All Titles

More Than Just a Game tells the story of the 100-year football rivalry between NCA&T and NCCU through never-before-seen photographs and images. The work seeks to honor the many coaches, players, and participants in this storied rivalry. These vintage images illustrate the importance of the schools’ rare and special rivalry, something students and alumni already know. Written with the fans of both institutions in mind, this book seeks to recount the jubilant victories and heartbreaking losses of each school. It is the story of HBCUs at their best and documents their contributions to the state of North Carolina and the nation. It is a story of perseverance, accomplishment, and pride.

Established in 1896, Spencer Shops was the Southern Railway's largest steam locomotive repair facility. After five decades of providing thousands of jobs to craftsmen and laborers, Spencer Shops and its company town became a victim of technology as diesel-electrics replaced steam locomotives. By August 1960, Spencer Shops had all but ceased operation, its workforce dwindling to a level 95 percent smaller than it had been in the early 1950s. Even as rust and pigeons ruled the largely abandoned complex, a dedicated group of state officials and railroad enthusiasts saw its promise as a state historic site. After years of hard work, Spencer Shops experienced its rebirth with the creation of the North Carolina Transportation Museum (NCTM) in 1977. Today, the impressive facility celebrates not only the rich history of Spencer but also the wide array of transportation history in the Tar Heel State.

Named for the frontiersman Daniel Boone, the town of Boone was first laid out in 1850 and officially incorporated in 1872. Nestled in an Appalachian stream valley, the town of Boone was initially little more than a sleepy, ramshackle county seat, prompting one 1888 visitor to describe it as “a God-forsaken place.” In 1899, the founding of the Watauga Academy (today’s Appalachian State University) began a long history of synergy and occasional friction between town and gown. The 1918 arrival of the Linville River Railway launched the “Watch Boone Grow” campaign, turning Boone into a thriving commercial center. After World War II, improved roadways, cheap automobiles, and the nearby Blue Ridge Parkway made Boone a mountain tourism hub. The confluence of these forces—higher education, mountain tourism, and a commercial economy—has sometimes threatened Boone’s identity, but Boone’s reputation as an idyllic escape nevertheless endures.

John Hairr is an award-winning author and maritime historian who explores the past of unique and often forgotten places. He returns to the Cape Fear country for his latest photographic look into the region’s past. 

Kure Beach, North Carolina The sandy dunes stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Cape Fear River may not have looked impressive, but Fort Fisher, North Carolina, was a key part of the coastal defenses protecting the most important link in the lifeline of the Confederacy. Blockade runners and naval raiders alike sheltered for cover under the protection provided by powerful artillery batteries, which warships of the Union Navy dared not challenge. Modeled by the fort’s commander, Col. William Lamb, after Russian-engineered designs, the sandy ramparts defending the New Inlet entrance to the Cape Fear River eventually became the largest fortifications in the South, gaining the nickname “Confederate Gibraltar.” During the waning days of the war, Union commanders went to great lengths to destroy the fort, thus closing the vital port of Wilmington to Confederate blockade runners. The woefully undermanned defenders fought bravely, turning back the first Union assault in December 1864 and would no doubt have repulsed the second had promised reinforcements arrived. After fierce hand-to-hand combat, the garrison was overwhelmed by superior numbers, and Fort Fisher fell on January 15, 1865.

On March 19–21, 1865, nearly 80,000 soldiers clashed near the small hamlet of Bentonville, North Carolina, in a bitter battle that would prove to be the largest ever fought in the state and one of the last major battles of the Civil War.  Over the following decades, residents, descendants, and historians preserved the Bentonville story through monuments, markers, tours, and more. A hundred years after the battle, representatives of the state of North Carolina dedicated a permanent museum and created Bentonville Battlefield State Historic Site. Over the following years, North Carolina Historic Sites, with the American Battlefield Trust, has preserved and interpreted the battlefield at Bentonville—with over 2,000 acres preserved as of 2023. Today, the site continues to tell the multitude of Bentonville stories, including the battle, its aftermath, and the community that surrounds it. /Collecting photographs from several North Carolina state agencies, historical societies, and descendants of veterans and community members, this book tells the visual history of the battlefield as a site of memory. Several works exist to tell the history of the battle, but this is the first history of the battlefield itself. Authors Colby Lipscomb and Derrick Brown have decades of experience at the battlefield as visitors and, currently, as staff members. 

Carved out of the rural landscape of what was once New Hanover County, Duplin County has cultivated its own unique history. Originally home to Native American tribes such as the Tuscarora, by the 1700s the region would see the settlement of its first Europeans, the Welsh. By the time it was officially established in 1750, Duplin County would be home to people of English, Scots-Irish, Swiss, German, and African descent. The completion of the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad during the 19th century would bolster Duplin's economy and transform the landscape, with towns such as Warsaw, Wallace, Rose Hill, and Faison springing up along its tracks. An agricultural hub of North Carolina, many of Duplin County's residents have scratched out a living from its fertile soil, raising everything from tobacco and strawberries to cucumbers and livestock. The county's agricultural legacy has since been passed down to a new generation of farmers, with Duplin now being home to the Carolina Strawberry Festival and the Muscadine Festival.

From Wilmington, Fayetteville, Greenville, New Bern, Elizabeth City, Wilson, Kinston, Goldsboro, and many points in between, this book offers a brief look at many of the historical asylums and sanatoriums, as well as temporary hospitals of war and disaster, in Eastern North Carolina. It shows what they were and what they became as they transformed into the great hospitals of today. Many of these old buildings have long since been torn down or reused in a variety of ways seldom connected to their past. This book provides a glimpse of these great buildings, several of their artifacts, and images of what health care used to be in Eastern North Carolina and the role medicine has played as the region has grown.

In 1906, the North Carolina state legislature established Camp Glenn as the permanent summer training camp for the North Carolina National Guard. The camp's chosen site, located three miles west of Morehead City, was ideally situated on a sandy stretch of firm, high, and well-drained land overlooking Bogue Sound. A large parade ground adjoined the camp, and it was level as a floor and could accommodate the entire North Carolina National Guard. Although it was first established as a target practice field, in later years, the camp became the first US Coast Guard air station and later a US Navy base. Camp Glenn was the mobilization site for National Guard troops sent to the Mexican border during the 1916 Punitive Expedition against Pancho Villa led by Gen. John J. "Black Jack" Pershing. Citizen soldiers who trained at Camp Glenn also fought in World Wars I and II protecting North Carolina's coastline and battling for the United States in Europe.

Discover the history of the New Farmers of America in this collection of historic photographs.

African Americans have contributed greatly to the history of American agriculture. One of its most compelling stories is the New Farmers of America (NFA), which was a national organization of Black farm boys studying vocational agriculture in the public schools throughout 18 states in the eastern and southern United States from 1927 to 1965. The organization was started at the suggestion of Dr. H.O. Sargent, federal agent for agricultural education for Blacks, who felt the time was ripe for an organization of Black agricultural students. Operating within the auspices of the "Separate but Equal Doctrine," the NFA started at Virginia State University in May 1927 with a few chapters and members and concluded in 1965 with more than 1,000 chapters and more than 58,000 active members, merging with the Future Farmers of America (FFA) as a result of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Antoine J. Alston, PhD, serves as professor and associate dean for academic studies within the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at North Carolina A&T State University. Dexter B. Wakefield, PhD, serves as professor and associate dean for academic programs within the School of Agriculture and Applied Sciences at Alcorn State University. Netta S. Cox, MSEd, MLS, serves as associate professor and head of Serials, Government Documents, and Agricultural Liaison for F.D. Bluford Library at North Carolina A&T State University, the source of the majority of historic photographs in the book.

What did Lake Norman look like before it became a major tourist attraction for Mooresville? This volume of historical postcards features buildings, businesses, and sites that are no longer around, with topics ranging from early life in the town to advertisements for early hotels, trains, World War I and World War II, churches and schools, and the importance of the lake to the community. Images for this volume come from the Mooresville Postcard Collection, part of the Local History and Archives. Author Henry A. Poore is a lifelong Mooresville resident whose roots trace back to Mooresville and Iredell County since the 1700s. He has collected and researched postcards that were printed in Mooresville and worked to create the archives at the town's library. He has served as curator, archivist, and town historian and is the chairman of the Historic Preservation Commission for Mooresville and a founding member of the Mooresville Museum.

North Carolina's State Prison was typical of American prisons in the 19th century, but with an important difference. North Carolina put most of its inmates outside prison walls to work on road camps and prison farms for the purpose of getting useful work out of them. Opened in 1870, the prison in Raleigh housed only a fraction of the prisoners. Those inmates were for the most part too old, too sick, or too feeble to handle anything other than light institutional work details. This book explores all three components of North Carolina's early prison system, including its use of prison chain gangs, and clarifies how a penitentiary differs from a reformatory, correctional institution, or community-based facility.

Authors Deb Schillo and Barbara Miller take the reader through the fascinating history of the Southern Highland Craft Guild through a series of charming images and narratives of the craftspeople and artists throughout the 20th and into the 21st century that have made the Guild the world-renown cultural staple that it is today.

The Southern Highland Craft Guild is the oldest craft guild in the United States and the only guild to be defined by a geographical area. First conceived by Olive Dame Campbell in the 1920s, the craft guild was launched in 1930 with an exhibition of regional arts. Frances Louisa Goodrich contributed her Allanstand Shop so that families living in an already depressed region would have a sales venue for their work throughout the Great Depression and the years of World War II. From that early start, the Southern Highland Craft Guild has grown to nearly a thousand members and has established a worldwide reputation for fine workmanship. The guild is governed by the artist membership, which is made up of a wide range of craftspeople from institute-trained artists to local makers trained by parents and friends. Deb Schillo served as the guild's librarian and archivist for 20 years. Barbara Miller juried into the guild in 1965 and is still an active member, having served on the board and numerous committees. The authors have selected a sampling of the thousands of photographs and materials from the archives of the Southern Highland Craft Guild to provide a glimpse at some of the people and places that contributed to where the guild is today.

Founded in 1796, Concord experienced the evolutionary growing pains that many Southern towns faced in the 19th and 20th centuries. Concord has shifted from agricultural hamlet to textile town to a city of progress and innovation, and it is currently the 10th-largest city in North Carolina and home to a population of almost 100,000.

Discover the unique history of Brevard, North Carolina through the lens of over 200 vintage images in this volume authored by Susan M. Lefler

Brevard, North Carolina, ""land of waterfalls,"" is tucked into a lush valley in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Brevard was founded as the county seat of Transylvania County in 1861, the year that North Carolina seceded from the Union. Wealthy families from South Carolina's Lowcountry had long summered in the mountains and, even after the war, the region maintained its powerful pull. The arrival of the railroads brought tourists to Brevard from all over the country-including Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, and Harvey Firestone-and the logging industry attracted entrepreneurs who made their fortunes here. Brevard reveals the city's rich heritage through a gallery of images: baptism in an icy river, an ostrich race on Main Street, a moonshine still. In these pages, the reader can visit grist mills, waterfalls, and exquisite hotels, explore the booming logging industry, relive parades and downtown scenes, and read the intriguing stories of local folks.

Situated on the Pasquotank River in northeastern North Carolina, Elizabeth City is known as the "Gateway to the Albemarle." Since its founding in 1793, this small yet industrious river port has relied firmly upon the water as a source of prosperity as well as gratification. During the modern era, the rise of both prominent maritime-based enterprises and notable leisurely pursuits took hold and flourished. From its harbor, Jennette Brothers Wholesalers, Texas Oil, Norfolk & Southern Railroad, and the Globe Fish Company plied the rivers and sounds, bringing their goods and services. By its shores, the Elizabeth City Shipyard constructed and launched dozens of rescue and combat vessels in support of national defense. At the foot of Water Street, the James Adams Floating Theater regularly entertained audiences, and sailing enthusiasts flocked from across the country to compete in and watch the Moth Boat Regattas. Today, along Mariners' Wharf, the Rose Buddies welcome arriving boaters, and near the riverfront, the Museum of the Albemarle continues to promote and interpret the region's history and culture.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore was authorized by Congress on August 17, 1937, and established on January 12, 1953. As the nation's first national seashore, it encompasses 30,000 acres and crosses three islands, Bodie, Hatteras, and Ocracoke, for approximately 70 miles. Nearby Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge, located within the authorized seashore boundary, is 5,880 acres. Over the centuries, the seashore has witnessed major historic events, including the landing of the first English explorers, the death of Blackbeard the pirate, Civil War battles, German U-boat attacks, hundreds of shipwrecks, and devastating hurricanes. Descended from horses brought over by Spanish explorers, the Ocracoke ponies still roam the landscape. This National Park Service unit also includes the majestic Bodie Island, Cape Hatteras, and Ocracoke Lighthouses. The seashore is a haven for wildlife and recreational beachgoers. Cape Hatteras National Seashore showcases the rich natural and cultural heritage of America's first national seashore.