John Guss, site manager inside the Bennett Home

Greetings from Bennett Place!

Springtime is finally upon us after a very long cold winter. While we did not receive the mounds of snow like our northern friends we certainly got our share of chilly and rainy weather. But now it is time to start thinking about getting outside and enjoying the great outdoors at our parks and historic sites. We have already begun our special event season with a splendid living history and lecture series commemorating the 150^th Anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation in February. The Trail To Freedom Tour received tremendous accolades.You can enjoy this educational video filmed and sponsored by the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources on YouTube by clicking on this link.

In March, North Carolina became 350 years old and we commemorated this grand celebration with Tar Heel soldiers encamped at the Bennett Farm. The 6^th North Carolina Infantry, Cedar Fork Rifles Company encamped around the Bennett Farm with three wonderful lectures by authors of North Carolina to include one of our favorites, Michael Hardy, and newly published authors Martha Brown, and David Reavis. We have a variety of other superb events planned for the year, which you will not want to miss. The 148^th Anniversary of the Largest Surrender of the American Civil War entitled, War and Surrender Through Photography, Art, and Journalism will be a unique perspective of how the war has been depicted throughout history. This event will be held on April 20-21, 2013, followed by what has become a popular military timeline living history honoring our American soldiers with our Memorial Day Remembrance program on May 25-26. Second Saturdays are back again with a variety of history and cultural related activities in June, July, and August as well followed by Fall and Christmas events.

Please check out the remainder of our calendar of events on our website or on our Bennett Place Facebook page. We will continue to add to our calendar of events with lectures of interesting Civil War related topics, living history programs on the farm, and other commemorative and anniversary events.

We continue to climb toward the mountain peak of our $50,000 goal for a new museum exhibit gallery, which we plan to have opened by April 2014. This will be a much more comprehensive story of the Bennett Family and the surrender negotiations between Major General Sherman and General Johnston at the Bennett Farm. Please visit our museum fundraising webpage at:  www.bennettplacehistoricsite.com/museum-fund to find out more information of how you can help us build a new museum that is an important part of our nation’s journey to reunification. We greatly appreciate all donations in helping us reach the goal.

ATTENTION HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS!! Don’t forget to send in your scholarship applications for the William Vatavuk Scholarship!! The college scholarship is $500.00 and will be awarded in April!! Visit our webpage for all the details: www.bennettplacehistoricsite.com/education/william-vatavuk-scholarship

On behalf of the staff and volunteers at Bennett Place State Historic Site THANK YOU again for your continued support in helping us preserve the memory of those American men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice from 1861-1865.

Sincerely,
John Guss, Site Manager

John Guss, site manager inside the Bennett Home

Greetings & Happy New Year
from Bennett Place!

We trust all of you had a wonderful Christmas and Holiday Season with family and friends, and rang in the New Year of 2013 with many great expectations. We broke an all time visitation record for our Christmas in the Carolinas During the Civil War living history event in December thanks to Santa paying a visit to the Bennett farm, a special guest appearance by General D. H. Hill portrayed by historian and author Doug Batson, the support of our incredible volunteers who continue to help preserve the significant history of this hallowed ground, and you our devoted visitors.

As I stated in my previous address we began our Museum Fundraising Capital Campaign for the redesign of our museum on October 4^th and have continued to raise monies through a variety of ways to generate donations! Thank you to all of you who have made a contribution thus far. Our goal is $50,000 and we hope you can help us reach our objective in 2013 as we are already in the process of designing the museum with a much more comprehensive story of the Bennett Family and the Largest Surrender of the American Civil War. Our grand opening is planned for April 2014! Please visit our fundraising webpage at:  www.bennettplacehistoricsite.com/museum-fund or you can mail in a contribution. We greatly appreciate the contribution.

Our new year begins in February with an exciting 150^th Sesquicentennial Anniversary event entitled, “The Emancipation Proclamation: An Exploration” on Saturday, February 23, 2013.  Earl Ijames, historian with the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, will be our keynote speaker in addition to “A Trail to Freedom”, a living history guided tour through the forest of the Bennett Farm to hear stories of struggle and freedom from those who lived it. Other local African American related historic sites and museums will make presentations and have displays in honor of this significant event in American history. March follows with our Tar Heels: Soldiers of the Old North State, a living history of the Confederate soldiers of North Carolina, and in April, the 148^th Anniversary of the Surrender will take place with a unique event depicting how the American Civil War has been covered by artists, photographers, journalists, and newspapers throughout history. Many more new impressive programs are being introduced this year, so you don’t want to miss them. So please check out the remainder of our calendar of events and join us for these special lectures, living histories, and commemorative events.

ATTENTION HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS!! Don’t forget to send in your scholarship applications for the William Vatavuk Scholarship!! The college scholarship is $500.00!! Visit our webpage for all the details:

http://www.bennettplacehistoricsite.com/education/william-vatavuk-scholarship/.

On behalf of the staff and volunteers at Bennett Place State Historic Site THANK YOU again for your continued support in helping us preserve the memory of those American men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice from 1861-1865.

Sincerely,

John Guss, Site Manager

Santa and John Guss at Bennett Place in 2011

Greetings from Bennett Place!

It has begun!! We kicked off our Museum Fundraising Capital Campaign for the redesign of our museum on October 4th! Our goal is $50,000 and we are on our way. You too can be a part of this worthwhile endeavor by making a contribution to the Museum Campaign. Visit this page in our website or you can mail in a contribution.

Christmas and the Holiday Season is now upon us and we will have a special visit from Ole Saint Nick on December 15-16, 2012. So make sure to bring the family and friends out to the Bennett Farm. In addition, we will have Confederate General D.H. Hill as portrayed by Mr. Doug Batson, historian and author, who has done extensive study on this famous yet controversial Tar Heel officer. A unique Christmas church service will be held on Sunday, December 16th at 10:30am. Saturday evening, December 15th we invite all of our friends and supporters to join us at the Bennett Place for an evening of Christmas celebration with food and drink and good fellowship. It’s our way of saying thank you for all of your wonderful support.

Please continue to check our upcoming calendar of events, which coming up in the new year on February 23, 2013 we have a very special 150th Anniversary event entitled, “The Emancipation Proclamation: An Exploration”. Earl Ijames, historian, will be our keynote speaker in addition to “A Trail to Freedom”, a living history guided tour through the forest of the Bennett Farm to hear stories of struggle and freedom from those who lived it. Also, check out the remainder of our calendar of events and join us for a variety of Civil War and other related educational experiences.

Finally, high school seniors don’t forget to send in your scholarship applications for the William Vatavuk Scholarship!! The college scholarship is $500.00!! Visit this webpage for all the details.

On behalf of the staff and volunteers at Bennett Place State Historic Site we wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday Season!!

Again, THANK YOU for your continued support of this national treasure.

Sincerely,

John Guss, Site Manager

John Guss, site manager inside the Bennett Home

Greetings from the Bennett Farm! In spite of the sweltering heat we have stayed busy on the farm this Summer with more visitors than in recent years, and the herb and vegetable gardens have produced more than ever before! Sweet potatoes, beans, cantaloupes, tomatoes, and squash have all sprung up for the first time since the Bennett family farmed this garden. We even got a legitimate size watermelon from the patch! James and Nancy would be proud of us.

Our new museum design continues to develop with a much more diverse and detailed storyline. We are also seeking monetary donations as well as artifacts to help us make this a premiere exhibition that does justice to representing the story of the largest surrender of the war.

On July 25^th Bennett Place was featured on the Travel Channel’s “Baggage Battles” reality television show. Dan Hopping, volunteer and member of our local Sons of Union Veterans John A. Logan Camp, was featured with his expertise in 19^th century weaponry. Here is the link to the episode: http://www.travelchannel.com/video/dads-old-war-stuff

Please continue to check our upcoming calendar of events, which in September we have a wonderful 150^th anniversary living history program entitled, Life on the Homefront During the Civil War, It is a focus on the civilian life during the second year of the war.

Please join us by bringing family and friends out to Bennett Place to walk this hallowed ground where one of the most important historic events of the American Civil War occurred, that helped begin the reunification of our nation.

Again, THANK YOU for your continued support of this national treasure.

 Sincerely,
John Guss, Site Manager

John Guss, site manager, inside the Bennett Home

First and foremost I would like to extend a very special THANK YOU to each of our volunteers who supported this wonderful celebration and helped make it a complete success by performing the essential duties of living history, visitor services, parking logistics, and maintaining the cleanliness of the grounds. Collectively we made our 50th Anniversary of Bennett Place one of the most memorable occasions in recent years.

In addition to the reenactment of the surrender and the wonderful lectures by all of our authors and historians, a very special gesture of gratitude should be noted to the North Carolina Society Military Order of the Stars and Bars for their generous contribution of our new historical interpretive wayside, which now stands on the park grounds. I would also like to pay a special thanks to Mayor Bill Bell for bringing greetings from our grand city of Durham, Deputy Director Dale Coats, who provided salutations from the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, Mark Bradley, for giving us an enlightening keynote address, and Jim Wise, who presented a splendid lecture on the 50 years of historic preservation of Bennett Place. Above all else, many thanks goes to the men and women of the United States Army 82nd Airborne Ceremonial Band for taking time out of defending our country to provide us with magnificent patriotic music at the Unity Monument Ceremony on Sunday afternoon. That was indeed the highlight for me.

Even with our celebration of achievement for the 50 years in preserving Bennett Place, we must now look ahead to new challenges and goals and continuing our mission of historic preservation and education of America’s prosperous heritage. Our new museum design is well underway with a blueprint and enhanced storyline in progress and the observance of the Sesquicentennial is now very much in our presence with more and more interest of this commemoration being recognized. Thus, we progress in to the Spring and Summer with much enthusiasm and a number of outstanding educational living history events to look forward to, which you will note in our special events calendar.

Please join us by bringing family and friends out to Bennett Place to walk this hallowed ground where one of the most important historic events of the American Civil War occurred, that helped begin the reunification of our nation.

Again, THANK YOU for your continued support of this national treasure.

Sincerely,

John Guss, Site Manager

John Guss, site manager, inside the Bennett Home

Spring is upon us, and the gardens and landscape are taking shape on the Bennett Farm. More and more school groups are visiting, and we have increased our Outreach programming for those who don’t have the capability at this time. Don’t forget the History Trunk is available to teachers if you need some classroom resources. Please visit the Education section of our website to see the various programs and additional learning resources we provide. And high school seniors, don’t forget the $500.00 William Vatavuk College Scholarship Award that will be presented in April. The application can be found in the Education section of the website.

We are also very excited about the upcoming 50th Anniversary of Bennett Place and the 147th Anniversary of the Surrender Commemoration, April 28-29, 2012. It will be a most memorable weekend event with the “Meeting of the Generals” being recreated along with living history activities of Confederate and Union soldiers and civilian refugees. There will be a variety of well known historians and authors to include Mark Bradley of the definitive book on Bennett Place entitled, This Astounding Close, The Road To Bennett Place, local historians Jim Wise, Brenda McKean , and Michael Hardy, Wade Sokolosky , author of Sherman’s Carolinas Campaign: from Fayetteville To Averasboro, and Jeff Toalson of No Soap, No Pay, Diarrhea, Dysentery, and Desertion will all be here. In addition we have a featured event of the unveiling of a new historical interpretive wayside, which will share more of the story on the grounds outside our visitor center. Sunday, will be the traditional wreath laying ceremony at the Unity Monument , in which we will have some very special guests participate. You’ll simply have to come out and see who they are!

However, first, March brings living history alive once again with our program, TARHEELS: Soldiers of the Old North State , a living history event with historical interpreters portraying the soldiers and civilians of North Carolina during the Civil War. If you are not familiar with the North Carolina soldier and the civilians who endured the war, this is a terrific educational experience. At the end of the month we have Civil War Park Day sponsored in conjunction with the Civil War Trust and History Channel, which is a wonderful opportunity for friends and supporters to spend a day with us cleaning the park, taking care of paint projects, cleaning up the nature trails, and a variety of other projects that we need help to get us ready for our BIG event in April.

Enjoy the great outdoors this Spring by visiting one of the most important historic sites of the American Civil War where I country began the reunification of a once torn nation.

Again, thank you for your continued support of this national treasure.

Sincerely,
John Guss , Site Manager

John Guss as Gen. Sherman

 We are very excited about this new year of special events and activities, especially the celebration of Bennett Place becoming 50 years old as a public North Carolina State Historic Site. This event will be held April 28-29, 2012 in conjunction with the 147^th Surrender Anniversary Commemoration, which will have the reenactment of the surrender, living history activities, along with wonderful lectures, book signings, displays, and other educational activities. Please see the Special Events page of our website for more information.

 We are also in the second year of the Sesquicentennial Anniversary of the American Civil War with many superb national events and large scale reenactments to include the Battle of Shiloh (Pittsburg Landing), TN (March/April), the Siege and Capture of Fort Pulaski, GA (April), the Siege and Capture of Fort Macon, NC (April), the Battle of Antietam (Sharpsburg), MD (September), the Battle of Perryville, KY (October), and the Battle of Fredericksburg, VA in December to end the 1862 commemorative series of events.

 We encourage you to visit Bennett Place whether it is for our special events, a school program, or a daily drop in visit. You might also consider becoming a volunteer!

 Thank you again for your continued support.

Regards,
John Guss, Site Manager

John Guss, site manager at the Grimes Plantation

Greetings Everyone,

We want to thank you for your support this year especially through the existing challenging economic times. Visitation and financial contributions are the foundation of our future longevity as a historic landmark. Historic sites such as Bennett Place are the fiber of our American heritage which is so crucial to the stability of our nation and gives us direction in to the future.

With the first year of the Sesquicentennial coming to a close we move forward in to 2012 with various expectations of more memorable 150^th Civil War Anniversary signature events, the continuing plans for our new museum redesign, and the celebration of the 50^th Anniversary of Bennett Place becoming a North Carolina State Historic Site, April 28-29, 2012. We ask that you continue your support of our efforts and share in these wonderful upcoming events.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to each and everyone!!

John Guss
Site Manager

Site manager John Guss as General Sherman.

Welcome to the new Bennett Place State Historic Site website, which is sponsored by the Bennett Place Support Fund, Inc. Here, you will find additional information regarding the preservation, education, and special events happening at Bennett Place.

This new website provides our Friend’s group more opportunities to increase it’s visibility to the general public, and helps assist them with their primary mission in assisting in the preservation of Bennett Place State Historic Site.

Thank you for helping us preserve this national treasure.

John Guss
Site Manager