magazine

84 Take the Plunge

This month, as we make our annual pilgrimage to the seashore, the performing arts of eastern North Carolina take a bow.

86 Encore! Encore!

With a dedicated leading man playing the role of overseer, renovations to Wilmington's Thalian Hall earn the historic theater a standing ovation.
By L.A. Jackson

94 Boppin' at the Beach

Long before The Embers sang "I Love Beach Music," Tar Heels delighted in shagging the night away at beachside clubs and parties.
By Janet C. Pittard

104 Formal Dance

A type of melting pot has formed around the military bases in the Jacksonville and Fayetteville areas. As cultures converge, military families share traditions and costumes — such as with the Ryukyu dance of Japan — with their eastern North Carolina neighbors.
By Carole Moore

112 The Lost Colony

In the summer of 1937, on the 350th anniversary of the first attempt to establish an English colony in North America, Paul Green's play — named for the Roanoke Island colonists whose story it relates — came to life on a stage in Manteo.
By Vicky Jarrett

120 Just Pickin'

For 25 years, the Lenoir County town of Kinston has been a bluegrass music mecca and home to the Eastern North Carolina Bluegrass Association.
By Kathy Grant Westbrook

128 Songs on the Salt Air

Husband-and-wife team Frank and Anne Warner spent much of the mid-20th century capturing songs that might otherwise have been lost. By Kent Priestley

136 Play It Again

North Carolina's longest-running dance has been taking place at Raynor's Warehouse in Rocky Mount since 1870, and it shows no signs of relaxing the tempo.
By Charles Blackburn Jr.

146 A Star is Born

Take one fan of Southern plays, a magical local theater, and a supportive town. Mix it all together, and you get the Theater of the American South festival in Wilson.
By Miriam Sauls

156 Singing for Survival

A quiet patch in the middle of a busy vacation paradise, Salter Path is struggling to maintain its identity. The songs say it all.
By Bill Morris

164 Baroque'n Record

The intricate and subtle moves performed by the Craven Historical Dancers and the New Bern Dancing Assembly re-create Tryon Palace life in the days of the Royal Governor.
By Dolly R. Sickles

174 Music of the Seas

The self-effacing members of the Cape Fear Conch Band have taken the whorls of the seashell to new musical highs.
By Megan Williams

36 Bob Garner Eats: chicken and Dumplings

Prepared with puffy dumplings or strips of tender pastry in a rich broth with a generous amount of chopped chicken, this hearty dish is an enduring favorite.
By Bob Garner

48 White Out

That's not a ghost creature, albino animal, or critter covered in flour — it's the world-famous white sqirrel of Brevard.
By L.A. Jackson

6 Great Walks:

The University of North Carolina

You don't have to be an alumni to appreciate UNC's beauty and history.
By Lynn Setzer

186 Along the Linville

Tracing the river that shares its name with a falls, a gorge, and a gap offers a glimpse into an untamed wilderness.
By John Hairr

196 In Plane View

In Randolph County, the North Carolina Aviation Museum preserves and celebrates the state's high-flying history.
By Shannon Farlow

208 A Constant Reminder

A little-known memorial forest stands in living tribute to North Carolina's Confederate veterans.
By Tim Pegram

62 TALL & TRIM

A Photo Essay

North Carolina's shoreline stretches 301 miles and pushes far out into the Atlantic Ocean. Navigational beacons sprout along our beaches, giving our state what has been called the best system of coastal lighthouses in America.

6 Welcome to Our State

By Vicky Jarrett

9 Our State quiz

Making Waves

By Alan Hodge

10 letters from our readers

14 tar heel treasures

Well Suited

By Janet C. Pittard

16 tar heel literature

A Simple Life: A Story of Sid Oakley; Pauli Murray and Caroline Ware: Forty Years of Letters in Black and White; Backyard Carolina: Two Decades of Public Radio Commentary

20 tar heel towns

King

Located in both Stokes and Forsyth counties, King provides the best of two worlds — a quiet place with a rural atmosphere coupled with easy access to big-city amenities.
By Jessie Tucker Mitchell

28 tar heel history

Tale of a Whale

In 1913, an unidentified mammal washed up along the coast. Now known as True's Beaked Whale, the species has been elusive ever since.
By John Hairr

32 tar heel people

On Thompson's Pond

Joe Thompson left tobacco farming behind to embark on a new endeavor — raising Malaysian prawns in his Cedar Grove pond.
By Bill Willcox

205 front porch stories

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

The sounds of bats making contact, umpires making calls, and fans applauding perfect plays usher in a new season of America's favorite pastime.
By Bill Thompson

214 carolina artists

Skyline Drive

With a camera at the ready, Jeff Pittman travels North Carolina seeking the inspiration that brings bold hues to his paintings of familiar city scenes, including Raleigh, Charlotte, and Asheville.
By Marla Hardee Milling

220 carolina counties

Madison County

Visitors beware: You may never want to leave this majestic mountain county once you take in its arts scene and soak up the healing powers of its mineral-rich spring waters.
By Kathy Grant Westbrook

232 for the day

I'm a Bird Watcher

What could be better than watching the birds go by? A tour of the Blue Ridge Parkway's best areas to spot them.
By Don Hendershot

239 tar heel memories

Roosevelt's Ride

It was a brief but historic moment when the nation's hero smiled upon the people of a small Piedmont town.
By Harold R. McCollum

242 tar heel gardening

Coloring with Columbines

Variety is the name of the game with a perennial that ranges in size from 5 inches to 3 feet and decorates the garden with nearly every hue in the rainbow.
By L.A. Jackson

245 tar heel tastes

Claim to Fame

Choose your table at Famous Louise's Rockhouse Restaurant carefully, and you might get to tell your friends that your slice of strawberry-rhubarb pie was prepared in one county and served to you in another.
By Marla Hardee Milling

250 carolina kitchen

Strawberry Fields Forever

Memories that melt in your mouth have a way of staying with you.
By Erica Derr

254 agenda

Kitchen Thyme Tour; canoe the French Broad River; salute to Heroes; Rhythm in Blue concert; "Burden of Culture"; U.S.S. North Carolina film event

By Lynne Gantz

258 dates & events

Compiled By Lynne Gantz

272 tar heel images

Keep 'Em Smiling

By Terry Ruscin