North Carolina has begun the sesquicentennial of perhaps its most important year in the Civil War, when Union troops staged amphibious attacks and seized crucial swaths of coastal territory they would occupy for much of the war. And, 150 years later, another battle is under way over how to remember the anniversary. A more inclusive, diverse viewpoint looks to be winning the fight over how to view that period of American history: At state historic sites, the state history museum and dozens of commemorative events, it’s no longer solely about the Blue and the Gray.
It’s also the black, the white, the slaves, the civilians, the men, women and children. Even the long-reviled Union sympathizers get a voice. The state has been able to create an elaborate website – NCCivilWar150 — for the sesquicentennial, is pulling many documents about the war from its archives and putting them online, and even has a blog focused on women in the Civil War that’s getting international attention. Broadly, the state’s plans for its activities and programs are to examine not just the war itself, but secession, life for civilians during war time, slavery and the lives of slaves, and what happened to the state after the war.
The Division is promoting Civil War-related attractions and events across virtually all of its programs throughout the sesquicentennial period. North Carolina is one of several states participating in Civil War Trails, a groundbreaking history/tourism initiative that has installed more than 1,000 interpretive wayside markers at historic sites in North Carolina, Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee, West Virginia and Gettysburg, Penn. North Carolina has 232 commemorative markers in 78 counties.
Other initiatives include journeys, itineraries, brochure downloads, events listings and links to additional resources, including the N.C. Dept. of Cultural Resources’ NCCivilWar150, on VisitNC.com; a four-page feature in the Official 2012 North Carolina Travel Guide, including interactive features in the online version; cooperative advertising opportunities; extensive public relations efforts, including a comprehensive media kit, press releases, feature stories, fact sheets and inclusion in media missions in New York and Charlotte; international marketing with an article in the Division’s German newsletter and promotion during sales missions in Germany, Canada and the United Kingdom, and the Travel South Receptive Operator Mission in Orlando; group marketing, including promotion during trade shows for the American Bus Association, National Tour Association and Travel South USA; brochure distribution at the Division’s nine Welcome Centers and through its 1-800-VISITNC call center.
The Division also worked with the Appalachian Regional Commission and twelve other ARC states to develop and produce a Civil War map-guide for distribution in the Spring 2011 issue of “American Heritage,” which is also available at the state’s Welcome Centers and by download from VisitNC.com.