Community Calendar

The Beaufort Historical Association is excited to be putting on the town’s annual Mardi Gras Masquerade Ball for the first time. This year’s ball draws inspiration from the 18th-century featuring a red, white and blue theme in honor of America’s 250th birthday. It’s the spirit of 1776, Carnival of Venice, and New Orleans Mardi Gras rolled into one over-the top signature event! Guests are encouraged to break away from the traditional purple, green, and gold and instead celebrate with imaginative costumes and colors that reflect 1700s era patriotic characters or emblematic figures, such as Lady Liberty or an American eagle. The costume ball kicks off Beaufort’s popular Mardi Gras weekend of revelry on Friday evening, February 20th from 7-10 PM. Tickets are $150 + tax. Tickets include delicious hors d’oeuvres, an open wine and beer bar, and live music by Hustle Souls.

Stay over for Saturday’s parade and day-long festival events to make an unforgettable Mardi Gras weekend like no other!

See incredible quilted designs celebrating America 250 with this patriotic exhibit of local craftsmanship! These quilts were designed and created by the Twin Rivers Quilters Guild and will be on display at the North Carolina History Center during the early part of 2026.

This exhibit is FREE to enjoy and open to the public during regular business hours at the North Carolina History Center.

Discover Tryon Palace in a whole new way! Are you ready to uncover the untold story of how North Carolina helped turn the tide of the American Revolution? 

“Discovering Tryon Palace: Caswell’s Capital” goes beyond the standard Palace tour, exploring in depth North Carolina’s pivotal role in winning independence from Great Britain and showcases Tryon Palace as the first state capitol—a symbol of resilience and leadership during America’s fight for liberty.

Join us and experience a new facet of our nation’s Revolutionary story. Discover the people, the decisions, and the legacy that shaped a nation.

An America 250 program.

See incredible quilted designs celebrating America 250 with this patriotic exhibit of local craftsmanship! These quilts were designed and created by the Twin Rivers Quilters Guild and will be on display at the North Carolina History Center during the early part of 2026.

This exhibit is FREE to enjoy and open to the public during regular business hours at the North Carolina History Center.

From Alamance and Iredell to Transylvania and Yancy, all 100 counties in North Carolina were named for someone. Join us and find out who!

Speaker:
Andrew Duppstadt is the assistant curator of education for the North Carolina Division of State Historic Sites. He also serves as an adjunct history instructor at Coastal Carolina Community College and Craven Community College.

The North Carolina History Series:
The North Carolina History lecture series continues this winter with the goal to engage the broader community and expand the understanding of, and engagement in, the fascinating history of New Bern, Craven County, and North Carolina. As our nation celebrates its 250th birthday, we are focused on the history surrounding our nation’s founding, and topics related to our colonial and revolutionary history. We are pleased to welcome three historians who will present each week, for three consecutive weeks.

The series is presented by the Lifetime Learning Center and Tryon Palace, in partnership with the Richard Dobbs Spaight Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the New Bern Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution.

See incredible quilted designs celebrating America 250 with this patriotic exhibit of local craftsmanship! These quilts were designed and created by the Twin Rivers Quilters Guild and will be on display at the North Carolina History Center during the early part of 2026.

This exhibit is FREE to enjoy and open to the public during regular business hours at the North Carolina History Center.

See incredible quilted designs celebrating America 250 with this patriotic exhibit of local craftsmanship! These quilts were designed and created by the Twin Rivers Quilters Guild and will be on display at the North Carolina History Center during the early part of 2026.

This exhibit is FREE to enjoy and open to the public during regular business hours at the North Carolina History Center.

See incredible quilted designs celebrating America 250 with this patriotic exhibit of local craftsmanship! These quilts were designed and created by the Twin Rivers Quilters Guild and will be on display at the North Carolina History Center during the early part of 2026.

This exhibit is FREE to enjoy and open to the public during regular business hours at the North Carolina History Center.

See incredible quilted designs celebrating America 250 with this patriotic exhibit of local craftsmanship! These quilts were designed and created by the Twin Rivers Quilters Guild and will be on display at the North Carolina History Center during the early part of 2026.

This exhibit is FREE to enjoy and open to the public during regular business hours at the North Carolina History Center.

The history of how the Declaration of Independence came to be is familiar to many Americans. Less familiar and equally important is the subsequent history of the document. How did the Declaration go from being a congressional PR document of moderate significance to becoming the defining document of American history and one of the most influential documents in the history of the world. Though it served an important purpose in 1776, the Declaration was not particularly noted or celebrated in the decades after the Revolution.

In this talk, historian Michael D. Hattem will discuss how groups from across the political spectrum have redefined the Declaration and its ideals in an effort to make them more relevant and meaningful to their own times. In the process, he will show how the Declaration became “American Scripture,” as well as a model for independence-seeking people around the world.

The lecture will begin at 6PM. Following the lecture, a reception will be held at 7PM with an optional book signing by our speaker. Books will be available for purchase at the Tryon Palace Museum Store.

About Our Speaker
Michael D. Hattem is a historian of the American Revolution. He received his PhD in History at Yale University and has taught at The New School and Knox College. He is the author of The Memory of ’76: The Revolution in American History (Yale University Press, 2024), which was a finalist for the 2025 George Washington Prize, and Past and Prologue: Politics and Memory in the American Revolution (Yale University Press, 2020). Hattem’s work has been featured or mentioned in The New York Times, TIME magazine, The Smithsonian Magazine, the Washington Post, as well as many other mainstream media publications and outlets. He has served as a historical consultant or contributor for a number of projects and organizations, curated historical exhibitions, appeared in television documentaries, and authenticated and written catalogue essays for historical document auctions.