Sec. Kluttz with Historic Sites staff members Jim Steele, Jeremiah DeGennaro, John Moseley, Andrew Duppstadt and David Sheaffer; State Archives staff member Chris Meekins; and Fort Fisher volunteer Walter James
Department of Cultural Resources Secretary Susan Kluttz visited Fort Macon State Park to view the historic weapons artillery training course delivered by staff from the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources’ Division of Historic Sites.
Sec. Kluttz with N.C. Historic Sites Director Keith Haridson, Historic Sites Deputy Director Dale Coats and Fort Macon State Park Superintendent Randy Newman
This training course ensures that park rangers, museum staff, and historic site interpreters are trained in safe and proper methods of firing historic weaponry. Demonstrations of historic weaponry are an important part of the education and entertainment provided by the state’s sites and museums. Fort Macon is one of the most pristine 19th century forts still standing. It was the site of an 1862 siege and eventual victory by Union forces during the Civil War.
As the 150th anniversary of this war approaches in 2015, North Carolina expects an influx of cultural heritage tourists coming to retrace the final campaign of that nation-changing conflict. When they come, the state will have staff trained to provide the “boom and smoke.”
See more pictures from the training here.