This historical marker denotes a local citizen who was born here and educated here then went on to…read moredo great things for the people and the State of North Carolina. The marker reads, "Thomas F. Wood, 1841-1892. Organizer & Secretary-Treasurer of State Board of Health, 1877-1892. Founded North Carolina Medical Journal in 1878. Home was 1 block west." Online, there is more information. "Thomas Fanning Wood, born in Wilmington, attended public schools in that city and upon completion went to work in a drugstore. He studied medicine with several local physicians, a common way of gaining a medical education at the time. Wood's volunteer service for the Confederate army gave him the opportunity to attend classes at the Medical College of Virginia while serving as a hospital steward in Richmond. While in service he passed a medical exam and in 1863 was appointed an assistant surgeon." "After the war Wood returned to Wilmington where he established a private practice. There was a devastating smallpox epidemic in Wilmington from 1865 to 1866, during which time Wood ran a hospital for indigent blacks stricken with the disease. His experiences there led him to promote Edward Jenner's smallpox inoculation in North Carolina. Wood recognized the need for state involvement in public health issues and would be engaged in that form of politics for the rest of his life." "The General Assembly passed a bill establishing the North Carolina Board of Health in 1877 and increased its authority and funding in 1879 and again in 1885. Wood was elected secretary-treasurer of the initial board in 1877 and held that position until his death in 1892. The successful launching of the board was due in large part to the efforts of Wood, who wrote as many as 200 letters per month on behalf of the organization. In 1878 he co-founded the North Carolina Medical Journal, the publication of the North Carolina Medical Society. He was the principal editor of the journal for the remainder of his life. He was active as a public health administrator in many organizations and his contributions to medical literature are significant." [Review 14560 overall, 58 of 2021, number 2795 in North Carolina.]

This marker stands in front of the former Catherine Kennedy Home for the Elderly that closed in…read more2000. According to news, the non-profit facility faced a steady decline in residents, and it proved too expensive to convert its aging buildings to meet federal and state standards for assisted living or nursing care. The buildings were acquired by the First Presbyterian Church of Wilmington, which extensively renovated its interior, largely with volunteer labor by church members. Today, the church uses the buildings to house its preschool, as well as for Sunday school classes and church suppers. The marker reads, "Catherine Kennedy Home. For the elderly. Grew from Ladies Benevolent Society, founded, 1845. First home, 1879, stood four blocks east." Online, there is more information. "he Ladies Benevolent Society of Wilmington was organized in 1845 for the purpose of general charity work. The organization was chartered by the state legislature in 1852. The facility was used as a home for aged women, and became known as "The Old Ladies Rest." By 1942, the home, run by a matron under the direction of a self-perpetuating board of directors, had twenty-eight residents. In 1950, the facility moved to a new location on Third Street (at the corner of Orange)." "The Catherine Kennedy Home operated as a non-profit independent living retirement community for more than 100 years. It was among the oldest homes for the aged in America when it closed its doors permanently in July 2000. The Catherine Kennedy Home Foundation was created following the home's demise. In 2003 the foundation presented $60,000 in grants to charitable organizations that promote the welfare of the elderly in southeastern North Carolina. The grants were a part of the Foundation's mission in managing and administrating the charitable assets received from the home's sale." [Review 14258 overall, 1582 of 2020, number 2692 in North Carolina.]

This marker along one of Wilmington's oldest streets points out the early home of the 28th POTUS,…read moreWoodrow Wilson. It reads, "Woodrow Wilson. President of the United States, 1913-1921. His home, 1874-1882, was the Presbyterian Manse which stood one block east." Online, more information. "Woodrow Wilson, 28th President of the United States, lived in Wilmington from 1874 to 1882 at the Presbyterian Manse while his father served as the minister of the city's First Presbyterian Church. The third of four children of Joseph R. and Jessie Janet Woodrow Wilson, Thomas Woodrow Wilson was born on December 28, 1856 in Staunton, Virginia." (Staunton is about 360 miles north.) "In 1873, Woodrow Wilson began attending Davidson College. The following year his father took a position as minister of the First Presbyterian Church in Wilmington. Wilson remained at Davidson College only briefly before transferring to Princeton University. He graduated in 1879, and began attending law school at the University of Virginia. Illness forced him to return to Wilmington the following year. The family remained in Wilmington until 1882. Wilson moved to Atlanta to open a law practice, while his father and family returned to Augusta." [Review 13995 overall, 1317 of 2020, number 2635 in North Carolina.]

This marker in downtown Wilmington points out the rail history in this city. The location…read morereferenced is the Wilmington Railroad Museum. The marker reads, "Atlantic Coast Line Railroad. Major rail line serving Southeast, 1900-67. Led by Wilmington's C. M. Davis, 1942-57. Offices till 1960 were 3 blocks west." Online, there is more information. "In the heyday of rail service, the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad (ACLRR), headquartered in Wilmington, competed with Southern Railway and the Seaboard Air Line. Just as in the nineteenth century, railroads were largely responsible in the twentieth century for the development of port traffic in Wilmington. The founders of the ACLRR in 1889 were Baltimore businessmen. It took its name after a series of mergers, culminating with the acquisition of the historic Wilmington and Weldon rail line in North Carolina in 1900." "While a reliable and profitable freight carrier, the ACLRR was noted most for its dependable passenger service, extending from Virginia to Florida. The company weathered the Great Depression and was profitable in all years except for 1933-35 and 1938. In 1967 the ACLRR and the Seaboard Air Line merged to form the Seaboard Coast Line and, in 1986, as the fortunes of rail service waned, CSX acquired what remained." "When the ACLRR headquarters left Wilmington for Jacksonville, Florida, in 1960, the relocation took 3,500 jobs out of the Port City. Two large buildings in Wilmington that served the ACLRR survive. One at 519 Nutt Street, built in 1882, houses the Wilmington Railroad Museum." [Review 14469 overall, 1795 of 2020, number 2730 in North Carolina.]

Located on the inner side of Wrightsville Beach island, this marker recalls more recent history…read morethan the Colonial Era or even the Civil War. The marker reads, "Pioneer East Coast Surfing. Early surfing activity organized on beaches near here in 1909 by B.H. Bridgers & others." Online, "Polynesian children engaged in primitive surfing activities thousands of years ago. In some areas surfing on various types of board was merely transportation for fishermen. Hawaiian adults began to develop boards for surfing about 1200 C.E. Matt Warshaw, in his The History of Surfing, states that in Hawaii, surfing was "both recreational and universal" and was practiced by all members of society." "In 1908 South Carolinian Alexander Hume Ford founded the Outrigger Canoe and Surfboard Club to develop the "great sport of surfing in Hawaii." In August of 1909 Colliers Weekly published an article about surfing by Ford in which he encouraged readers to try the sport. Wrightsville Beach native Burke Haywood Bridgers read the article and, wishing to ask Ford detailed questions about surf boards, he wrote to the author in care of Colliers." "The surfing that occurred in the Wrightsville beach area in the early 1900s is the earliest documented in the state of North Carolina." There is much more - too much to post here - in the linked article. [Review 14011 overall, 1333 of 2020, number 2651 in North Carolina.]

I think it's a great memorial to the U.S. armed forces. It's always good to acknowledge the men…read moreand women that defend this country. It is a nice addition to the Riverwalk.

Times come, times go. Things that were appropriate a hundred years ago are no longer appropriate…read more This Confederate Statue, which was erected in 1924 has been determined by the local elected officials to be no longer appropriate. Designed by the same Henry Bacon who designed the famous Lincoln Memorial and the Dupont Circle Fountain, this statue used to feature a bronze sculpture of two soldiers. Under the cover of darkness in June 2020, the City of Wilmington acted to remove the statue as it had become a public safety concern because protesters and counter-protesters were converging on a busy thoroughfare. The bronze statue was removed and what remains is the granite tablet. The tablet itself has been shrouded in a black tarpaulin. I am guessing that removing the tablet proved to be more of a challenge. The statue remains in city storage in an undisclosed location. Perhaps one day it will be on display again with appropriate context to show how times have changed since the Civil War. [Review 13932 overall, 1254 of 2020, number 2575 in North Carolina.]

This marker is alongside River Road between Wilmington and the Caswell/Oak Island beaches. It is in…read moregood condition and there is a grassy area where you can stop. Probably not legally, but I was only here for a minute. The marker reads, "Major General Howe was the commander of Southern Department of the Continental Line, 1776-78, and North Carolina's highest ranking officer. Lived 4 1/2 miles east." Online, there is more information. "Robert Howe, Continental army general, was born in 1732 in New Hanover County. Howe inherited a considerable fortune from his parents and grandparents, owning several large plantations in the New Hanover and Bladen counties. He served in several minor public posts in Bladen County, including as a militia captain and magistrate in the 1750s and 1760s. After Brunswick County formed, Howe was elected to the colonial assembly, a post he held for six consecutive terms. He also served as a militia officer for Brunswick County, and commanded Fort Johnston from 1769 to 1773. During the War of the Regulation, Howe commanded that artillery of Governor William Tryon at the Battle of Alamance." "At the outbreak of the Revolution, Howe served as a member of the Wilmington Committee of Safety and led the local militia that took control of Fort Johnston. On September 1, 1775, Howe was appointed colonel of the 2nd North Carolina Continental regiment. After the death of James Moore in 1777, Howe was appointed to succeed him as commander of the Southern Department and was promoted to major general on October 20, 1777." "Howe returned home in 1783 at the war's end, intent on resuming his life as a planter. In 1786 he was elected to the House of Commons, however he died on December 14, while traveling to the meeting of the body. He was the highest-ranking officer from North Carolina to serve in the American Revolution." [Review 14233 overall, 1556 of 2020, number 2676 in North Carolina.]