Press Releases

Celebrating 86 years of service in 2015, the North Carolina State Highway Patrol remains dedicated to fulfilling its primary mission — promoting a safer state. A new exhibit at the North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh will highlight the organization’s history and showcase vehicles, firearms, uniforms and more from 1929 to the present. The exhibition North Carolina State Highway Patrol: Service, Safety, Sacrifice will open Saturday, Jan. 31, and run through Aug. 2, 2015. Admission is free. The exhibit was produced in conjunction with the North Carolina State Highway Patrol and the Highway Patrol Hall of History.

This March the North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA) presents Art in Bloom, its inaugural festival of art and flowers. The four-day event, March 19–22, features 45 floral masterpieces inspired by the NCMA’s permanent collection and created by world-class floral designers. The festival includes master classes, floral demonstrations, presentations by the floral designer for the Royal Family, family activities, a wine tasting, and many other events.

The Pilgrimage of Historic Homes—two days of hospitality, history, heritage, gardens, architecture, antiques, Southern food and more hosted by Edenton Woman’s Club since 1949—will provide guests a glimpse into the history of Edenton and the lives of its people!

The North Carolina Museum of Art (NCMA) announces a recent gift of works of modern and contemporary art from the private collection of Jim and Mary Patton. Amassed over a lifetime, the Pattons’ collection includes seminal works by masters of mid- to late-20th-century American art: Milton Avery, Richard Diebenkorn, Jackie Ferrara, Helen Frankenthaler, Adolph Gottlieb, Hans Hofmann, Ellsworth Kelly, Robert Motherwell, David Park, George Rickey, Sean Scully, Frank Stella, and many others. The gift includes paintings, sculptures, prints, drawings, and photographs. On December 10 the NCMA’s Board of Trustees accepted 81 of what will be a total of 100 works from the Pattons’ collection; two were previously given in 2013, and the final 17 are promised gifts to the Museum and will be acquired at a later date.

The North Carolina Symphony will pay tribute to two of the most beloved performers of the 20th century with Louis and Ella: All That Jazz, which will feature the music of Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald performed by trumpeter and vocalist Byron Stripling and vocalist Marva Hicks, with drummer Robert Breithaupt.  The Symphony concerts, which will be led by Associate Conductor David Glover, will take place in Meymandi Concert Hall in downtown Raleigh, Friday, Jan. 16, and Saturday, Jan. 17, at 8 p.m. each night. 

“Photographs by Hugh Morton: An Uncommon Retrospective” brings North Carolina’s landmarks, people, events, wildlife, scenery, sports and its oldest university together in a special photography exhibition held Jan. 10-Feb. 22 at Tryon Palace’s North Carolina History Center.

Parents of preschoolers, the Museum of the Cape Fear continues its Preschool Pals program on Jan. 13, at  10 a.m. The theme for January is Native Americans. The earliest history known in this area goes back to the American Indians who lived and traveled through this area of what is now North Carolina. Get your preschooler off to an early start appreciating history. Preschool Pals is geared for ages three to five. The children will enjoy crafts, storytelling and spending time with other preschool-aged children.

Ocracoke Island's iconic mail boat Aleta kept the Island connected with the mainland of North Carolina...and the rest of the outside world for years. The old mail boat, Aleta, carried passengers and mail to and from Ocracoke in the 1940s & 1950s.  For many, the mail boat was central to coastal communication.

The Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum will pay tribute to Aleta, in a richly illustrated new exhibit that opens April 1, 2015. The exhibit With Love, Aleta runs through February 26, 2016 and is designed to encourage young readers

As the N.C. Civil War Sesquicentennial nears an end in April, the N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh will present a series of lectures through April. Two January programs will focus on forts in North Carolina. Admission is free.