Frequently Asked Questions

Q.What is “Treasure N.C. Culture”?

A. “Treasure N.C. Culture” is a year-long celebration of North Carolina culture and heritage. Our state has many cultural treasures that will be highlighted throughout 2009 - museums and libraries, galleries and theaters, historic sites and buildings, along with creative people like writers and photographers, singers and dancers, and visual artists.

Q. Who is behind the celebration?

A. The North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, which serves more than 19 million people each year, includes the State Library, the State Archives, 27 Historic Sites, 7 History Museums, Historical Publications, Archaeology, Genealogy, Historic Preservation, the North Carolina Symphony, the North Carolina Arts Council, and the North Carolina Museum of Art.

Q. Why “Treasure N.C. Culture”?

A. From libraries to writers and readers to cultural events to historic sites and museums, North Carolina marks the spot for cultural treasure.

Q. What is special about North Carolina’s story?

A. Our state lays claim to a number of ‘firsts’— from the first English settlement in the New World (Manteo, 1587), first discovery of gold in the U.S.(Reed Gold Mine, Concord, 1799), first state supported symphony and art museum (Raleigh, 1930 and 1947).

Q. What is there to do at North Carolina’s 27 State Historic Sites?

A. Living history reenactments and demonstrations, tours, hands-on learning programs, and concerts at North Carolina Historic Sites provide real encounters with history, and most events are free. More than 500 special events and exhibits will happen at Historic Sites alone during the year of “Treasure N.C. Culture.”

Q. Are Historic Sites popular?

A. Overall visitation to the sites last year increased 6 percent with visitors from all 100 counties, all 50 states, and many foreign countries. All told, there were 1,627,098 visitors, plus participants in outreach in 2007-08.

Q. Who are some noted people who have helped make North Carolina’s story so fascinating?

A. Here is a list of some notable North Carolinians:

Virginia Dare was the first child born to English-speaking parents in the New World. She was born on Roanoke Island in 1587.
The pirate Blackbeard is known to have spent time in North Carolina. The probable remains of his flagship Queen Anne’s Revenge were found off Beaufort in 1996. Underwater archaeologists from Cultural Resources expect to eventually salvage more than 700,000 artifacts from the wreck.
Rev. Billy Graham was born in Charlotte and now lives near Montreat.
Famed furniture maker Thomas Day was a free African American craftsman in North Carolina in the days before the Civil War.
Sen. Sam Ervin, head of the Watergate Committee, was from Morganton.
Ezzell Blair Jr., David Richmond, Joseph McNeil, and Franklin McCain — the four students who staged the first sit-in protest. The men, students at N.C. A &T, were protesting service for whites only at the Greensboro Woolworth lunch counter in 1960.
Director Cecil B. DeMille, noted for movies like “The Ten Commandments,” grew up in Washington, N.C.
Famed realist artist Bob Timberlake lives and works in Lexington, N.C.
Hiram Rhoades Revels, born in Fayetteville in 1822, was the first African-American member of the United States Congress. He was a veteran of the Civil War and a minister who tended Black congregations in several states.
Andrew Jackson, 7th President of the United States, was born in the Waxhaw area, on the border of North and South Carolina.
Andrew Johnson started his career as a tailor's apprentice in Raleigh, North Carolina and rose to lead in the reuniting of the nation as the 17th President of the United States.
James K. Polk, born in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, was the 11th President of the United States.
Dolley Madison, wife of President James Madison, was born in North Carolina.
NASCAR legend Richard Petty was born in North Carolina, and lives here still.
Jazz legends John Coltrane and Thelonius Monk went from being citizens of North Carolina to citizens of the world, and led music in new directions during the 1950s.
Famed golfer Arnold Palmer honed his skills on the championship golf team of Wake Forest University.

Q. Where can I find out about North Carolina history and heritage?

A. There are more than 550 private and community-based facilities, such as museums, historic house museums, libraries and archives that help more than 9 million citizens in all 100 counties of the state appreciate their authentic heritage and culture. From thousands of years of American Indian culture, still thriving today, to historic buildings marked with Civil War bullet holes and artifacts of World War II enemy subs that cruised coastal waters, or Blackbeard’s pirate plunder—you’ll find hundreds of sites with unique stories.

Q. What about activities especially for kids?

A. Kids can visit www.startsquad.org, for a visit with Lee the Librarian. Kids can also join the N.C. Museum of History’s Tar Heel Junior Historians to participate in projects that combine learning and fun. The North Carolina Museum of Art offers lots of fun, hands-on activities and workshops throughout the year.

Q. What are resources for historical documents and genealogical records?

A. Since 1903, the Office of Archives and History has promoted the protection and preservation of North Carolina written history, documents, records, and heritage in all its forms, serving more than 75,000 citizen requests in the past year, ensuring that the state is a better place through cultural exchange and historical awareness.

Q. If I am driving in North Carolina, what else can I look for?

A. To plan trips, go to www.homegrownhandmade.com for itineraries and “Art Roads and Farm Trails.” Nearly 1,500 of the familiar Historical Marker silver signs offer ‘spoonfuls of history’ along North Carolina’s highways, and at www.ncmarkers.com.

Q. How can I learn about American Indians in our state?

A. Native people have lived here for some 12,000 years, and their descendants today make up the largest American Indian population of any state east of the Mississippi River. The largest tribe in North Carolina is the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. A guidebook, “Cherokee Heritage Trails,” and the accompanying Web site www.cherokeeheritagetrails.org share Cherokee heritage with visitors.

Q. What on-line resources are available?

A.The gateway to all of the divisions of the Department of Cultural Resources is www.ncculture.com. Students should check out State Library Web sites like www.ncecho.org, www.nclive.org, and www.ncknows.org. A brand new Web site from the State Library digitally displays the seminal work on African Americans in post Emancipation America, “An Era of Progress and Promise.” Written in 1910 by W.N. Hartshorn, the 444-page book is a seminal work that was referenced by influential figures including W.E. B. DuBois and Booker T. Washington.

Q. What resources are available from the State Library for the visually impaired?

A. The Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped circulates materials in Braille, large print, cassette tape, and described videotape, and in 2008 handled 500,000 individual mailings.

Q. How big is North Carolina’s history industry?

A. North Carolina has 2,000 individual historic properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places and 450 historic districts on the National Register. Income producing and non-income producing tax credits on 864 properties totaled nearly $520 million in completed rehabilitation expenditures between 2004 and 2007, and more than $1 billion since 1974. The Historic Preservation Office functions as the state clearinghouse for federal and state protection and tax incentive programs for National Register properties. More than 1,500 Highway Historical Markers across 100 counties, and more than 40,000 recorded archaeological sites, showcase our treasures for future generations.

Q. What is North Carolina’s State Song? Who wrote it and when?

A. The Old North State — Written by William Gaston and composed by Mrs. E. E. Randolph, it was adopted as the State Song in 1927.

Q. Does North Carolina have official state dances?

A. The state dances are the Shag and Clogging, both of which have unique music that accompanies them. They were adopted by the General Assembly in 2005.