​In honor of Valentine’s Day, this walking tour will explore downtown Wilmington’s historic buildings that are best absorbed in pairs. These pairings are largely thanks to the architectural rhythm established by James F. Post, Henry Bonitz, L. H. Vollers, and others. Some historic buildings are exact twins, such as the Goodman House and its sister Queen Anne house on N. 6th Street. Other couples are not quite exact, but their architectural features, scale, and massing allow each building to speak to one another, such as the Hankins-Bannerman House and Storm House on Ann Street. 

Wilmington’s thriving port delivered great religious diversity to the hills overlooking the Cape Fear River. The Port City’s skyline is dotted with steeples, testifying to the breadth of religious activity in Wilmington and chronicling the city’s religious history. Famed architects and local contractors partnered to construct Wilmington’s places of worship. This walking tour will explore Wilmington’s rich religious history, including the Anglicans’ role in the founding of Wilmington, the 19th century evangelicalism of Wilmington, and the religious experience of minority groups, such as African-Americans and the city’s Jewish heritage.

Commemorations to veterans are embedded throughout Wilmington’s historic landscape. Over 2,000 veterans served aboard the USS North Carolina during WWII before its berth across the Cape Fear River from Wilmington in 1962. Across the river is Orange Street Landing, which honors Black Wilmingtonians like Loyalist Revolutionary War veteran Thomas Peters and Union Civil War veteran William Benjamin Gould. Both veterans enlisted to further the cause of freedom. Just a few blocks away sits the Hannah Block Historic USO, named after “Mrs. WWII Wilmington” in honor of Block’s contribution to the home front during the second World War. This walking tour will explore these historic sites (and more) in honor of Veteran’s Day.

October 27, 28, 30, and 31, 2023: Lantern & Lore (The History Behind the Ghost Stories)

Led by Charles Boney, Jr., this walking tour will guide attendees past a plethora of historic structures shaped by notable architects within the Boney family.

Join the Cape Fear Audubon and Historic Wilmington Foundation on an evening walk in historic downtown Wilmington to appreciate beautiful, historic chimneys, and the charismatic birds that need them. We will be appreciating classic Wilmington architecture, and discussing the value of conserving some of that architecture for an unlikely beneficiary: the Chimney Swift! Chimney Swifts take advantage of chimneys for nesting and community roosting during various times of the year. Wilmington is home to some wonderful, large chimney swift roosting spots that can be easily viewed downtown. This evening tour (5-7:30pm) will start with a walk viewing beautiful historic chimneys and finish at a viewing spot where we can watch a flock of chimney swifts enter a roosting chimney—a spectacular site that no one should miss! 

Join us for a free guided tour through Wilmington’s heritage trees—a vital part of our landscape and history—in celebration of Earth Day and Arbor Day! The City of Wilmington’s Heritage Tree Program is dedicated to the identification and preservation of heritage trees, which are defined as significant trees due to their age, rarity, grouping, overall beauty or historical significance. This walking tour is a partnership with the Alliance for Cape Fear Trees and the Wilmington Tree Commission.

Explore the Sunset Park Historic District and learn about this early 20th-century planned community developed by the Fidelity Trust and Development Company. While strolling the streets of this residential, historic neighborhood, you will learn how the World Wars affected the development of Sunset Park and its architecture. Special attention will be given to identifying Craftsman Bungalows and four-squares.

Wilmington is well known for its front porch culture, which has existed since the town’s founding in 1739/1740! This walking tour will focus on the architecture and use of Wilmington’s outdoor living spaces, from 19th century side piazzas that are trademarks of the Italianate style, to the Neoclassical Revival porticos from the early 20th century. Participants will learn how to identify the orders of columns, especially Wilmington’s distinctive Temple of the Winds columns. Particular attention will be paid to rear porches that were later enclosed and how to identify this trend in Wilmington’s built history.

Wilmington’s thriving port delivered unparalleled religious diversity to the hills overlooking the Cape Fear River. The Port City’s skyline is dotted with steeples, testifying to the breadth of religious activity in Wilmington and chronicling the city’s religious history. Famed architects and local contractors partnered to construct Wilmington’s places of worship. This walking tour will explore Wilmington’s rich religious history, including the Anglicans’ role in the founding of Wilmington, the 19th century evangelicalism of Wilmington, and the religious experience of minority groups, such as African-Americans and the city’s Jewish heritage. 

Cemetery preservationist Christopher Eaton will lead a small group on a hike through this historic, Black cemetery in southern New Hanover County. Freeman Cemetery was established by Alexander and Charity Freeman, who owned land along Myrtle Grove Sound in the mid-19th century. Later, much of their land became known as Seabreeze, a Black beach resort in the mid-20th century. Today, the abandoned cemetery is preserved through volunteer, community efforts.

Learn the true story behind the local lore! For four nights only, we’ll unravel ghost stories and ghoulish legends, tracing them back to Wilmington’s past—the history is oft more frightening than the embellished tales! 

The historic meeting spaces of Wilmington’s benevolent and fraternal organizations are a celebration of adaptive reuse. Monteith Construction, the Children’s Museum of Wilmington, and even Slice of Life are located within former halls. This walking tour will explore the built history behind downtown’s former Masonic Lodges, Knights of Pythias Castles, and Lyceum Halls. Special attention will be given to symbols embedded within architecture that reveal the buildings’ former uses. The tour will conclude with a discussion about the Historic Wilmington Foundation’s commitment to the preservation of Giblem Lodge, North Carolina’s second-oldest Black masonic temple.

In 1868, the American Missionary Association purchased land at the corner of Nun and S 7th Streets in order to establish a mission for Wilmington’s freedmen’s community. Since that pivotal year, this neighborhood has played a crucial role in the evangelicalization and education of Wilmington’s Black community. This walking tour will explore the built history that has survived—and the built history that hasn’t survived—in the neighborhood of Gregory Congregational Church in honor of its 152nd anniversary.

Wilmington’s newest district is thanks to a commitment to adaptive reuse! Explore the Soda Pop District, from its adaptive reuse of the 1945 Oldsmobile Buick Dealership into Hi-Wire Brewing and the current rehabilitation of the Coca-Cola Bottling Works. The walking tour will explore other architectural gems in this neighborhood, including New Hanover High School, Trinity Methodist Church, and Hughes Bros – who recently celebrated their 100th anniversary!

Celebrate National Preservation Month by exploring the history of Wilmington’s historic preservation movement in downtown Wilmington. Learn about the movement through the built history preserved by organizations such as the Historic Wilmington Foundation, Preservation North Carolina, Lower Cape Fear Historical Society, and Colonial Dames. Your guide will chronicle the creation and expansion of Wilmington’s local historic districts. Special attention will be given to properties with historic preservation easements—or legal agreements protecting the property.

Join us for a free guided tour through Wilmington’s heritage trees—a vital part of our landscape and history—in celebration of Earth Day and Arbor Day! The City of Wilmington’s Heritage Tree Program is dedicated to the identification and preservation of heritage trees, which are defined as significant trees due to their age, rarity, grouping, overall beauty or historical significance. This walking tour is a partnership with the Alliance for Cape Fear Trees and the Wilmington Tree Commission.

Robert and John Wood constructed many of Wilmington’s 19th-century brick residences, houses of worship, and commercial structures. The Wood brothers’ career, launched by the construction of St. James Episcopal Church in 1839-1840, resulted in the construction of several Wilmington landmarks, including Thalian Hall and the Latimer House. Bricks were manufactured at a kiln along Smith Creek, north of Wilmington, by enslaved persons often hired out by their enslavers to the Wood brothers. This walking tour will use the Wood brother’s career to explore Antebellum building patterns and labor practices in Wilmington. Sites will include preserved structures and lost structures attributed to the Wood brothers, such as the Front Street Methodist Church and 1874 U.S. Post Office.

Architectural pattern books contributed to the spread of several architectural styles in Wilmington. Pattern books were published volumes of floor plans and elevations that could be replicated by local architects and builders. The pattern books were typically organized around a particular style of architecture. Famous pattern books include James Gibbs’ Book of Architecture, Andrew Jackson Downing’s Architecture of Country Houses, and the works of Mindard Lafever. The tour will explore the pattern books’ influences upon the DeRosset House, Edward Savage House, William B. McKoy House, and more! 

Wilmington is well known for its front porch culture, which has existed since the town’s founding in 1739/1740! This walking tour will focus on the architecture and use of Wilmington’s outdoor living spaces, from 19th century side piazzas that are trademarks of the Italianate style, to the Neoclassical Revival porticos from the early 20th century. Participants will learn how to identify the orders of columns, especially Wilmington’s distinctive Temple of the Winds columns. Particular attention will be paid to rear porches that were later enclosed and how to identify this trend in Wilmington’s built history.