“The call for children to donate pennies to disaster relief organizations in honor of President Lincoln is in the spirit of Lincoln himself,” said Dr. Jeffrey J. Crow, North Carolina’s liaison to the national Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission and Deputy Secretary of the Department of Cultural Resources, Office of Archives and History.

North Carolina is not itself conducting a fund-raising solicitation, nor collecting funds. The intended effect of the appeal is simple — children are asked to donate pennies to the disaster relief organization of their choice, with whatever help parents, teachers, and perhaps churches, choose to provide.

“This is one way to give children experience in public service and to educate them about Lincoln, whose Emancipation Proclamation heralded the end of slavery and who promised ‘to bind up the nation’s wounds.’ It is fitting that this call comes in Black History Month,” noted Crow. Louisiana’s Abraham Lincoln Commission started the penny rolling for the initiative, through the desire of survivors of Hurricane Katrina to help others similarly affected. Positive aspects of this national appeal are continued education of children, and through them of adults, about Lincoln’s contributions to America. The initiative could reach many adults who have not yet heard of the Bicentennial.

Lincoln biographer Daniel Mark Epstein wrote in support of this appeal to children and recalled Lincoln’s loss of two sons, his love of children and his compassion. “In our pockets we carry a token reminder of Lincoln, the man and his goodness,” said Epstein “He would be very gratified and proud to know that the children of America are gathering pennies in Lincoln’s name to contribute to the cause of the children of Haiti. It is an honor to Lincoln’s memory and the charitable principles that guided him throughout his life.”

The board of ALBC, the national Lincoln Commission, has endorsed this appeal. The Office of Archives and History is in the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency dedicated to the promotion and protection of North Carolina’s arts, history and culture www.ncculture.com.

Public hearings will be held in Asheville on Feb. 15, Raleigh on Feb. 18 and Greenville on Feb. 22, to seek comments on representation at the State Capitol. The Asheville meeting will be held at the YMI Cultural Center. The Raleigh meeting will be at the State Capitol and the Greenville meeting will be in the Carol Belk Building, S. Charles Blvd, East Carolina University. Each hearing will start at 7 p.m.

Every effort will be made to retain and enhance the visual appearance of the Capitol’s interior and exterior grounds. The group will not recommend the removal of any existing monuments. The committee commends the work of the Freedom Monument Project group and seeks to complement its ambitious plan for a public art project at the corner of Wilmington and Lane Streets.

For additional information call (919) 807-7290. The State Capitol is part of the Division of State Historic Sites in the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina’s social, cultural and economic future. Information is available 24/7 at www.ncculture.com.

• Museum of the Albemarle will be closed Saturday, Jan. 30, and Sunday, Jan. 31.

• The North Carolina Symphony concert scheduled for Fayetteville for Friday night, Jan. 29 is postponed and rescheduled for March 23.

• The State Library/Archives and History Building in Raleigh will be closed Saturday, Jan. 30.

• The N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh will be closed Saturday, Jan. 30 and Sunday, Jan. 31. The African American Cultural Festival scheduled for Jan. 30 is rescheduled to Saturday, June 5.

• The Museum of the Cape Fear in Fayetteville will be closed Saturday, Jan. 30, and Sunday, Jan. 31.   The planned Jan. 31 program “Antebellum Arsenal” will be rescheduled. The museum will be closed on Monday, as usual.

• The N.C. Transportation Museum in Spencer has postponed two programs scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 30, and also may be closed depending on weather conditions on Saturday. Train rides also are cancelled.

• Vance Birthplace in Weaverville and the Thomas Wolfe Memorial in Asheville will be closed Friday, Jan. 29 and Saturday, Jan. 30. 

The N.C. Department of Cultural Resources is the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina’s social, cultural and economic future. Information is available 24/7 at www.ncculture.com.

Author Kevin Duffus was scheduled to give a free program at the N.C. Transportation Museum on “The Lost Light: The Mystery of the Cape Hatteras Fresnel Lens” at 1 p.m. Darrell Collins, chief historian and interpreter at Wright Brothers National Memorial, was scheduled to speak at 3 p.m. on the how design of the Wright Flyer facilitated flight. His talk also will be rescheduled.

For information on opening or closing status of other museums or State Historic Sites in Western North Carolina and the Piedmont, visit www.ncculture.com or call the site.

The Transportation Museum is within the Division of State Historic Sites in the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources. The N.C. Department of Cultural Resources is the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina’s social, cultural and economic future. Information is available 24/7 at www.ncculture.com.

“We are extremely pleased to partner with SECU members to complete the new Education Center,” comments Ken Howard, Director of the N.C. Museum of History. “The grant from the SECU Foundation will enable the museum to install the technology necessary to record and broadcast educational programs, lectures, seminars and meetings for dissemination across the state. This technology will allow school groups that cannot visit the museum in person to participate in the quality programming the museum provides in the same way they would if they visited the museum.”

Through the museum’s live two-way videoconferencing, students can experience virtual field trips. These interactive programs allow students to explore a historical topic with a museum expert. All virtual field trips adhere to the North Carolina Standard Course of Study.

Shirley Bell, SECU Foundation Board of Directors Chairman, remarks, “SECU members welcome the opportunity to partner with the state’s museums to further show our support of the educational benefits the museums provide to students all across North Carolina. A primary focus for our Foundation is education, and the N.C. Museum of History project certainly helps to provide a continued emphasis in this area.”

For more information about the Museum of History, call 919-807-7900 or access ncmuseumofhistory.org or Facebook. The museum is located at 5 E. Edenton St., across from the State Capitol.

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.

“Haven on the Hill” is both the story of a community where patients and employees lived, learned, worked, and died and of an institution that reflected over a century and a half of social, scientific, and political change. For many years Dix Hill, with its own farm, water supply, and power plant, was largely self-sufficient. But, just as the city of Raleigh grew to encircle the once-secluded campus, outside forces shaped the hospital. Care for psychiatric patients evolved from simply providing a safe, stable environment for recovery to the remarkable breakthroughs in the use of psychopharmacological medicines in the late 20th century. Societal shifts, such as the increasing role of women in the workplace and racial integration, produced fundamental changes in how the hospital operated. And, as a state agency, the hospital was constantly subject to the tumult of North Carolina politics.

Marjorie O’Rorke holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Oberlin College and a master’s degree in nursing from the Yale University School of Nursing. During her career as a nurse, Mrs. O’Rorke has been a head nurse, instructor, and supervisor in medical/surgical nursing. Since 1961, she has volunteered at Dorothea Dix Hospital.

“Haven on the Hill” (paperbound; pp. xiii, 321; illustrations; index; 2010) sells for $28.02, which includes tax and shipping. Order from the Historical Publications Section (N), Office of Archives and History, 4622 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-4622. For credit card orders call (919) 733-7442, ext. 0, or visit the section’s secure online store at http://nc-historical-publications.stores.yahoo.net/. “Haven on the Hill” is also available through local bookstores and Amazon.com.

The Historical Publications Section is part of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina’s social, cultural and economic future. Information is available 24/7 at www.ncculture.com.

The N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh has one of the nation’s largest collections of Confederate flags. Conservation of these banners requires specialized textile treatment, costing approximately $7,500 per flag.

The 26th Regiment N.C. Troops, Reactivated, the state’s largest Civil War re-enactment group, has helped fund this need. On Dec. 12, 2009, the group unveiled the newly conserved battle flag of the 47th Regiment N.C. Troops during a dedication ceremony at the museum. The 26th Regiment raised the funds necessary to restore this historic artifact.

The 47th Regiment’s colors were captured at the Battle of Hatcher’s Run in Virginia on Oct. 27, 1864, by Sgt. Daniel Murphy of the 19th Regiment Mass. Volunteer Infantry. The flag was sent to the U.S. War Department in Washington, D.C., and returned to North Carolina in 1905.

“Since its return to North Carolina in 1905, the battle flag of the 47th N.C. Troops has remained in storage and could not be displayed due to its condition,” says Tom Belton, Curator of Military History. “With the support of the 26th Regiment N.C. Troops, who spearheaded a conservation drive, we can now include this important North Carolina artifact in upcoming exhibits.”

This Confederate flag and others are being conserved in preparation for the N.C. Civil War Sesquicentennial. From 2011 to 2015, exhibits and programs will be presented in commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War in North Carolina.

The restored 47th Regiment banner is an Army of Northern Virginia pattern with “47 NC” painted in the center. It was issued as a replacement for the regiment’s colors captured by the 12th New Jersey Infantry at the Battle of Gettysburg.

“This is the third flag project completed by the 26th Regiment N.C. Troops for the Museum of History,” says Skip Smith, colonel of the 26th Regiment. “With the help of many individuals and groups across the state, such as 47th Regiment N.C. State Troops, Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) Camp #166 in Wake Forest, we were able to complete the fund-raising for this project. It is our honor to partner with the Museum of History to help conserve our state’s battle flags.”

Gary Lee Hall, Lt. Cmdr. of the 47th Regiment SCV Camp, adds that many members of the 47th Regiment N.C. Troops were from the Wake Forest area. “We actually have one direct descendant of the 47th Regiment in our camp. We appreciate the opportunity to help with conservation of the flag and to honor the men of the 47th Regiment.”

The 26th Regiment has begun its 2010 Preservation Project: the battle flag of the 22nd Regiment N.C. Troops. The organization has inspired several other Civil War re-enactment and remembrance groups to adopt other flags in the museum collection.

For details about the Museum of History, call 919-807-7900 or access ncmuseumofhistory.org or Facebook. To learn more about the 26th Regiment N.C. Troops, Reactivated, go to www.26nc.org. For information about the N.C. Civil War Sesquicentennial, visit www.nccivilwar150.com.

The Museum of History is located at 5 E. Edenton St., across from the State Capitol. Parking is available in the lot across Wilmington Street. 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, www.ncculture.com.

Cultural Resources received the Connecting to Collections Statewide Planning Grant from the national Institute of Museum and Library Services. The Greenville meeting is one of three regional planning meetings hosted by 12 heritage professionals with employees and volunteers from cultural agencies. The public forums will gather information on how to best help institutions plan for their collections’ long term care. A GIS map of heritage institutions and database of resources also will be created.

“This project provides an excellent opportunity to focus attention on the constant challenges of preservation and care of collections and disaster preparedness for institutions,” observes Project Manager LeRae Umfleet.

N.C. ECHO (Exploring Cultural Heritage Online at www.ncecho.org), is a project of the State Library of North Carolina, and has identified nearly 1,000 cultural institutions in the state. These agencies protect and preserve approximately 13.8 million objects and more than 200 million linear feet of archival materials.

The first meeting was Dec. 7, at Pack Place in Asheville; the second Jan. 15, 2010, at East Carolina University in Greenville; the third will be on Feb. 8, 2010, at the Greensboro Public Library. Required registration is $10; visit www.ncecho.org to register.

The Institute of Museum and Library Services the primary source of federal support for the nation’s 122,000 libraries and 17,500 museums, has the mission to create strong libraries and museums that connect people to information and ideas. The N.C. Department of Cultural Resources is the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina’s social, cultural and economic future. Information is available 24/7 at www.ncculture.com.

“Every student who walked through the doors of the Palmer Memorial Institute was handed this book and was expected to live and breathe this book,” said Frachele Scott, site manager of the Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum. “This book taught the students how to behave in all kinds of social settings- whether they were in church, school, concerts, at home or were traveling. Dr. Brown was adamant about social correctness.”

Due to the huge number of requests to get this book reprinted, the Charlotte Hawkins Brown Foundation had it republished. It is now in the museum’s gift shop for $16.95 plus tax.

To place an order for the book to be shipped, call the Museum at 336-449-4846, Monday through Friday,
9 AM – 5 PM. Payment with Master Card/Visa only. Cost per book will be $18.26 each (includes tax). Shipping is a flat fee of $5.00 for one to three books, and $1.00 for each additional book over three to be shipped. Orders can be shipped to a different address.

The Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum is located at 6136 Burlington Road in Sedalia on Hwy. 70 between Greensboro and Burlington, 10 miles east of Greensboro off I-85, exit 135. Tours for groups of 10 or more are encouraged to make reservations in advance. Hours are Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., and admission is free.

For information about the site, visit www.nchistoricsites.org/chb or e-mail chb@ncdcr.gov . CHB is now on facebook- become a fan!

Opened in 1987, the Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum State Historic Site honors the late Dr. Brown, who first began teaching children here in Sedalia in 1902. For 50 years after founding PMI, Dr. Brown labored unceasingly to educate young people, building what started out as a tiny academy into a renowned African American prep school. PMI closed in 1971 but after it was turned into a state historic site, five former school buildings have been designated as official projects of Save America’s Treasures, a public-private partnership between the White House Millennium Council and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The museum’s mission is to preserve and interpret the history and legacy of Dr. Brown, PMI and African American education in North Carolina.

Administered by the Division of State Historic Sites, Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum is part of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency dedicated to the promotion and protection of North Carolina’s arts, history, and culture through such programs as “Treasure N.C. Culture.” For more information, visit www.ncculture.com.

The Wolfe Memorial is within the Division of State Historic Sites in the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina’s social, cultural and economic future. Information is available 24/7 at www.ncculture.com