While the southernmost county on the North Carolina coast shares features similar to other coastal counties, its historic destinations, charming towns and recent rapid growth help make it unique.
Culture & History
Northeast NC trail connects African American history
A quest to drive visitors to the Historic Jarvisburg Colored School Museum has led to the creation of the nine-county African American Experience of Northeast North Carolina trail.
Search for Lawson in natural history museum continues
Historian David Cecelski continues about his visit to the Natural History Museum in London to study specimens of coastal North Carolina flora that John Lawson sent to English naturalist James Petiver in the early 1700s.
Nags Head artist honors ‘checkerboard’ lifesaving crews
A recently unveiled painting depicts one of the “checkerboard” crews of the U.S. Life-Saving Service staffed by both Black and white members during the late 19th and early 20th century.
Salmon Creek seines: Shad, herring fisheries were once big
The historically significant site once saw significant river herring and shad fishing, back-breaking work done almost exclusively by enslaved and free Black laborers.
Landowners find Black lifesaving hero’s forgotten grave
Retired Coast Guard Cmdr. Gavin Wente and his wife Renee didn’t know when they bought their property last year that it included the unrecorded gravesite of Capt. Lewis Wescott, who participated in one of the most daring ocean rescues in Outer Banks history.
Searching for Lawson in London’s Natural History Museum
Historian David Cecelski recounts his visit to the Natural History Museum in London, which holds the specimens of coastal North Carolina flora that John Lawson sent to English naturalist James Petiver in the early 1700s.
ECSU Choir marks 90 years of bringing music to the people
The Elizabeth City State University Choir, which performed recently at First Flight High School in Kill Devil Hills, has been sharing its songs with audiences across the region since 1933.
Carteret County’s history, amenities have long lured
In our county history series: Colonial beginnings, Civil War battles, maritime industry, fishing, tourism and coastal living among Carteret’s numerous draws.
New chapter begins for Black teachers’ old meeting space
Officials broke ground Friday for the renovation of the more than 5,300-square-foot building at Hammocks Beach State Park where Black educators convened during segregation.
Hyde County protest led to little-known, civil rights success
Black and Native American parents in Hyde County carried out in 1969 one of the longest and most successful Civil Rights protests in the country.
Native American roots run deep in Hyde; much is unknown
“It’s really like putting together a puzzle,” says career journalist and family researcher Ramona Brown, who grew up in Beaufort County and now lives in Knightdale.
Symbol of Home: The Linnean Society’s Venus Flytrap
While spending a few days in London this fall, historian David Cecelski visited the Linnean Society, the oldest biological society, to get a glimpse of a 1759 letter with the first known written record of the Venus flytrap.
New Bern commemorates centennial of Great Fire of 1922
A quarter of the city went up in flames 100 years ago, the largest urban fire in North Carolina history.
Waterfowl Weekend to celebrate local food traditions
The Core Sound Waterfowl Museum and Heritage Center on Harkers Island has added a new event, a traditional stew and chowder competition, to its annual Waterfowl Weekend.
Search for Blackbeard’s treasure based on enduring myth
Popular literature and the public’s imagination have long perpetuated the notion that the notorious pirate buried his ill-gotten wealth, perhaps on Ocracoke Island.
