The North Carolina Museum of History is excited to announce a statewide community engagement process in preparation for the upcoming redesign of the museum and exhibits. As the museum prepares for renovation, it seeks to ensure that people across the state have the opportunity to inform the creation of the museum’s new exhibits by discussing how the state’s layered history might be shared with future visitors. The engagement process will begin this summer and last nearly a year while the museum listens to the stories and perspectives of communities across the state.
Brad Wilson, interim director of the NC Museum of History and Division of State History Museums, enthusiastically shares, “Community engagement is the heartbeat of a truly impactful museum experience. We are committed to partnering with communities throughout North Carolina to ensure their voices and perspectives shape the future of the North Carolina Museum of History.”
Museum staff and community partners will travel throughout North Carolina and host various engagement activities, such as small group conversation circles, large group public conversations, and one-on-one meetings. This phased approach will help honor the Tar Heel state with an updated, exciting home for the stories, the artifacts, and the exhibits that tell North Carolina’s story.
Preparing for Engagement
Museum staff have developed a set of core questions to pose to communities around the state. Example questions include:
- What are some events or moments in history that are key to understanding your community’s history in North Carolina?
- Who are some of the people that you think should be remembered at the state history museum – whose stories should be told there?
- Can you share a story that your community tells about origins, beginnings, or ancestors?
Statewide Engagement: Summer and Fall 2024
Museum staff will spend four weeks in late summer and early fall on the ground in communities across the state hosting workshops, group sessions, conversation circles, and meetings with community advisors. Additionally, there will be a series of virtual small-group sessions with people from throughout North Carolina.
Statewide Engagement: Winter and Spring 2025
Additional engagement in 2025 will include a statewide survey and follow-up small group sessions and conversation circles, along with plans for longer-term community engagement at the museum.
About the NC Museum of History
The North Carolina Museum of History, a Smithsonian Affiliate, fosters a passion for North Carolina history. This museum collects and preserves artifacts of state history and educates the public on the history of the state and the nation through exhibits and educational programs. Admission is free. In 2023, more than 355,000 people visited the museum to see some of the 150,000 artifacts in the museum collection. The Museum of History, within the Division of State History Museums, is part of the NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.
About the Smithsonian Affiliations Network
Since 2006, the North Carolina Museum of History has been a Smithsonian Affiliate, part of a select group of museums and cultural, educational, and arts organizations that share Smithsonian resources with the nation. The Smithsonian Affiliations network is a national outreach program that develops long-term collaborative partnerships with museums and other educational and cultural organizations to enrich communities with Smithsonian resources. More information is available at affiliations.si.edu.
About the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
The NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR) manages, promotes, and enhances the things that people love about North Carolina—its diverse arts and culture, rich history, and spectacular natural areas. Through its programs, the department enhances education, stimulates economic development, improves public health, expands accessibility, and strengthens community resiliency.
The department manages more than 100 locations across the state, including 27 historic sites, seven history museums, two art museums, five science museums, four aquariums, 35 state parks, four recreation areas, dozens of state trails and natural areas, the NC Zoo, the State Library, the State Archives, the NC Arts Council, the African American Heritage Commission, the American Indian Heritage Commission, the State Historic Preservation Office, the Office of State Archaeology, the Highway Historical Markers program, the NC Land and Water Fund, and the Natural Heritage Program. For more information, please visit dncr.nc.gov.