Eastern Carolina Foundation for Equity and Equality, Inc.

10/29/2023

10/26/2023

The tour, still under development to highlight the region's African American heritage, is a partnership of the nonprofit Eastern Carolina Foundation for Equity and Equality and the National Park Service.

10/23/2023

10/23/2023

James City Historic Site Recognized as Site of
Significance on National Park Service Partnership
African American Heritage Tour

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 23, 2023
Contact: Heather Walker- [email protected]

JAMES CITY, NC – – James City will be recognized by the National Park Service and the
non-profit organization Eastern Carolina Foundation for Equity and Equality, as a site of
significance on a partnership tour to highlight Eastern North Carolina’s African American
Heritage. The event is free, open to the public, and will take place at the James City Historic Site
located at 911 Howell Road in New Bern, North Carolina on Saturday, October 28, at 11:00 A.M.
(EDT).
The purpose of the partnership project, an African American Heritage Tour, is to bring to light
new information and research to provide education for local communities and tourists. Currently,
the tour planners have gathered enough data and research to include approximately 20 “sites of
significance” in Coastal and Eastern NC, and sites on the tour can be experienced by land and/or
by sea.
Site nominations are accepted year-round from individuals and organizations interested in
participating. Nominations and requests for more information can be emailed to Heather Walker,
Executive Director of Eastern Carolina Foundation for Equity and Equality at:
[email protected].

09/07/2023

From our Executive Director, Heather Walker:

If it weren’t for the National Park Service, our Middle Passage Marker wouldn’t be on Front Street today.

I have worked with them for the last several years to research and create an African American Heritage Tour throughout coastal North Carolina, and can tell you first-hand that their presence is more valuable than the cost of a lease payment.

I am heartbroken that it has come to this and find it unfortunate that our mayor, town manager, and commissioners would push Superintendent West to make this decision. I am really disappointed and regret the loss our community will suffer as a result.

HARKERS ISLAND, NC – In December of 2023, the National Park Service “Beaufort Visitor Information Center” located at 701 Front Street in Beaufort, NC will permanently close its doors to the public. Suspension of ferry transportation from Beaufort to Cape Lookout National Seashore will likely f...

07/26/2023

Voting for the Best Bed and Breakfast is open! Cast your vote daily to help pick the 2023 10Best Readers' Choice Award for Best Bed and Breakfast.

06/16/2023

We'd like to take a moment to thank our 2023 Middle Passage Ceremony and Marker Dedication partners and speakers: Cape Lookout National Seashore, Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Markers Project, NPS Superintendent Jeff West, NPS Chief Interpreter Nathaniel Toering, Rhonda Jones, Heather Walker, Tyisha Teel, Beckett Piner, Anthony Walker, and Bishop Dr. Tyrone Fleshman for helping us make this year's ceremony and Portsmouth Village's Middle Passage marker a success.

We'd also like to thank our generous ceremony sponsors; Albert's Florals and Gifts, Brandy Doughman, James City Historical Society, and Scott Walker. This event and marker would not have been possible without you! Here are some photos from the ceremony and marker dedication, held on June 10, 2023, at Harker's Island North Carolina.

06/13/2023

https://coastalreview.org/2023/06/event-marks-portsmouth-villages-role-in-middle-passage/

Those who spoke during a ceremony held Saturday to dedicate markers designating Portsmouth as a port of entry for captive Africans said recognizing our troubled past can bring understanding, hope.