Saturday, February 13

Garden Lecture: "Winter into Spring"

Speaker: Pam Beck

10:00 a.m.  FREE
Visitor Center auditorium

As the days warm and lengthen during spring, drab winter landscapes give way to the riot of spring bulbs, awakening grassy lawns, beloved small decorative trees, and blooming shrubs. New shades of green, white, purple, pink and gold burst onto the scene in our gardens. This is a time of transition we anxiously anticipate all winter long, especially after attending this slide lecture.

Tuesdays, February 16 and 23

Fife Recruit Class

5:30-6:30pm
Ages 10 and up
$25 per person for all 6 classes (runs through March 22)
Visitor Center auditorium

Calling all musicians! The Tryon Palace Fife & Drum Corps is looking for new fife recruits. If you have a love of history, music, and want to be part of a fun, exciting, dedicated group of volunteers, this is the perfect opportunity! Musical experience (especially the flute) is preferred, but not required.

Advance registration is welcome but not required. Please contact Katie Loveless at 252-514-4939 or kbrightman@tryonpalace.org to sign-up or learn more information.

Thursday, February 18

African American Lecture: "Liberty & Justice for All: Black Voices from the Past"

Guest Speaker: Reginald Watson, Ph.D.,
Associate Professor of English at East Carolina University

7:00 p.m.  FREE
Visitor Center auditorium

Dr. Watson will introduce us to a Black History Play entitled Black Voices from the Past performed by at least three Thespian members.  The play will depict various scenes that trace African and African American historical events from our past.  Scenes will be tied together by music and dance.  There will also be some poetry recitations to highlight the importance of African American creativity and resilience.

Saturday – Monday, February 20, 21 & 22

The Palace by George

Weekend focused on George Washington's southern tour in 1791.  The dancing assembly held in his honor will be interpreted, as well as assorted Washington-related artifacts.  In addition, themes of new statehood and patriotism will be examined in programming and activities. 

Discounted admission will be offered to visitors with 'George' related names.  Visitors must show valid ID.  

Spring Garden Hours
March 1-May 31, Gardens open until 6:00 p.m.
Last ticket sold at 4:30 p.m.

Tuesdays, March 2 and 23

Fife Recruit Class

5:30-6:30pm
Ages 10 and up
$25 per person for all 6 classes (runs through March 22)
Visitor Center auditorium

Calling all musicians! The Tryon Palace Fife & Drum Corps is looking for new fife recruits. If you have a love of history, music, and want to be part of a fun, exciting, dedicated group of volunteers, this is the perfect opportunity! Musical experience (especially the flute) is preferred, but not required.

Advance registration is welcome but not required. Please contact Katie Loveless at 252-514-4939 or kbrightman@tryonpalace.org to sign-up or learn more information.

Tuesday, March 2

Council of Friends Movie Series

UNC-TV Documentary of the trip to Bern and the Palatine

7:00 p.m. FREE.
Visitor Center Auditorium

View the documentary made by UNC-TV’s Rob Holliday when he accompanied the Council of Friends sponsored trip to Switzerland, France, and Germany on November 30 – December 9, 2009. 

Saturday, March 6

Scouting Out Tryon Palace: “The Trades that Built North Carolina”

9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
$10 per student, $12 per adult (plus $2 per person collected by Girl Scout office to cover the cost of registration)

Girl Scouts of all ages can enjoy a fun-filled day of history featuring tours of the Palace and three other historic homes, take-home projects, colonial games, and hands-on activities that explore the various trades that built our colony.  Bring a picnic lunch and enjoy this special Girl Scout Day at North Carolina's first capitol.  Activities are designed for school-age girls; some activities have a minimum age requirement.

Space is limited and prepayment is required.  Girl Scout leaders must register online at the Girl Scouts – North Carolina Coastal Pines website (www.nccoastalpines.org) by February 22.

Thursday, March 18

African American Lecture

Guest Speakers: Dr. Jeff Crow, Terrell Armistead Crow and Mary Barden
 “A Southern Woman Confronts African American Civil War in North Carolina”

7:00 p.m.  FREE
Visitor Center auditorium

In this panel discussion the speakers will focus on three topics relating to African Americans during the Civil War and Reconstruction. 

• Dr. Crow will highlight “A Spelling Book in One Hand and a Musket in the other: African Americans in Civil War North Carolina”; “No officer in this regiment now doubts that the key to the successful prosecution of this was lies in the unlimited employment of black troops.  Their superiority lies simply in the fact that they know the country, while white troops do not, and, moreover, that they have peculiarities of temperament, position, and motive which belong to them alone.  Instead of leaving their homes and families to fight, they are fighting for their homes and families, and they show the resolution and sagacity which a personal purpose gives...” Excerpt from February 1, 1863. 
• Terrell Crow's topic is “Mary Bayard Clarke's ‘Betsey Bittersweet' Articles 1867-1868: A Conservative Response to Reconstruction”.  Mary Bayard Clarke's Louisiana house is still standing in New Bern.  Mr. Crow, along with Mary Barden, edited the Clarke papers that were published by the University of South Carolina Press in 2003. 
• Mary Barden's topic is “Mary Bayard Clarke: The New Bern Years”.  The subject is (Mary Bayard's husband) William J. Clarke's participation in the Kirk-Holden War (1870) or his training of George Henry White in law in the late 1870s.

Saturday, March 20

Garden Lecture: Notable New Bernians in the Garden of Athens

Speakers: Rebecca Reimer Arthur & Lisa Wimpfheimer

10:00 a.m.   FREE
Funding provided by a grant from the Harold H. Bate Foundation.
Visitor Center auditorium

Tryon Palace staff Rebecca Reimer Arthur, Curator of Education, and Lisa Wimpfheimer, Curator of Gardens, will present a special program to introduce you to New Bern gardeners Amaryllis Sitgreaves and Lavinia Cole Roberts and botanist Hardy Bryan Croom. Learn how their letters and lists impact what we know about gardens in the early days of New Bern.

Sunday, March 21

African American Historic Downtown Walking Tour

2:00 p.m.
Tickets: $4 Adult, $2 Student.
Tour departs from Visitor Center lobby.

Learn about 300 years of African American history on a walking tour of New Bern's historic district. This tour lasts approximately 90 minutes and covers 16 blocks. 
Reservations required: 252-514-4935. (Minimum Enrollment: 10)

Saturdays, April 3 and 17

Tryon Palace Theater: Making of the State

1:00 p.m.
$4 per adult, $2 per student; FREE with regular admission.
Visitor Center Auditorium

Don't just listen about history; take an active part in it! During this interactive program, the audience will participate in our First Provincial Congress and help determine North Carolina's course leading towards the Revolutionary War.

Tuesday, April 6

Council of Friends Movie Series: The Student Prince

7:00 p.m. FREE.
Visitor Center Auditorium

Crown Prince Karl Heinrich is the nephew of Karl VII, the current King of Karlsburg, and heir to the throne.  After the Prince receives the equivalent of a high school education, the King decides to send him to Heidelberg to continue his education. The Prince loves the collegial atmosphere in Heidelberg. When it looks as if he is required to take his rightful place on the throne which includes marrying the woman the King has chosen for him, the Prince has to make the difficult decision between his royal duties and his love for Kathi with whom he has fallen in love.  Filmed on location at Heidelberg Castle, this is the original silent movie in “glorious black and white” with orchestral soundtrack.

Friday-Sunday, April 9-11

Garden Lover's Weekend – New Bern Celebrates 300 Years of Gardens

Gardens open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

FREE Garden Admission.
Interior tours require the purchase of a ticket. 

Visitors will see the splendor of thousands of tulips in bloom. Garden Lover's Weekend is held in conjunction with the Spring Historic Homes & Gardens Tour, which is sponsored by the New Bern Historical Society and the New Bern Preservation Foundation. (A separate ticket is required for the historic homes tour. Please call (252) 638-8558 for more information.)

Admission to the following events is free unless otherwise indicated.

• Heritage Plant Sale: Friday and Saturday on the Palace grounds. Featuring perennials, herbs, annuals, trees, and shrubs grown in our greenhouse, the sale also offers the public a chance to own unique, rare, and historic plants. Master gardeners will be on hand to answer your planting questions. Come early for the best selection! Sale hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. both days.
  
  
• Program of music in the gardens

Thursday, April 15

African American Lecture:   “A Southern Woman Confronts African American Civil War in North Carolina”

Guest Speakers: Dr. Jeff Crow, Terrell Armistead Crow and Mary Barden

7:00 p.m. FREE.
Visitor Center auditorium

In this panel discussion the speakers will focus on three topics relating to African Americans during the Civil War and Reconstruction. 

• Dr. Crow will highlight “A Spelling Book in One Hand and a Musket in the other: African Americans in Civil War North Carolina”; “No officer in this regiment now doubts that the key to the successful prosecution of this was lies in the unlimited employment of black troops.  Their superiority lies simply in the fact that they know the country, while white troops do not, and, moreover, that they have peculiarities of temperament, position, and motive which belong to them alone.  Instead of leaving their homes and families to fight, they are fighting for their homes and families, and they show the resolution and sagacity which a personal purpose gives...” Excerpt from February 1, 1863. 
  
  
• Terrell Crow's topic is “Mary Bayard Clarke's ‘Betsey Bittersweet' Articles 1867-1868: A Conservative Response to Reconstruction”.  Mary Bayard Clarke's Louisiana house is still standing in New Bern.  Mr. Crow, along with Mary Barden, edited the Clarke papers that were published by the University of South Carolina Press in 2003. 
  
  
• Mary Barden's topic is “Mary Bayard Clarke: The New Bern Years”.  The subject is (Mary Bayard's husband) William J. Clarke's participation in the Kirk-Holden War (1870) or his training of George Henry White in law in the late 1870s.

Sunday – Monday, April 17, 18 & 19

Settlers in the New World: The Coming of the Palatines

This weekend will be focused toward the Palatine settlers of North Carolina (and New Bern in particular).  Lectures throughout the weekend, focusing on these early settlers, informational talks about the legacy of the German Palatines in the United States. Craft activities and programs for children will be included.

Sunday, April 18
African American Historic Downtown Walking Tour

2:00 p.m.
Tickets: $4 Adult, $2 Student.
Tour departs from Visitor Center lobby.

Learn about 300 years of African American history on a walking tour of New Bern's historic district. This tour lasts approximately 90 minutes and covers 16 blocks.  Reservations required: 252-514-4935. (Minimum Enrollment: 10)

Saturday, May 1

Home School Day

“Building a Colony”
9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
$10 per student, $12 per adult (tickets valid 2 consecutive days). 

Home-school families enjoy interactive activities as well as tours of the Palace and three other historic homes in this popular event.  Bring your picnic lunch and spend time immersed in the past.  Activities are designed for school-age children; some activities have a minimum age requirement.

Space is limited; pre-registration and pre-payment required by April 16.  Call (252) 514-4935 to register.

Thursday, May 6

African American Lecture:  “From New Bern to a New Birth of Freedom”

Guest Speaker: Harold (Hari) Jones of Washington, D.C.

7:00 p.m.  FREE.
Visitor Center auditorium.

Before the Emancipation Proclamation, the efforts of North Carolinians of African descent in the New Bern area to end the tyranny of slavery were some of the boldest and most productive in the country.  Their impact was regional and national.  The heroes were many.  This lecture will tell their story of a glorious march from slavery to freedom as liberators and true defenders of the Constitution

Tuesday, May 4

Council of Friends Movie Series: On Her Majesty’s Secret Service

7:00 p.m. FREE.
Visitor Center Auditorium

The most emotional adventure of his career begins for James Bond on a deserted beach where a young woman tries to drown herself. He rescues the girl and for his trouble is attacked by two toughs - the girl's bodyguards. It soon becomes much bigger for 007 - the girl is Teresa Draco, daughter of crime boss Marc Ange Draco, who wants James to marry his wayward daughter, and in return he can provide 007 with information on an even more dangerous criminal leader - Ernst Stavro Bloefeld of SPECTRE. But both James and Teresa find more than they ever bargained for when their paths collide in a vicious pursuit filmed on the Schilthorn in the snow-capped Alps of Switzerland.

Saturday, May 15

Garden Lecture: Palms for North Carolina

Speaker: Gary Hollar

10:00 a.m.  FREE. 
Funding provided by a grant from the Harold H. Bate Foundation.
Visitor Center auditorium.

Gary Hollar has been growing thousands of cold-hardy palms here in Craven County for almost 25 years. He collects seeds from old and proven landscape specimens that have endured below-zero temperatures as well as collecting Sabal minor and Sabal palmetto seeds from their habitat.

Sunday, May 16

African American Historic Downtown Walking Tour

2:00 p.m.
Tickets: $4 Adult; $2 Student.
Tour departs from Visitor Center lobby.

Learn about 300 years of African American history on a walking tour of New Bern's historic district. This tour lasts approximately 90 minutes and covers 16 blocks.  Reservations required: 252-514-4935. (Minimum Enrollment: 10)

Thursday, June 10

African American Lecture

Guest Speaker:Dr. Zachery R. Williams, Associate Professor,  Department of Pan African History

"We've Come This Far By Faith: The History and Continuing Legacy of Juneteenth for African Americans

7:00 p.m. FREE
Visitor Center Auditorium

This lecture will seek to highlight significant moments in the history and evolution of Juneteenth for African Americans. Using insights from thinkers like Ralph Ellison and many other black cultural leaders, the talk will also demonstrate the role of religion and culture in the shaping of African American identity and consciousness over time. Lastly, Dr. Williams seeks to show the manner in which the spirit and cultural significance of Juneteenth can empower African Americans in their continual struggle for human rights and equality in the age of President Barack Obama.

Saturday, July 3

Celebration of the Declaration

FREE Garden admission. Interior tours require the purchase of a ticket.

• Recreation of North Carolina's first documented celebration of independence in the year 1778 .
• This will feature the reading of the Declaration, Fife & Drum Corps performances, musket firing demonstrations, craft activities, 18th century music, and colonial games.

Sunday, July 4

A 19th Century Town Celebration

1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., specific times to follow. FREE.
New Bern Academy Green

This is a nod to New Bern's 300th celebration because the Academy Green was where 19th century New Bern celebrated the 4th of July.
Admission to the following events is free unless otherwise indicated.

• Watch an 1830s Independence Day celebration with interpreters portraying notable 1830s New Bern citizens having a picnic with period music and dancing. Visitors will be invited to bring a picnic lunch and join the characters for conversation and dancing.
• Reading of the Declaration by a 19th century character.
• The Academy bell will ring the number of years of independence from the signing of the Declaration to the year of the celebration
• The Academy is open for free tours.

Saturday, July 10

African American Lecture:  “New Bern Literary Read In and Book Fair”

Guest Speaker: Reginald Watson, Ph.D., Assoc. Professor of English at East Carolina University

12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.  FREE.
Visitor Center auditorium

Come learn about the historical legacy of African American writers in North Carolina.  Meet historians and present day authors, hear their stories and purchase their works in this recitation, reception and book fair. This event is co-sponsored by Shelia Peele-Miller, author. 

Thursday, July 15

African American Lecture: “Celebrating Freedom: Emancipation Day Ceremonies in North Carolina”

Guest Speaker:  John Haley, Ph. D., Ret. Assoc. Professor Emeritus from UNC-Wilmington

7:00 p.m.
FREE. 
Visitor Center auditorium.

For over a half-century, January 1, 1963 – Emancipation Day – was one of the most important days in the lives of former enslaved persons and ranked above July 4, 1776 in significance.  The lecture will focus on the leaders of events commemorating Emancipation Day in North Carolina, the pageantry, the rhetoric of featured orators, the distinguished invited guests, and the response and reaction of whites.  Dr. John H. Haley retired as an Associate Professor Emeritus of History at UNC-Wilmington. He received a PhD in History from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Sunday, July 18

African American Historic Downtown Walking Tour

2:00 p.m.
Tickets: $4 Adult, $2 Student.
Tour departs from Visitor Center lobby.

Learn about 300 years of African American history on a walking tour of New Bern's historic district. This tour lasts approximately 90 minutes and covers 16 blocks.  Reservations required: 252-514-4935. (Minimum Enrollment: 10)

Sunday, August 15

African American Historic Downtown Walking Tour

2:00 p.m.
Tickets: $4 Adult, $2 Student.
Tour departs from Visitor Center lobby.

Learn about 300 years of African American history on a walking tour of New Bern's historic district. This tour lasts approximately 90 minutes and covers 16 blocks.  Reservations required: 252-514-4935. (Minimum Enrollment: 10)

Thursday, August 19

African American Lecture: “Voices Between Two Rivers:
A History of the African American Experience in New Bern, North Carolina”

Guest Speaker: Linda Henry-Simmons, Author and Director of Library Services, St. Augustine College, Raleigh, NC

7:00 p.m. FREE.
Visitor Center auditorium.

Throughout its 300-year history, African settlers and their descendants, both enslaved and free, helped shape the development, economy and culture of New Bern and North Carolina.  New Bern had s substantial population of Free Americans in its colonial and antebellum period, many of whom provided leadership in North Carolina and the nation.  Enslaved artisans used their skills to gain freedom and advance financially and socially in the 19th century.  Mrs. Henry-Simmons will highlight New Bern's development of the state's first Black printing press, public school, bank, Masonic lodge, churches and many other “firsts” that further demonstrate the progressive nature of the city's African American community.  This program will also provide the public with a lecture and power point presentation on 300 years of dynamic local history as experienced by New Bern's African American citizens.

Monday, September 6

Stanly-Spaight Duel Reenactment

1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.: Academy Tours
4:00 p.m.: Fife & Drum Corps Concert followed by Duel Reenactment
FREE. New Bern Academy Green.

Tour the New Bern Academy, enjoy a concert by the Tryon Palace Fife & Drum Corps, and step back in time to an era where a man's personal honor was his most cherished quality. Any incursion on this sacred value could result in fiery and violent retribution. Watch the spectacle of the September 5, 1802 Stanly-Spaight duel unfold before your eyes. In this historical reenactment of a duel between Nineteenth-century New Bern political rivals, costumed characters battle to protect their reputation.

Thursday, September 9

African American Lecture:  “Movers & Shakers in the African American Community – Past and Present”

7:00 p.m.  FREE.
Visitor Center auditorium.

This panel discussion will be about dedication, commitment, role/potential image as a role model, and encouragement.  Possibly including:

• Walt Bellmany – NBA Basketball
• Ray Rogers – President of Wachovia Bank
• Dr, Carolyn Sampson – General Practice
• Finesse Couch – Attorney
• Dr. Johnnie Williams – OBGYN
• Dr. Lerla Joseph – TBA
• George Koonce – NFL Football
• Alderman Barbara Lee
• Commissioner Johnnie Sampson
• James “Smoke” Boyd

Friday, September 10 – Friday, September 17

Démodé Fashion Week

DÉMODÉ (dā'mō-dā'), adj., no longer in fashion; out of date; outmoded.  New York may be showing off all the latest fashions this week but come see our classics! Explore the world of 18th century fashion through a week long series of programs, period demonstrations, and kids craft activities. 

Costs and full schedule to be announced. 

Learn about 300 years of African American history on a walking tour of New Bern's historic district. This tour lasts approximately 90 minutes and covers 16 blocks.  Reservations required: 252-514-4935. (Minimum Enrollment: 10)

Saturday, October 2

Family Day:  “Life in a New Colony”

9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Regular admission prices (tickets valid 2 consecutive days). 

Come learn what it was like to move to a new land and try to build a life there.  Families of all ages can enjoy tours of the Palace and our historic homes as well as interactive crafts, activities, and demonstrations.  Bring your picnic lunch and spend time immersed in the past.  Activities are designed for school-age children; some activities have a minimum age requirement.

No registration needed. 

Friday-Sunday, October 8-10

MUMfest Weekend

Gardens open 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Friday and Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.
FREE Garden Admission, Interior tours require the purchase of a ticket. 

Saturday-Sunday, October 9-10

Heritage Plant Sale

Sale hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. 

Sunday, October 17

African American Historic Downtown Walking Tour

2:00 p.m.
Tickets: $4 Adult, $2 Student.
Tour departs from Visitor Center lobby.

Learn about 300 years of African American history on a walking tour of New Bern's historic district. This tour lasts approximately 90 minutes and covers 16 blocks.  Reservations required: 252-514-4935. (Minimum Enrollment: 10)

Thursday, October 21

African American Lecture: "Emancipation Communities:
North Carolina Contraband/Refugee Camps during the American Civil War"

Guest Speaker: Michelle Lanier

7:00 p.m.  FREE.
Visitor Center auditorium.

Enslaved African Americans saw the Civil War, the violent tear in the nation's fabric, as a thoroughfare to freedom, humanity and self-determination.  By foot, by boat and by wagon, those held in bondage sojourned to environs called James City, Roanoke Island and Freedom Hill.  This lecture will describe and define the concept of the Emancipation Community and the radical distinctions between the notions of “contrabands” and “refugees”.  Additionally, the talk will explore primary documents which illuminate the nature of these hand-hewn homes, as well as the powerful legacies left by those who claimed their own lives in the face of war.

Winter Garden Hours
November 1-December 31, Gardens open until 5:00 p.m.
Last ticket sold at 4:30 p.m.

Thursday, November 11 - Sunday, November 14

Defending New Bern: 300 Years of Stewardship

9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m., Thursday-Saturday,
and 1:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. Sunday

Special Salute to the military men and women who have defended New Bern over three centuries. Focus will be on the Tuscarora-European conflict, the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and World Wars I and II. Special living history interpretation in the historic homes. Military encampment at the New Bern Academy Civil War museum. (All active duty and military veterans admitted free with ID, ticketed otherwise) (child-friendly)

Sunday, November 21

African American Historic Downtown Walking Tour

2:00 p.m.
Tickets: $4 Adult, $2 Student.
Tour departs from Visitor Center lobby.

Learn about 300 years of African American history on a walking tour of New Bern's historic district. This tour lasts approximately 90 minutes and covers 16 blocks.  Reservations required: 252-514-4935. (Minimum Enrollment: 10)

Friday, November 26 – Friday, December 31

Three Centuries of Christmas Cheer in the ‘Athens' of North Carolina

Experience Christmas customs that would have been familiar to New Bernians of the past.  View an early settlement camp, tour the Grand Opening of Tryon's Palace, and experience traditions ranging from the eighteenth century through the middle of the twentieth. Multiple historic homes will be decorated and interpreted for the various time periods, as well as the History Education Center.

December 11 & December 18

Grand Illumination

5:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m.

Experience an eighteenth-century candlelit Christmas celebration! The evening program includes a tour through the Palace (and perhaps a word or two with the Governor), performances by Tryon Palace's Fife and Drum Corps and Jonkonnu troupe, and an assortment of other performers. The evening ends with a grand illumination over the South Lawn.

Tickets will be sold for specific tour time slots.

Friday, December 24-Sunday, December 26

Seasons Greetings!  Tryon Palace Historic Sites & Gardens is closed in honor of the holidays.