historicalwaynenc.com/
This museum presents an exhibit about Union general William T. Sherman's march through Wayne County on his way to Raleigh.
Wyse Fork Battlefield
U.S. 70, Kinston
Hours: Daily
(252) 522-2091
Explore the battlefield where Confederate troops tried to halt Major General John Schofield's march on Goldsboro.
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