NCMC Events From Around the State… October 12, 2009

1). President James Polk State Historic Site presents James K. Polk Birthday Celebration on October 31. This living history program will bring back to life the Polk family of Mecklenburg County in November 1795, when James K. Polk was born into the family. Activities will include an historic cooking demonstration, children's games and other hands on activities. 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

2). Tryon Palace Historic Sites & Gardens presents Parlor Talk: Pieces of the Past: A History of American Quilts on Thursday, October 15. Speaker: Meghan Bishop, Tryon Palace Historic Interpreter. 12:00 p.m. Free. Bring your lunch and we will provide the beverages. Commission House Parlor. American women have made quilts for centuries. Many of the patterns and styles we use today, inherited from our great-great grandmothers of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, are pieces of our past. Come learn about the history of American quilts.

3). N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences This fall, follow along on a photographic expedition through Alaska’s 19.2-million-acre Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, courtesy of the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences' newest special exhibit, Journey Through the Arctic Refuge, on display Saturday, October 17 through January 10. Free.

4). Cameron Art Museum The Cameron Art Museum is calling for architectural folly designs by architects and artists. Winning designers will construct their projects on the museum grounds (Pyramid Park). All winners are responsible for construction. Structures will remain on view for 6 months. Limit of 3 designs per entrant. This project is organized in conjunction with the museum's recently opened exhibition, “GWATHMEY SIEGEL: Inspiration and Transformation”, on view through January 10, 2010.

5). Greensboro Children’s Museum The Greensboro Children’s Museum will help celebrate the world of imagination at its annual Make Believe Ball featuring special guests Dora the Explorer and her best friend Boots! It’s a magical event where children and parents come dressed in costume and get a chance to participate in all kinds of fun, hands-on activities that will be centered around the Museum’s incredible new traveling exhibit “How People Make Things”. Saturday, October 17, 5-8pm.

6). Port Discover Children will discover different states of matter— liquids, solids, solutions and mixtures—during Port Discover’s Toddler Time, Mix-It-Up, Thursday, October 15 at 10 a.m. The young scientists will learn why measurements are important in science and will put these skills into practice as they make their own bath salts to take home.

7). Museum of the Albemarle The Museum of the Albemarle will hold History Tales: Make It, Take It on Tuesday, October 20, 2009 from 3:30 pm until 4:30 pm. Elementary age participants will learn about major fires within the Albemarle region. View firefighting artifacts from the Museum’s collection and participate in a hands-on activity. This is a free event.

8). North Carolina Collection Gallery On October 15, Tom Bowers, professor emeritus at the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, will speak about the early years of journalism education at UNC-Chapel Hill, and about his new book Making News: One Hundred Years of Journalism & Mass Communication at Carolina. The talk will begin at 5:45 p.m. in the Wilson Special Collections Library on the University campus.

9). Outer Banks History Center The futile efforts of the Wright Brothers to conduct secret flights on the Outer Banks in 1890 is the subject of the latest book by nationally known author Larry Tise. Conquering the Sky: The Secret Flights of the Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk is a detailed narrative of the attempts at secrecy in a world enthralled with path breaking developments in speed, power and flight. Tise will discuss his book at the Outer Banks History Center on Oct. 14, at 7 p.m. in a free program.