By David Freeze
Summer Expectations including NC Historical Sites
After this weekend, our Rowan County running events are on hiatus until August 29th, and that one is a different sort of event with the word racing not likely to be uttered once in association. The SRR Prediction 5K must be done without watches or any other time, pace or distance device. Most people run or walk it at a reduced pace, trying to calculate in their head how to be closest to their predicted goal.
As I have done in the past, summer remains a good time to travel. My long-distance cycling has always been done in the summer and so have many of my own personal travel adventures. Included in these travels have so far been all 100 NC county seats and all state parks in NC. Both were tremendous fun and I learned to love my state even more. Another NC adventure was the run/walk across the state from Murphy to Manteo.
The next challenge on the horizon is continuing my visits to all the currently open North Carolina Historic Sites. Some I have already visited were often due to their proximity to state parks. Here is the short list of those already checked off the list. There are 27 NC Historic Sites, but at present two are not open. Those visited and reported on previously in the Post include–
The CSS Neuse Memorial, a Civil War ironclad near Kinston
Fort Fisher, the coastal Civil War fort near Kure Beach
Roanoke Island Festival Park in Manteo
Somerset Place, an antebellum plantation near Creswell.
The Thomas Wolfe Memorial house in Asheville
The NC Transportation Museum in Spencer.
Historic Bath and Historic Edenton.
That leaves 19 to visit, minus the two currently not open including at the House in the Horseshoe, an American Revolution home near Sanford, and Shallow Ford, used to cross the Yadkin River near Lewisville. Shallow Ford is a new project and set to open later this year.
The first of the remaining 17 sites is Fort Dobbs, which my granddaughter and I visited on Wednesday, 7/15. In 2026, Fort Dobbs opened a new, purpose-built visitor center to serve the public. At nearly 3,700 square feet, the new facility is more than five times larger than the site’s previous visitor center, which was housed in a 1940s log cabin. The new center has a contemporary exhibit gallery, modern restrooms, and paved parking, and has an expanded gift shop, lobby area, and office spaces for staff.
Fort Dobbs was the only permanent frontier provincial fort in the colony of North Carolina. Construction began in late 1755 and was completed one year later. It served as the military headquarters for a frontier company (approximately fifty men) as well as a safe-haven for settlers during what was called the French and Indian War.
The fort was attacked on the night of February 27, 1760, when more than sixty Cherokees were repelled. The garrison suffered two men wounded, as well as having one colonial boy killed. One of the wounded soldiers died a month later. The Cherokee were reported to have lost 10-12 men killed and wounded. Local settlers who had camped near the fort were taken inside until the Cherokee left the area.
By the end of 1761, the British had essentially won the war and only thirty troops remained at the fort. Colonial leaders disbanded the troops and removed all the supplies of the garrison as settlement moved far west of the fort. The neglected fort was in ruins by 1766 and abandoned.
Rebuilding the fort lasted from 2016 to 2019. An interesting documentary of the construction plays continually in the visitor center and describes how the project was based on historical knowledge of the fort. It was built of huge white oak logs, at least 600 of them, and the sawing was done on site. The first floor has 18-inch thick walls while the second floor walls are twelve inches thick with the third floor dropping to 6 inches thick. Each floor has 100 firing ports.
Part of the original defensive ditch remains, a place where riflemen could lie behind a dirt mound and fire at attackers. Called the Bend at Fourth Creek, the fort’s location is on top of a hill and the ten square miles surrounding the fort were home to about 35 settler families which in 1754 was considered the edge of civilization.
Inside the rebuilt fort, soldier’s living and fighting quarters are tight with two to a bed for enlisted men and officers having their own bed. Sleeping soldiers used a bedpan for overnight bathroom needs, with the pans being emptied first thing by the lowest ranking enlisted men. Six men formed a mess and were responsible for making their own meals. The nearest food supply point was in Salisbury, about 50 miles away. Weapons were stacked and ready at all times. Two small cannons are mounted in windows. Soldiers’ jackets and beds were available to try on or lie upon.
The small cabin, built in the 1940’s by the Daughters of the American Revolution, was once the visitor center. The grounds are well-kept, and several major events happen each year. An America250 event is set for November 14th with re-enactors and living history demonstrations.
Fort Dobbs Historical Site was outstanding and has me excited for more visits ahead It is located close to NC 21 and I-40!
Look for news on local running and walking events at www.salisburyrowanrunners.org
