Work is progressing on the NC History Center on the Civil War, Emancipation & Reconstruction as groundbreaking gears up to begin on the main building by the end of the year.
Marc Barnes, spokesperson for the History Center, said the facility will highlight the diverse stories and perspectives of descendants from various backgrounds across the state. Additionally, it aims to attract schoolchildren to explore what happened in North Carolina before, during and after the Civil War. The History Center will be located at the site of Arsenal Park at 215 Myrover St. Barnes said all construction is expected to be completed by mid-2027.
The History Center aims to "rewrite the narrative" by truthfully exploring how the North Carolina Homefront reacted to and participated in the Civil War with an $87 million History Center built on a Fayetteville historic Civil War site.
The main building will join three existing buildings at the site, which have all been recently remodeled in preparation for opening.
“This is going to be world-class,” Barnes said Tuesday. “We’re telling the story of what actually happened and what actually happened is more interesting than the story of the false narratives that have been talked about in the past.”
“This (war) was trying to establish and keep slavery in place, and it was wrong," Barnes said. "The stories that we tell are about what happened, when it happened, how it happened."
He said that the History Center is using university-based scholarship to develop its new narrative, rather than what was used, which he said was the Daughters of the Confederacy trying to justify the Confederate army’s part in the war.
Remaining steps before History Center opens to the public
Fayetteville's Technical Review Committee recently approved plans for the main building's construction, which include new improvements to the site, such as an approximately 49,000-square-foot main building with associated parking, access drives, sidewalks and walking paths. According to the review committee, the entire site is a total of 6.65 acres.
Barnes said that the war is often framed as an economic issue with claims that enslaved people were content and that the South's defeat was solely due to the North's superior firepower. While the latter may hold some truth, he said, the rest is false.
“The center itself has moved from design/development to construction documents and the final design blueprints on the main building,” Barnes said. “Hoping to break ground on the main building by the end of this year.”
He said that the estimated budget and costs remain similar to previous projections, though inflation could impact material expenses. While construction timelines for the center's main building are set, the content and exhibits are still being crafted by artists, writers and researchers in collaboration with Eisterhold Associate Inc., a team of creatives that design immersive exhibits and experiences across the country.
“We’re not going to open a door to an empty room; you’re going to open the door to a fully functional Smithsonian-level institution,” Barnes said.
He said that currently, there are three buildings at Arsenal Park — the Arsenal House, which was renovated primarily for K-12 students to use when visiting the History Center on field trips once the History Center is open; the Culbreth House, which was renovated for higher education purposes; and the Davis House, which is a support building currently serving as storage for the History Center's exhibits and artifacts, as well as for other developments for that end of Arsenal Park.
The Arsenal House will include a classroom, a distance learning studio and a technical support room, as part of the history center's Digital Education Outreach Center. Barnes said the outreach center will be an online educational resource to teach public school students across North Carolina the history of the period before, during and after the Civil War.
The Culbreth House will become the Center for the Study of the Civil War and Reconstruction in North Carolina and will feature a catering kitchen and upstairs offices, as well as a library, with an extensive collection of Civil War and Reconstruction books. The building will eventually also be used as the offices for the Center’s Foundation.
Barnes said that the Davis House required extensive renovations, including adding structural elements, new floors and walls, updated rewiring and heating and air conditioning. However, now that renovations are completed, staff members can begin using the space to research and collect artifacts for the History Center.
“The next project will be an educational outdoor pavilion area, which is scheduled to be completed next year,” Barnes said. “Also planned for the site is ... large-scale exhibits, an auditorium and the Center’s operations going forward.”
Reporter Lizmary Evans covers growth and development for The Fayetteville Observer. You can reach her at LEvans@gannett.com
Most Popular
Comments / 0