ncmuseums

An occasional list of exhibits, programs, and events at North Carolina museums. Sponsored by the North Carolina Museums Council.

Tuesday, May 19, 2015

NCMC Events From Around the State… May 18th, 2015



1). The Mount Airy Museum of Regional History (www.northcarolinamuseum.org) announces that back by popular demand, Historic Mount Airy Ghost Tours will begin on Friday, May 22nd and be held at 8 p.m. every Friday, Saturday and Sunday through the end of October.  Join them for an exciting 90 minute, lantern-lit walking tour through Mount Airy's streets and its historic past.  You will hear about 13 of their "less mortal" friends and see some of Mount Airy's final resting places.  Wear comfortable shoes and bring your camera and umbrella, if needed.   Tickets are $13 and pre-paid reservations are required.  Also starting up again on Friday, May 22nd will be the Darker Side of Mayberry Tours which are held at 7 p.m. every Friday, Saturday and Sunday evening through the end of October.  Mount Airy’s history as “Little Chicago” has been swept under the rug a long time ago as the city turned to cleaning up its’ image in the 60s.  This 45 minute walking tour of our downtown area will take you to the areas where murder, mayhem, and moonshine were prevalent.  Tickets are $11 per person.   The Museum’s summer hours will begin on Memorial Weekend – 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday – Saturday and 1 - 4 p.m. on Sundays.

2). North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences (www.naturalsciences.org) announces that this school year’s final Open Minds Teen Science Cafe is not for the faint of heart.  Janna Andronowski, doctoral candidate in Biological Anthropology at the University of Tennessee will present “Forensic Anthropology:  Bones, Crimes and Careers,” which will be held at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences at  Whiteville, on Friday, May 22nd at 5:00 p.m.  Andronowski will discuss her work identifying skeletal, significantly decomposed or otherwise unidentifiable human remains. A visual presentation and hands-on demonstration will emphasize how forensic anthropologists extract vital information on the identity of unknown individuals and the mysterious circumstances surrounding their deaths. Teen Science Cafes are free programs that meet at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences at Whiteville, 415 South Madison Street, downtown Whiteville.  Snacks are provided for all participating teens.  For updated information or questions, contact Vicki DiMuzio at vicki.dimuzio@naturalsciences.org or Kellie Lewis at (910) 914-4185, or visit the Teen Science Café Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Teen-Science-Cafe/.

3). N.C. African American Heritage Commission announces the opportunity to win two free nights of lodging at the National Rosenwald Schools Conference in Durham on June 17th and 18th, courtesy of the National Trust for Historic Preservation! The National Trust offered it at the 2012 conference and they're offering it again. Register by midnight May 31st for your chance to win lodging at the Durham Marriott City Center Hotel. Already registered? Not a problem. All paid registrants will be entered into the drawing. For more information and to register for the conference and enter for your chance to win, please visit   https://registration.sitesolutionsworldwide.com/synergy/v_1_/home/login.php?ccc=0_0_935&syntrack=&scid=935&ccc=0_0_935&syntrack=&scid=935.

4). Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art (www.secca.org) invites you to get your tickets for
Piedmont Wind Symphony's Downton Abbey Evening on Thursday, May 21st at 6:00 p.m. at the Historic Hanes House and the McChesney Scott Dunn Auditorium. The Piedmont Wind Symphony, under the direction of new Artistic Director & Conductor, Matthew Troy, will wrap up its 25th season with “A Downton Abbey Evening.” This fundraising concert event includes an entire evening built around all things Downton! Following the concert, guests will be treated to live jazz music provided by the Matt Kendrick trio, dessert and dancing. Period attire is encouraged. For more information, please visit SECCA’s website.

5). Kings Mountain Historical Museum (www.kingsmountainmuseum.org) reminds you not to miss your last chance to see their latest exhibit, Pioneering Women of Cleveland County! This exhibit has helped focus a spotlight on Cleveland County’s “founding mothers” – the women who helped establish and maintain our area’s industries, hospitals, schools, churches, and civic organizations. If you haven’t already toured the Pioneering Women of Cleveland County exhibit, this week will be your last chance.  The exhibit is scheduled to end after this Saturday, May 23rd, as the Museum prepares to open their next exhibit, Pig Pickin’ & Finger Lickin’: Kings Mountain’s Food History, on June 20th.  This exhibit will explore the local farms, restaurants, and grocery stores that fed the people of this region through the generations, and look at how food production, storage, preparation, and consumption have evolved since the first Europeans settled in this area.  Admission is FREE and open to the public.  Donations are appreciated. 

6). Hands On!-A Child’s Gallery (www.handsonwnc.org) is planning a FAMILY MUD FUN event scheduled for Friday, May 29th  from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. at Berkeley Park.  You may have heard of the upcoming mud run to benefit Hands On! that will be a challenging 3 mile obstacle race in the mud, but this smaller family-oriented event will focus more on those families who enjoy the creativity and programs offered at Hands On!  Family MUD FUN will include muddy games for kids and adults of all ages.  The youngest participants will enjoy painting with mud, finding worms in the mud and other creative muddy activities.  Children ages 10 & under can enjoy a 1 mile mud run.  And, even the parents can participate in activities like mud volleyball and mud tug-of-war.  Tickets for the event are $20 per child ages 2 & up, and this includes a Chick-Fil-A nugget meal, live music throughout the event and muddy games and fun!   All participants must register prior to May 22nd.  You can register for the event by visiting www.handsonwnc.org and registering online.   

7). New Winston Museum (www.newwinston.org) announces the next Salon Series event, the Rise of Winston-Salem Hospitals, on Thursday, May 28th at 5:30 p.m. The second of three "medicine" focused Salon Series events, Paul Wiles of Novant Health, Dick Dean of Wake Forest Baptist Health and a special guest representing historic Kate Bitting Reynolds Memorial Hospital, will discuss the rise of medicine in Winston-Salem from humble beginnings to economic powerhouse. This event is part of our Historic Preservation Month celebration.  This event is free and open to the public. Visit www.newwinston.org for more information.

8). The Earl Scruggs Center (www.earlscruggscenter.org) invites you to a free program sponsored by the NC Humanities Council called ‘Southern Cooking: High and Low’ from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 30th.  This special presentation will be led by John Beck, PhD and will explore how southern cuisine is being taken in new directions by professionally trained chefs who approach the cuisine with the same reverence as chefs have treated French and other celebrated cooking traditions. Call the Earl Scruggs Center at 704-487-6233 or register online at EarlScruggsCenter.org to reserve your free seat. Exhibit admission is additional.

9). N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher (www.ncaquariums.com/fort-fisher) announces that Aquarium Summer Camp registration is now open!  Explore, play, laugh, learn—children enrolled in summer camp at the N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher will do all this and more. Campers, ages 5 to 14, experience outdoor adventure, eco-education and make new friends. Trained marine educators lead the activities and introduce campers to live animals in a safe and fun atmosphere. Aquarium Camp runs 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Friday throughout the summer. Session details are below. Limited transportation to and from summer camp is offered, with pick-up points at a Monkey Junction and Ft. Fisher Ferry locations (This service requires an additional fee and registration). Cost for children 5-11 is $240 per week, $290 for children 12-14. NC Aquarium Society members receive a discount. For more information and to register visit NCAquariums.com/Fort-Fisher.

10). Historic Wilmington Foundation (www.historicwilmington.org) invites you to their Spring Shrimparoo, a friendraiser and membership event, on Thursday, May 28th at 6:30 p.m.  The event will take place at Riverwalk Landing at Elijah’s Restaurant with fresh shrimp, cold beer & live music on the deck. HWF members $20; non-members join HWF at the door. Raffle prizes! Music by Stray Local! Current HWF members can bring a new member to the party & get in free! RSVP by May 27th by calling (910) 762-2511 or visiting www.historicwilmington.org. 

Tuesday, May 12, 2015

NCMC Events From Around the State… May 11th, 2015



1). N.C. Museum of History (www.ncmuseumofhistory.org) invites you to an evening with David McCullough on Thursday, May 21st at 7:00 p.m. at Fletcher Opera Theater at Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts in Raleigh. The evening is presented and sponsored by the N.C. Museum of History Foundation and the Raleigh News & Observer, title sponsors of the event. General admission is $35 (balcony); $50 (orchestra); and $75 (box seats). Taxes and fees apply. Contact Ticketmaster (800-745-3000 or ticketmaster.com/venue/115203) or visit the Duke Energy Center Box Office on Wilmington Street.

2). Asheville Art Museum (www.ashevilleart.org) is excited to present From New York to Nebo: The Artistic Journey of Eugene Thomason, on view May 16 – September 13, 2015.  There will be a special opening reception and gallery talk with Martha Severens on Sunday, May 17th, from 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. A product of the industrialized New South, Thomason as a young man in the 1920s made the pilgrimage to New York to advance his art education and launch his career. Thomason returned to the South in the early 1930s, living first in Charlotte, NC, before settling in a small Appalachian crossroads called Nebo, located about halfway between Asheville and Hickory. This exhibition was organized by the Johnson Collection in Spartanburg, SC. The Johnson Collection is the largest repository of art by Thomason. This exhibition is accompanied by a catalogue written by art historian Martha R. Severens.

3). N.C. Aquarium at Fort Fisher (www.ncaquariums.com/fort-fisher) and DREAMS of Wilmington team up to present DREAMS Community Arts Day on Saturday, May 16th from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.  Local teaching artists from DREAMS help visitors tap into their creative side while exploring the magic of the ocean. Artists lead demonstrations, workshops and hands-on activities in recycled art, ceramics, painting and more. The theme for the day will be turtles in honor of World Turtle Day celebrated globally in May.  Activities are appropriate for children and adults of all ages and are free with Aquarium admission. DREAMS Community Arts Day continues a multi-year partnership between the Aquarium and the Wilmington-based non-profit. The organization is dedicated to providing youth in need with high-quality, free instruction in the literary, visual, multimedia and performing arts. For more information about DREAMS of Wilmington visit www.dreamswilmington.org.

4). Battleship NORTH CAROLINA (www.battleshipnc.com) announces their 50th Annual Memorial Day Observance on May 25th at 5:45p.m. On this special day, people of all generations from across the State will gather together on the deck of the Battleship to pay their respects. This moving and meaningful ceremony includes Duke Ladd Music performing military and patriotic arrangements. The Battleship is honored this year to have guest speakers Major General Gregory A. Lusk, Adjutant General, North Carolina National Guard, and Senator Richard Burr. The Executive Director of the Battleship, Captain Terry A. Bragg and members of the USS NORTH CAROLINA Battleship Commission invite the public to this free event.

5). Hands On! (www.handsonwnc.org), a Child's Gallery in Hendersonville, invites to meet Romeo, the Therapy Dog, on Friday, May 22nd at 3:30 p.m. Romeo will steal your heart as his owner Charlene Farrell discusses his role as a therapy dog. Romeo is a 6 year old Yorkie Terrier. He has been a certified therapy dog for 1.5 years. He visits nursing homes and hospitals. He also has been in a Reading to Rover program in the newspaper and on TV. Charlene will talk about taking care of Romeo and about dog safety. Children will be able to pet and walk Romeo.

6). Earl Scruggs Center (www.earlscruggscenter.org) celebrates the Feast Here Tonight exhibit opening with a grand weekend of events. Virginia Willis, the head chef for our now sold out Four Course Dinner event on May 15th, will host a cooking demonstration on Saturday, May 16th. Southern chef, cookbook author, award-winning food writer, and blogger Virginia Willis is one of the most popular and respected voices on Southern food and cooking. Her latest work celebrates the healthy and wholesome side of Southern fare. The cooking demonstration will take place from 1:00 - 2:30 p.m. with book sales and signing immediately following. Tickets are $15.00 each. You can register online at EarlScruggsCenter.org or by calling the center at 704-487-6233.

7). The Greensboro Science Center (www.greensboroscience.org) is joining a national effort to raise awareness for endangered species. On May 15th they will celebrate Endangered Species Day with a variety of activities including a scavenger hunt for visitors to seek out the Center's resident endangered species. Keeper and aquarist talks throughout the day will be focused on endangered species as well as talks about monarch butterflies and sustainable gardening. In addition to educator presentations, visitors can also learn about the Center's new bee hives and the conservation efforts needed to sustain the species. The focal point of the day will be talented local artists capturing endangered species in paintings.

8). The Museum of the Cape Fear Historical Complex (www.ncdcr.gov/ncmcf) invites you to hear Dr. Matt Farina present “Whose Father Was He: The Orphans of Gettysburg” on Sunday, May 17th at 2:00 p.m.  After the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1-3, 1863, an unidentified, dead Union soldier was found with an ambrotype photograph in his hands, with the images of three young children. Civil War enthusiast, Dr. Matt Farina, will talk about the story of Gettysburg’s famous unknown soldier, based on author, Mark Dunkelman’s research of the 154th New York Volunteer Regiment and the Brickyard Fight on July 1, 1863. The event is free and open to the public. The presentation is part of the community’s 31 Day Salute to the military and is held throughout the entire month of May.

9). Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art (www.secca.org) invites you to Teacher Night at SECCA: Film Screening of Most Likely to Succeed on Tuesday, May 19 from 4:00 - 8:00 p.m.   The evening begins with SECCA Open House which includes: contemporary art, curriculum-based tours, lesson plans and materials, tech demos, and food, beer and wine. The Open House runs from 4:00 - 6:00 p.m., the film screening is from 6:30 - 7:30 p.m., and a discussion follows the screening at 7:30 p.m. This special program is FREE and open to all educators.

10). Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum (www.ncmaritimemuseums.com) invites you to their next Salty Dawgs Lecture Series: Diving the U-85 on Tuesday, May 19th at 2 p.m. Professional diver, Jim Bunch, presents an engaging history of the German submarine U-85, which is highlighted by Bunch having done over 1,000 dives at the U-boat wreck site. Have this master diver sign his book on the subject, as well! This is a North Carolina Humanities Council Road Scholar presentation.   For more information, call 252-986-2995, email maryellen.riddle@ncdcr.gov, or visit www.ncmaritimemuseums.com. Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum, 59200 Museum Drive, Hatteras, N.C. 27943.

11). The Border Belt Farmers Museum & Welcome Center (www.fairmontnc.com/tourfairmont.htm) invites you to Fairmont’s Heritage Days- Part II on Saturday, May 16th 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. on the museum grounds in downtown Fairmont.  This exciting day includes delicious regional food, talented local craft vendors, vintage farm equipment and classic cars on display, and great music. Starting at 10:30 a.m. the band Recovery will be playing country and gospel music from the museum stage followed at noon by the announcement of the BBQ cook-off and pound cake winners Throughout the afternoon:  cloggers from the Detonation Dance Studio Of Laurinburg, the Lumber River Ramblers, and the Fairmont Fancy Feet Line Dancers. Tours of the museum all day.  Plus a $25.00 cash prize to the person (male or female) who dresses the most “countrified”.

Tuesday, May 05, 2015

NCMC Events From Around the State… May 4th, 2015



1). President James K. Polk State Historic Site (www.polk.nchistoricsites.org) invites you to join them on Thursday, May 14th for an evening with author John Bicknell as he discusses his fascinating book, America 1844. Mr. Bicknell will explore a variety of important events from 1844, including the momentous election of 1844. The evening will begin at 7:00 p.m. General Admission: $25.00, Members: $20.00, Students: $15.00. Students must show a valid student ID. Tickets may be purchased at www.presjkpolk.com. Only 30 tickets will be sold for this special event.

2). North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences (www.naturalsciences.org) welcomes North Carolina Potter Ben Owen III, who will give two live pottery demonstrations and a presentation on Friday, May 15th to celebrate the opening of the Museum’s newest special exhibition, Dig it! The Secrets of Soil. A sneak preview of the exhibit will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. The pottery demonstrations will be held from 6 to 6:45 p.m. and 8 to 8:45 p.m. with a lecture entitled, “Roots in Clay” at 7 p.m. in the Museum’s main auditorium. Tickets for the entire evening are $15 for the general public, $10 for members. Space is limited. Visitors will learn how form and utilitarian qualities of pottery influence common styles of pottery today, see how pottery is crafted on the wheel, glazing techniques, and firing processes.  Dig it! The Secrets of Soil runs Saturday, May 16 through Sunday, August 16, 2015. For tickets, call the Museum box office at 919-707-9950 or reserve tickets online at naturalsciences.org.

3). Cowan Museum of History and Science (www.cowanmuseum.org), in Kenansville, presents "Nano Mini-Exhibition," May 7 – August 2, 2015, with a reception, "Nano Night," on May 9, from 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. "Nano," a traveling exhibit developed by the Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network, is an interactive exhibit that engages family audiences in nanoscale science, engineering, and technology. Visitors may build a giant carbon nanotube, play with a tippy table, and discover what ferrofluid does in the presence of a magnetic field. The Museum is open Tue. – Sat., 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Admission is free. Donations are appreciated.

4). Fort Fisher State Historic Site (www.nchistoricsites.org/fisher) invites you to their special upcoming World War II Program. On Saturday, May 9th, Fort Fisher shifts its historical perspective from the American Civil War to World War II when it presents “Fort Fisher’s V-E (Victory in Europe) Day.” Open to the public, this free program runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and features something for all ages eager to learn about World War II. Special guest, historian, and author Cliff Tyndall will be on hand to discuss the period, as well as sign copies of his book, “Greetings from Camp Davis.”  Program highlights include new hands-on kid’s activities, new exhibit items, World War II reenactors and civilians, and a variety of military equipment and memorabilia. Visitors will also have the opportunity to pose with the historical Carolina Beach Moon, a popular photo prop in the 1940s. For more information on the site, call (910) 458-5538.

5). Asheville Art Museum (www.ashevilleart.org) is pleased to welcome back Sarah Stacke, guest curator for Keep All You Wish: The Photographs of Hugh Mangum, for a lecture on Hugh Mangum’s life and work on Friday, May 8th at 5:30 p.m. Visitors will have the unique opportunity to hear Stacke discuss Mangum’s fascinating photographic process and her own pursuit to learn more about the individuals who are the subjects of the photographs.  Working as an itinerant photographer between 1890 and 1922, Hugh Mangum traveled to various small towns in North Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia taking images of men, women and children using his Penny Picture camera and a 5x8 field camera. Keep All You Wish features over 35 images by Mangum, along with photo buttons, fliers, contact sheets and original photographic prints from the artist’s studio.

6). Kings Mountain Historical Museum (www.kingsmountainmuseum.org) invites you to the fourth and final program in their 2015 Women’s History Lecture Series, “Radium Halos”, a lecture & book signing by Shelley Stout, on Saturday, May 9th at 5:30 p.m. Radium Halos is an historical fiction based on the true events of the Radium Dial Painters, a group of female factory workers who, in the early 1920s, contracted radiation poisoning from painting glow-in-the-dark watch and clock dials with radium paint.  Admission is FREE and open to the public.  Donations are appreciated.  To find out more about upcoming exhibits and events, please visit us at: www.kingsmountainmuseum.org  or call (704) 739-1019. 
7). Hands On! (www.handsonwnc.org), a Child's Gallery in Hendersonville, invites to Nano – Imagine and Discover a World You Can’t See – a new engaging exhibition for family audiences about nanoscale science, technology, and engineering. This traveling exhibition opens May 7th and includes hands-on, interactive exhibits that invite exploration of nano phenomena and real world applications and implications for ages 4 to adult. The exhibit will span the Art Area and the current Go Fish! area and will be available for visitors until August 2nd. Visit www.whatisnano.org for more information via digital media, video, podcasts, and more! An audio description for blind and low vision museum visitors is available at whatisnano.org/ad, which may be downloaded at any time. Hands On! is open Tuesday–Saturday 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. and can be contacted at 828-697-8333 or www.handsonwnc.org for more.

8). Vance Birthplace State Historic Site (www.nchistoricsites.org/vance) invites you to join them for “Hardcore Homestead” on Saturday, May 16th from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Join local historians, primitive skills specialists, and wilderness experts on an exploration of the ways 19th-century homesteaders and farmsteaders used, changed, and survived the mountains of Western North Carolina. Bring the whole family and join us for an entire day of engaging demonstrations, lectures, and workshops. Visit the full calendar of events online at http://hscal.ncdcr.gov/vance or follow us on Facebook.

9). The Blowing Rock Art and History Museum (www.blowingrockmuseum.org) is excited to be partnering with the Blowing Rock Historical Society and the Blowing Rock Fire Department on its upcoming exhibition, 1923: The Blowing Rock Fire, open to the public from May 9th - July 26th, 2015. The exhibition takes a detailed look at a significant point in Blowing Rock’s history that left the town anxious to start anew. A reception for this exhibition and others on view will be held during BRAHM’s Summer Exhibition Celebration on Saturday, May 9th from 5:30 p.m. – 7 p.m., following Blowing Rock’s Art in the Park. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, please call (828) 295-9099 or visit www.blowingrockmuseum.org.

10). The Museum of the Cape Fear (www.ncdcr.gov/ncmcf) invites you to a presentation on Civil War Bands by Dr. Robert Downing on Saturday, May 9th at 2:00 p.m. Many local residents will recognize Dr. Downing as the founder of the Regiment Band, 11th NC Troops. He founded the band in 1981 with a group of dedicated musicians from Fayetteville. Though retired, Dr. Downing now conducts presentations to keep alive the history and the purpose of Civil War bands. At the presentation, there will be 5 original Civil War-era instruments on display as well as many reproduction instruments representative of the time period.  The event is free and open to the public. For more information please call 910/486-1330. The presentation is part of the community’s 31 Day Salute observance held throughout the entire month of May.