For free activities to fill summer days, check out August’s programs at the N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh. Enjoy free popcorn and beverages during the 1926 movie “The Black Pirate.” Bring the kids, ages 5 to 9, to make a model workboat on Aug. 6. Drop by for a lunchtime lecture on Aug. 12 about the 100th anniversary of North Carolina’s 4-H program. There is something for all ages. Parking is free on weekends.
PROGRAMS
*Make It, Take It: Pirate Lore
Saturday, Aug. 1
1-3 p.m. (drop-in program)
Dangerous pirates once prowled the waters along the coast of North Carolina. Make a portrait of Blackbeard, the most feared pirate of them all.
*Time for Tots: Beat the Heat
Tuesday, Aug. 4 or Aug. 11
10-10:45 a.m.
Ages 3-5 with adult
To register, call 919-807-7992.
Learn how people in the past kept cool in hot weather, listen to a story, and make a summer craft.
*History Corner: Boats on the Coast
Thursday, Aug. 6
10-11 a.m.
Ages 5-9 with adult
To register, call 919-807-7992.
Learn about the boats that people on our coast built and used to go to work, school, church, and just about everywhere else. Make a model workboat to take home. This program is presented with Cameron Village Regional Library.
First Friday at the Movies: “The Black Pirate”
Friday, Aug. 7
7-9 p.m.
Watch Douglas Fairbanks Sr. at his swashbuckling best. Fairbanks plays a young nobleman who joins the pirate band responsible for his father’s death. This 1926 silent classic is filled with action, romance and special effects. Free popcorn and beverages!
History à la Carte: A Century of 4-H: Head, Heart, Hands and Health
Wednesday, Aug. 12
12:10-1 p.m.
Bring your lunch; beverages provided.
Bradley Dixon, North Carolina 4-H Development Fund
The North Carolina 4-H program is celebrating its 100th birthday this year. Hear about 4-H’s proud history and outstanding alumni, and find out how 4-H has grown to become the state’s largest youth development organization.
*A Closer Look: Mountain Life
Saturday, Aug. 15
1-3 p.m. (drop-in program)
Stop by the Gallery Cart outside the exhibit On Earth’s Furrowed Brow to explore the world and work of mountain farm families in western North Carolina with a museum docent.
*Make It, Take It: Model Boats
Saturday, Aug. 29
1-3 p.m.
Fold yourself a model boat. Then look at examples of North Carolina boats in the exhibit Workboats of Core Sound.
* marks programs of interest to children or families
The N.C. Museum of History’s hours are Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. Admission is free. The museum is part of the Division of State History Museums, Office of Archives and History, an agency of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources. The department’s Web site is www.ncculture.com.