The Civil War and Reconstruction – The Most Transformative Period in North Carolina’s History.
About
What the History Center is & Who We Are
About The Center
Transforming an existing regional museum into a major, statewide history center requires a tremendous amount of planning. The challenge is much greater…
The Site
In 2018, the History Center engaged New South Associates, Inc. of Stone Mountain, Georgia to conduct a geophysical survey and archaeological investigations …
Building The Museum Of The Future
The History Center is designed to be an educational center rather than a collecting museum. While hosting a respectable core collection, the History Center will …
Project Scope
The Civil War and Reconstruction in North Carolina are important and complicated subjects. Early in the planning process, there was considerable debate over the merits of
Advisors/Directors
BOARD OF ADVISORS
Honorary Chairs: Governor James B. Hunt, Jr. and Governor James G. Martin
Co-Chairs: James A. Anderson, Ph.D. (Fayetteville) and James R. Leutze, Ph.D.
Learn More
We Want Your Stories!
If you or your family members have any North Carolina-related stories from the Civil War and Reconstruction period, we want them! Please submit them by clicking on the red “Share Your Story” button below. This is a center for all North Carolinians, and we want our content to reflect that. We can’t do it without your help. If you would like for your story to be included, even if you have some details but not everything, let us know that. We might be able to help fill in the blanks.
Thank you!
The Exhibit
Antebellum
Before the Civil War, the region’s geography, population, economics, and laws shaped the diverse lives of North Carolinians. Enslaved and free Black people rebelled against the institution of enslavement through violent revolt...
The Civil War
After the election of Republican candidate Abraham Lincoln in November 1860, South Carolina and six other states seceded before he took office, but President Buchanan did not initiate hostilities...
Emancipation
In May 1861, General Benjamin F. Butler gave semi-protected status and partial freedom to enslaved people who escaped to Union lines from Confederate territory, considering them essentially “contraband of...
Reconstruction
President Andrew Johnson’s limited Presidential Reconstruction prioritized reconciliation between the North and South. Its effect was to restore the status quo regarding old wealth and power in the South and the political oppression of...
Post-Reconstruction
In the 1880s, struggling farmers united in the Farmers’ Alliance, a national movement that sought agricultural reform and railroad oversight, and formed groups throughout the South...