North Carolina volunteers will team up with the Civil War Trust to help clean and restore nine landmarks as part of Park Day, a nationwide effort that includes more than 125 historic sites in 29 states. Thousands of volunteers will gather at sites across the country as Park Day celebrates its twentieth year on Saturday, April 2, 2016.
Volunteers interested in participating in Park Day are encouraged to contact the individual sites listed below. Activities range from raking leaves and hauling trash to painting signs and planting trees. Some sites will provide lunch or refreshments to volunteers, and a local historian may be available to describe the park’s significance. Volunteers will also receive T-shirts.
Starting times vary at each site. North Carolina volunteers may sign up at the following locations:
Asheville History Center at Smith-McDowell House, Asheville, 10:00 a.m.
Contact: Elaine Blake at wnchavolunteers@gmail.com
Volunteers will perform indoor and outdoor cleanup of the Smith-McDowell House and grounds including cleaning floors, dusting artifacts, washing windows, raking and weeding. Food and drinks will be provided.
Bennett Place State Historic Site, Durham, 10:00 a.m.
Contact: Diane M. Smith at bennett@ncdcr.gov
Volunteers will rake and landscape the picnic area, as well as sand and paint picnic tables. They may also tend to the historic kitchen garden. Light food and drinks will be provided.
Bentonville Battlefield, Four Oaks, 9:00 a.m.
Contact: Amanda Brantley at amanda.brantley@ncdcr.gov
This year volunteers will be working on the walking trail, cleaning up the Union and Confederate trench lines that were used in the March 1865 battle. Food and drinks will be provided.
Brunswick Town/Fort Anderson State Historic Site,Winnabow, 9:30 a.m.
Contact: Jesse Bricker at jesse.bricker@ncdcr.gov
A major pre-Revolutionary War port on North Carolina’s Cape Fear River, Brunswick was razed by British troops in 1776 and never rebuilt. During the Civil War, Fort Anderson was constructed atop the old village site, and served as part of the Cape Fear River defenses below Wilmington before the fall of the Confederacy. Volunteers will be helping with ruin stabilization. Light food and drinks will be provided.
First Battle of Kinston Battlefield Park, Kinston,9:00 a.m.
Contact: diamondgp@suddenlink.net
Volunteers will cut grass, rake leaves, make minor repairs to the boardwalk and fence, repair the church and clean interpretive signs. Food and drinks will be provided.
Fort Branch, Tarboro, 9:00 a.m.
Contact: Jimmy Braswell at jimmyb.delcor@gmail.com
Volunteer activities will center on general cleanup, including leaf removal. Drinks will be provided.
Fort Fisher State Historic Site, Kure Beach, 8:45 a.m.
Contact: John Moseley at john.moseley@ncdcr.gov
Volunteers will help with painting, landscaping, debris removal, beach clean-up and fence repairs. Food and drinks will be provided.
Guilford Courthouse National Military Park,Greensboro, 10:00 a.m.
Contact: vancenoles@gmail.com
Volunteer activities will include split rail fence building and landscaping. Food and drinks will be provided.
North Carolina Maritime Museum, Southport, 9:30 a.m.
Contact: Lori Sanderlin at Lori.Sanderlin@ncdcr.gov
Volunteers will weed, rake, prune and plant the museum’s interpretive gardens, located on the historic grounds of Fort Johnston. Lunch will be provided.
The Civil War Trust is the largest and most effective nonprofit organization devoted to the preservation of America’s hallowed battlegrounds. Although primarily focused on the protection of Civil War battlefields, through its Campaign 1776 initiative, the Trust also seeks to save the battlefields connected to the Revolutionary War and War of 1812. To date, the Trust has preserved close to 43,000 acres of battlefield land in 23 states. Learn more at Civilwar.org.
