Yesterday morning I extended a North Carolina welcome to 1500 researchers attending the National Genealogical Society conference in Raleigh. One of the most used parts of the State Library is our Genealogy Collection in the Government and Heritage Library. The family histories, published abstracts, periodicals, county histories, and reference materials that are found in the Collection are a connection to the past that helps inform the future for families in North Carolina and beyond. The North Carolina State Archives is one of the largest and busiest state archives in the country. On average, about 9, 000 patrons visit in a year. Researchers request over 20,000 boxes of original documents and use around 30,000 reels of microfilm. Our staff answers over 6,000 phone calls each year. The Archives maintains custody of over 100 million original documents, over 500,000 reels of microfilm and over 1,000,000 photographic negatives.
North Carolinians love history, and the Department of Cultural Resources is hard at work to preserve, protect and promote North Carolina’s story. In fact, we made history of our own as the first cabinet level state agency in the nation for arts, history, and culture. Our combination of archives, historic preservation, museums, and historic sites makes us the largest public history program in the nation.
Cultural Resources serves more than 19 million people annually through three major areas: The Arts, Archives and History, and The State Library of North Carolina.
If you have not yet taken a trip to the Genealogy Collection or the State Archives, located at 109 East Jones Street in downtown Raleigh, I would like to invite you to do so. It is open Tuesday-Friday 8:00-5:30 and on Saturday from 9:00-5:00, closed 12:00-1:00. Helpful staff members stand ready to assist you.
