BEAUFORT, NC – It’s a common tradition for neighbors and family to open their homes for the holiday, and the N.C. Maritime Museum in Beaufort is no different.
The Friends of the N.C. Maritime Museum will host its Holiday Open House Dec. 8 from 3 to 4 p.m. The general public is invited to join members of the organization for the free holiday event held at the museum, located at 315 Front St. in Beaufort. Refreshments will be served.
“The Holiday Open House is meet and mingle-style,” Friends Director Brent Creelman said. “Everyone gets a chance to meet with Friends board members and museum staff.”
He said chowder and punch will be served during the event, which follows the annual Friends membership meeting. That meeting will include an update on the museum’s past year plus a look ahead to 2020. The winner of the 2019 raffle boat will also be drawn at the membership meeting. This year’s boat is an International Moth, currently on display in the museum’s lobby. It was built by staff and volunteers of the Harvey W. Smith Watercraft Center. Tickets are $5 and are still available via the museum’s gift shop: 252-504-7763. Construction on the 2020 raffle boat, a catspaw dinghy, is currently underway.
For more information on the Holiday Open House or the Friends of the Maritime Museum, call 252-728-1638 or visit maritimefriends.com.
About the N.C. Maritime Museum in Beaufort
The North Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort reflects coastal life and interprets lighthouses and lifesaving stations, the seafood industry, motorboats, and more. Studies in marine life, science, and ecology are available for all ages. The Beaufort museum is the repository for artifacts from Blackbeard’s wrecked flagship, Queen Anne’s Revenge, among them cannons, grenades, belt buckles and beads. The Harvey W. Smith Watercraft Center teaches boatbuilding for all ages.
The North Carolina Maritime Museum, located at 315 Front Street in Beaufort, is open Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. The museum is open to the public with free admission. Donations are always appreciated. For more information about the museum, call 252-728-7317 or visit https://ncmaritimemuseums.com/.
The North Carolina Maritime Museum system is comprised of the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras, the North Carolina Maritime Museum at Beaufort and the North Carolina Maritime Museum at Southport. All three museums are part of the Division of State History Museums in the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. The system website is www.ncmaritimemuseums.com.
About the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources
The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (NCDNCR) is the state agency with a vision to be the leader in using the state’s natural and cultural resources to build the social, cultural, educational and economic future of North Carolina. NCDNCR’s mission is to improve the quality of life in our state by creating opportunities to experience excellence in the arts, history, libraries and nature in North Carolina by stimulating learning, inspiring creativity, preserving the state’s history, conserving the state’s natural heritage, encouraging recreation and cultural tourism, and promoting economic development.
NCDNCR includes 27 historic sites, seven history museums, two art museums, two science museums, three aquariums and Jennette’s Pier, 39 state parks and recreation areas, the N.C. Zoo, the nation’s first state-supported Symphony Orchestra, the State Library, the State Archives, the N.C. Arts Council, State Preservation Office and the Office of State Archaeology, along with the Division of Land and Water Stewardship. For more information, call 919-807-7300 or visit www.ncdcr.gov.
Submitted by: Cyndi Brown, Public Information Officer, N.C. Maritime Museums – Beaufort, Hatteras, and Southport