Ayr Mount is in Hillsborough, NC. The property is on the National Register of Historic Places. The…read moreproperty grounds are open daily and house tours are available on certain days and times, just follow the signs to the parking area and either to the Poet's Walk (one mile trail) or the House. Ayr Mount was built in 1815 and made of brick (you can see fingerprints in some of the bricks from the workers). He named it for his birthplace in Ayr, Scotland. William Kirkland was a merchant and built his house along the Native American Trading Path. Kirkland had fourteen children and the property stayed in the family for four generations. If I remember correctly he had 57 grandchildren. Richard Jenrette bought the house in 1985 then donated it to the Classical American Home Preservation Trust and we can view the property. The house features tall ceilings; and intricate details; a lot of the furniture are family pieces. I highly recommend touring this house if in the Hillsborough Area.

Very pleasant 1 mile walk in nature with benches near the river and a pond. The historic house was…read moreclosed but the grounds were beautiful and well maintained. I didn't notice a public restroom. Parking lot available and free.

Hidden historical gem with fascinating history. Girls' school that taught science, math etc during…read morecivil war time. Quite progressive! Also place that Mary Todd Lincoln's close friend and dress maker lived. A great find in our visit to Chapel Hill NC!

This historic site is very unique, because it's history is so well documented. The student's…read moreletters are full of details that make you understand their time there. My wife and I will definitely go back when there is a presentation. The staff was very knowledgeable and made the tour interesting.

This historic home in the downtown part of Hillsborough is a wealth of information and local…read moreknowledge. We were walking around and stumbled across the house and decided to take a peek. You can sign in on the registry with your email and then the rooms have historic pieces , pamphlets and helpful employees that are ready to share their Hillsborough tips and history knowledge. I found a handful of pamphlets with great information about the local area and then even beyond that to Orange County and the entire state of North Carolina. There was a room in the back that also had a tv and chairs as if if were for a show or informational session. Local art was on the walls and the windows and doors opened up to the exits around the house. The garden was also very cute and I highly recommend stopping in if you are new to the area and are just looking for some local guidance.

From the owner: The Hillsborough Visitors Center operates from the historic Alexander Dickson House, a late-18th…read morecentury Quaker-plan farmhouse. Conveniently located downtown, it serves as the information hub for Hillsborough's historic sites, local shops and restaurants, parks and recreational areas, and events. The site also includes a detached farm office used by Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston in April 1865 as he negotiated with Union General William T. Sherman, as well as an 18th and 19th century medicinal and herbal garden.

Not much to say, it's a small historical exhibit and also information center. It's cute and a…read morequick and easy thing to see if you're nearby. Parking in Hillsborough is pretty easy so it's a great place to take a stroll and while doing so this is a great little thing to stop in and see.

Functioning as the Hillsborough visitors' center, this historic house preserves many original…read moredetails and lots of charm. In addition to the information center, the back of the house also offers a small meeting room and art gallery. The exterior features a small but lovely garden with a sunken terrace accented by seating and a sundial, with crepe myrtle trees and abundant flowers in the warmer months. The few outbuildings also contain a public restroom, and the large, grassy lot is a popular place for taking photos. If you're looking for a glimpse of Hillsborough's past while exploring its present, stop in!

Easy to spot this marker as I was heading towards the interstate. It is on a small triangle where…read morethree roads meet up, two of which are State Road 86 and State Road 57. It recalls one of North Carolina's heroes and earliest Governors. It reads, "Thomas Burke. Governor, 1781-82. Member of Revolutionary, Provincial, & Continental Congresses. Grave is 1 1/2 miles northeast." Online, there is more information. "Thomas Burke, skilled in the literary as well as the political arts, was taken prisoner by Loyalists shortly after taking office as governor. He was born ca. 1744 in County Galway, Ireland, the son of Ulick Burke and the former Letitia Ould. Burke emigrated to Virginia and took up residence in Norfolk. There he established himself initially as a physician, but later turned to the practice of law." "In 1772 Burke removed to Hillsborough where he acquired a small plantation and resumed the practice of law. Rising quickly to prominence, he represented Orange County in all but the first of the Provincial Congresses where he was an outspoken advocate for independence. In 1777 and briefly in 1778, Burke represented Orange County in the House of Commons. On three occasions he won election to the Continental Congress, where the form of government for the new nation was slowly taking shape. As a delegate to the Continental Congress, Burke emerged as a strong advocate of states' rights and limited central government. He also earned a reputation for his brashness and irascibility, several times becoming the center of controversy." "When the embittered Burke convened the General Assembly in April of 1782, his rather ambiguous offer to retire from public office was accepted almost without remark. Having served only ten months as governor, two of those as a prisoner, he returned to Hillsborough a ruined and deeply disillusioned man. He died less than two years later, on December 2, 1783, and was interred on the grounds of his plantation, "Tyaquin."" [Review 14022 overall, 1344 of 2020, number 2662 in North Carolina.]

A lovely town. The people are friendly, the parks are beautiful and the restaurants are delicious…read more Be sure to visit the river walk and have some coffee at cup of joe .

There is much history in North Carolina and the historical markers point out not only more modern…read morehistory but Civil War and even Revolutionary War goings on. This marker provides the detail on an incident that happened here during Colonial Times. The marker reads, "After the Regulators were defeated at Alamance, May 16, 1771, six of their number were hanged, 1/4 mile east, June 19, 1771." Online, there is more information. "In the Battle of Alamance on May 16, 1771, Governor William Tryon and his army defeated the Regulators, and as a result, six Regulators were executed by hanging in Hillsborough on June 19, 1771. The backcountry rebellion was inspired by grievances, including jurisdiction over their own affairs, and wide discontent with the practices of the British government. The Regulators sought the removal of the Currency Act of 1764 which denied use of legal tender. With higher taxation and depletion in sources for paper money, farmers urged the British government to accept commodities such as tobacco, corn, and wheat as forms of payment, but the request was denied, fomenting unrest. The Stamp Act of 1765, which taxed legal documents, newspapers, almanacs, college diplomas, playing cards, dice, and all customs papers, only fueled the fires of the Regulator movement." [Review 19083 overall - 3401 in North Carolina - 52 of 2023.]

This marker is located on a busy street near downtown Hillsborough and points to some…read morepre-Revolutionary War history. There is some parking nearby. The marker reads, "Merchant. Left native Scotland, 1774. Partner in Transylvania Company; UNC trustee. Home 1/2 mile east.; grave 2 blocks north." Online, there is more information. "Bernard Bailyn's 1986 book on emigration to America on the eve of the Revolution, Voyagers to the West, has an especially interesting story to tell about a Scotsman, later a North Carolinian. His subject is James Hogg (1729-November 9, 1804), a man he credits with "energy, enterprise, and boundless ambition." In 1765, at age thirty-six, Hogg moved his family from East Lothian to the Scottish Highlands. In 1771 a cargo ship wrecked near his home and ruffians looting the ship burned Hogg's house. This, plus worsening economic conditions led Hogg in 1773 to mount an expedition of 280 Highlanders setting out aboard his ship, the Bachelor, for America." "Hogg and family finally made it in 1774 to Wilmington, North Carolina, where his brother Robert had for several years managed a mercantile business with Samuel Campbell. That fall James Hogg moved up the Cape Fear River to Cross Creek to operate a satellite outlet of the firm. Hogg maintained real estate and business interests there for the rest of his life. He donated land for the town cemetery, jail, courthouse, and Masonic lodge hall. However, his residence at Cross Creek was brief, for after a few months Hogg moved to Hillsborough. There he met Richard Henderson, chief organizer of the western land speculation scheme known as the Transylvania Company. In November 1775, Hogg journeyed to Philadelphia to negotiate with members of the Continental Congress, among them Samuel Adams, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson, over admission of Transylvania as a fourteenth colony." [Review 18072 overall - 3320 in North Carolina - 1594 of 2022.]

Great venue for your own personal event. It has a stage. It has plenty of space to spread out and…read moreprepare anything you have to do on site. Outside is clean and useable to put up tents and games! Fresh country air!!!