The African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund (AACHAF), a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, announced its award of $50,000 to the New Bern Preservation Foundation for the Preservation of King Solomon’s Lodge, North Carolina’s oldest African American Masonic Lodge. With more than $80 million in funding, the Action Fund is the largest U.S. resource dedicated to the preservation of African American historic places.
New Bern Preservation Foundation is one of 33 organizations across the United States in 2022 to receive a total of $3 million in funding from the Action Fund to protect and preserve sites representing African American history.
The New Bern Preservation Foundation has partnered with the members of King Solomon’s Masonic Lodge to preserve the historic Masonic lodge originally built during the Reconstruction Period as Drayton Hall in 1870. The exterior preservation, including brick repointing, siding replacement and glazing of the building’s original windows is complete, and the project is now focused on the building’s interior restoration which includes the staircases and doors, as well as returning the interior to its original paint colors. Both the grant by the Action Fund and the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Fund will be used for these interior restoration and preservation activities.
Since its inception in 2017, the Action Fund has supported 160 places through its National Grant Program for a total investment of $12.4 million. This year’s list further demonstrates the beauty and complexity of African American life, and includes historic sites tied to Black arts, culture, civic engagement, entrepreneurship, sports, medicine, education, religion, and social justice. These often-overlooked places hold aspects of history that must be protected—and used to draw inspiration and wisdom for the benefit of all Americans.
“The cultural landscapes and historic buildings featured in this year’s list showcase the breadth and depth of African American life, history, and architecture across generations,” said Brent Leggs, Executive Director, AACHAF. “At the National Trust, we aim to broaden the public’s understanding of the Black experience in America, while also underscoring the very urgent need to identify and protect these sites for the benefit of the communities they have long served. We commend this year’s grantees for advancing this movement and stewarding these invaluable cultural assets into the future.”
Action Fund grants support preservation efforts across four categories:
- Building Capital: Supporting the restoration and rehabilitation of cultural assets important to Black history
- Increasing Organizational Capacity: Providing leadership staff positions within non-profits stewarding Black heritage sites
- Project Planning and Development: Funding planning activities tied to the development of preservation plans, feasibility studies and fundraising
- Programming and Education: Advancing storytelling through public education and creative interpretation
Learn more about the Action Fund and the 2022 recipients at www.savingplaces.org/actionfund.
The grant made through the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Fund for Historic Interiors in the amount of $9,000 will focus on the restoration of the Lodge’s original interior staircases. Work on the staircase and other historic elements is being completed by Camden Woodworks of Edenton, NC.
By Maurice Howland