Museums North Carolina
Archaeology

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Brunswick Town State Historic Site
Winnabow, North Carolina

Archaeology, Culture, General, History, Historic House, Military, Park

A major pre-Revolutionary port on North Carolina's Cape Fear River, Brunswick was razed by British troops in 1776 and never rebuilt. During the Civil War, Fort Anderson was constructed atop the old village site, and served as part of the Cape Fear River defenses below Wilmington before the fall of the Confederacy. Colonial foundations dot the present-day tour trail, which crosses the earthworks of the Confederate fort.

Museum of Anthropology
Winston-Salem, North Carolina

Anthropology, Archaeology

Discover North Carolina's only museum dedicated to the study of global cultures. The Museum's permanent exhibits display objects from as far away as Africa, Oceania, and Latin America, and as nearby as North Carolina's Yadkin River Valley.

Swannanoa Valley Museum
Black Mountain, North Carolina

Archaeology, Children's, Culture, General, History, Historic House, Historical Society, Library, Military, Specialized

We offer hikes, tours, and daycations weekly. Visit www.swannanoavalleymuseum.org/events for more information.

Mountain Farm Museum and Mingus Mill
Cherokee, North Carolina

Archaeology, Children's, Culture, General, History, Historic House, Natural History, Nature Centers, Park

Oconaluftee offers both a visitor center and the Mountain Farm Museum—a collection of historic log buildings gathered from throughout the Smoky Mountains and preserved on a single site. Buildings include a house, barn, applehouse, springhouse, and smokehouse.

Orange County Historical Museum
Hillsborough, North Carolina

Anthropology, Archaeology, Art, Cemetery, Children's, Church, Culture, General, History, Historic House

The Orange County Historical Museum is located in downtown Historic Hillsborough, one of the early capital cities of North Carolina. The community is steeped in history, from the early Native Americans, the Occaneechi, to the hanging of the Regulators apprehended during the Battle of Alamance, a prelude engagement to the American Revolution. Soldiers from the British Army to Confederate soldiers of the American Civil War have marched through the streets of this quaint town. The Orange County Historical Museum captures many of these spledid stories through more than 1,500 artifacts and exhibits. The museum is located just down the street from the home of William Hooper, a signer of the Declaration of Independence for North Carolina.

Town Creek Indian Mound State Historic Site
Mount Gilead, North Carolina

Archaeology, Culture, History

For more than a thousand years, Indians lived an agricultural life on the lands that became known as North Carolina. About the 11th century A.D., a new cultural tradition emerged in the Pee Dee River Valley. That new culture, called "Pee Dee" by archaeologists, was part of a widespread tradition known as "South Appalachian Mississippian." Throughout Georgia, South Carolina, eastern Tennessee, western North Carolina, and the southern North Carolina Piedmont, the new culture gave rise to complex societies. These inhabitants built earthen mounds for their spiritual and political leaders, engaged in widespread trade, supported craft specialists, and celebrated a new kind of religion.

MUSEUM CONFERENCES

Georgia Association of Museums 2025 Conference

February 5 - 7, 2025

Milledgeville, Georgia

Georgia Association of Museums 2025 Conference

Wednesday, February 5 - Friday, February 7, 2025

Ina Dillard Russell Library Georgia College & State University

Milledgeville, Georgia

Hosted by: Georgia Association of Museums

The Whole Story Is The Meanin

“For the fiction writer himself the whole story is the meaning, because it is an experience, not an abstraction.”― Flannery O'Connor, Mystery and Manners: Occasional Pros

Join us in Milledgeville, Georgia, for the annual Georgia Association of Museums conference as we explore the profound wisdom of Milledgeville author Flannery O'Connor’s words. In a world where narratives intersect and perspectives diverge, this theme invites proposals that delve into the essence of storytelling within museums and cultural institutions. Our work in the museum field requires us to look at stories from as many angles and perspectives as possible so that we might do our best to tell the “whole story.

Through thought-provoking discussions, interactive workshops, and engaging presentations, we will uncover the layers of meaning embedded within every artifact, exhibition, and historical account. Just as O’Connor masterfully crafted narratives that resonate with universal truths, museums hold the power to illuminate the whole story behind many objects, artworks, and cultural phenomena

We will examine how museums can embrace inclusivity, diversity, and authenticity in their storytelling practices. By acknowledging multiple perspectives and amplifying marginalized voices, we can enrich our understanding of the past and present, fostering empathy and connection within our communities.

Small Museum Association 41st Annual Conference 2025

February 17 - 19, 2025

Gaithersburg, Maryland

Small Museum Association 41st Annual Conference 2025

Monday, February 17 - Wednesday, February 19, 2025

Gaithersburg Marriott Washingtonian Center

Gaithersburg, Maryland

Hosted by: Small Museum Association

The annual SMA conference attracts more than 300 museum professionals, board members, and volunteers from a wide variety of small museums. They attend sessions on topics ranging from collections and education to staffing and board issues.

We offer a large Museum Resource Hall and plenty of informal networking opportunities for you to talk with (and get ideas from!) other small museum professionals and volunteers

Theme for 2025: Make It Happen!!!

Is there an exhibit, program, or fundraiser that you've been talking about doing for years? Do you feel stuck because of procrastination, lack of board support, or insufficient funds? It's time to take action

At SMA 2025, small museum professionals will share their tips and tricks of how they made it happen!

2025 California Association of Museums Conference

February 18 - 22, 2025

San Fransico, California

2025 California Association of Museums Conference

Tuesday, February 18 - Saturday, February 22, 2025

San Fransico, California

Hosted by: California Association of Museums

CAM is hard at work planning for the 2025 conference, set to take place from February 18–22, 2025 in San Francisco. We look forward to highlighting best practices and innovative ideas from California's museum community

The California Association of Museums is excited to continue offering in-person programming for 2025. We will not be requiring proof of COVID vaccination/s, but highly encourage vaccination and boosters. For the health and safety of our colleagues, masks are also encouraged (but not required). Capacity and spaces will be thoughtfully considered in the planning of this event.

For more information, please email [email protected].

Virginia Association of Museum's 2025 Annual Conference!

March 15 - 18, 2025

Blacksburg, Virginia

Virginia Association of Museum's 2025 Annual Conference!

Saturday, March 15 - Tuesday, March 18, 2025

The Inn at Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, Virginia

Hosted by: Virginia Association of Museums

2025 Conference Theme: Looking Back to the Future For the past several years, many museums have been deeply involved in planning programs and events to observe the 250th birthday of the United States of America. While this is certainly an occasion to celebrate, this anniversary also forces us as a society to reckon with ongoing inequities and challenges within the US that go back to its inception. As museums ask their audiences to look to the past to understand the present and shape a better future, perhaps now is a good moment in time for Virginia’s museum community to take pause and look back at its own history. We are excited to see you in Blacksburg in March 2025 as we take a moment in our hectic schedules to take pause and visit our diverse pasts. Let’s uncover and share our histories to build a more resilient Virginia museum community.

2025 Am Assoc for State and Local History Annual Conference

September 10 - 13, 2025

Cincinnati, Ohio

2025 Am Assoc for State and Local History Annual Conference

Wednesday, September 10 - Saturday, September 13, 2025

TBD

Cincinnati, Ohio

Hosted by: American Association for State and Local History

The 2025 AASLH Annual Conference, in partnership with Ohio Local History Alliance, will take place as the history field makes the final preparations to kickoff off the 250th commemoration of the founding of the United States.

The 2025 conference theme, inspired by AASLH’s Making History at 250: The Field Guide for Semiquincentennial, is an opportunity to broadly explore one of the guide’s themes, The American Experiment. For many in the American colonies in 1776, independence from Britain represented a “leap into the dark” into an unknown future

We are excited for you to join us in Cincinnati as we encourage discussion about our democracy and civic institutions and how they can help strengthen understanding, inspire action, and reveal ways that all of us can participate in and shape the ongoing American experiment.

For more information, please call 615-320-3203 or email [email protected].

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