Sec. Kluttz and Deputy Sec. Kevin Cherry open the Queen Anne's Revenge exhibit at the N.C. Transportation Museum in Spencer
Actual treasures from Blackbeard’s flagship Queen Anne’s Revenge have made their way inland to Spencer, and Cultural Resources Sec. Susan Kluttz was on hand Saturday as the traveling exhibit Blackbeard's Queen Anne’s Revenge: 1718 made its debut at the N.C. Transportation Museum. A native and former mayor of Salisbury, the secretary knows the museum well and has visited it many times. At the opening, she was joined by Spencer Mayor Jody Everhart as well as representatives from the Rowan County Tourism Development Authority and N.C. Transportation Museum Foundation.
The exhibit—which started its popular showing at the Cultural Resources Western Office in Asheville earlier this summer—will be on display in at the Transportation Museum through August 31. It will then travel across the state to Historic Edenton for a run in September and October before visiting eight other state historic sites.
In celebration of the exhibit, the Transportation Museum will host a Family Pirate Day this Saturday, July 27. The day’s events will include kids crafts and games and a treasure map scavenger hunt of the museum, complete with a prize at the end. Kids and adults who dress in pirate garb will receive discounted admission to the museum, and volunteer ‘pirates’ will be operating the museum’s regularly scheduled train rides as the “Pirate Express.” A pirate costume contest, where participants will “walk the plank” on the roundhouse turntable, will also be offered. The Blackbeard's Queen Anne’s Revenge: 1718 exhibit is included free as part of the regular admission price.