NORTH CAROLINA: RALEIGH

 October 2022

On my last day I had several hours to kill after my son went to work and before I had to head to the airport, so I decided to take a look at North Carolina's capital city, Raleigh, named after Sir Walter Raleigh of Roanoke Colony fame. With a population of about 475,000, it is the 41st largest city in the United States, the 2nd most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte, and one of the fastest growing cities in the country. In 2011 was ranked by Time as the third most-educated city in the US. 

Andrew Johnson, the 17th President of the US, was born here in 1808. Other notables include Olympic figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi, American Idol star Clay Aiken, and writer David Sedaris.

I was headed for the capitol building, but I detoured when I saw Christ Episcopal Church, built in 1848 to 1853. I love this sculpture entitled Peaceable Francis.

Down the street and around the corner is the First Baptist Church, completed in 1859.

Bob and I really enjoy visiting state capitol buildings.  I wish he had been with me to see the North Carolina Capitol in Raleigh. It was completed in 1840 and is considered to be one of the finest major civic buildings in the US in the Greek Revival style. 

Three US Presidents hail from North Carolina and are honored with this statue on the capitol grounds: James K. Polk (1845-1849), Andrew Jackson (1829-1837), and Andrew Johnson (1865-1869).

And there is good ol' George W. (Not Bush. Washington.)

The back looks a lot like many other capitol buildings.

On one side of the building there is a war memorial:

My favorite thing inside the capitol has to be this statue of George Washington in the rotunda, carved by the famous Italian artist Antonio Canova (1757-1822). The original was destroyed by fire in 1831 (Does marble burn?), and this is one of two plaster replicas, the other being in a museum I visited next.

The life-sized "Giorgio Washington" is carved in the style of a Roman general. I LOVE it, and honestly, I almost burst out laughing right there in the rotunda.

For a while, this statue was so popular in North Carolina that the image appeared on everything from dinner plates to money.

There are plenty of other dignitaries claiming their space in the rotunda, most of whom I have never heard of.

But I've heard of Virginia Dare, the first child born to English parents in the New World, who mysteriously perished with the other settlers in the Roanoke Colony.

 

One brass plaque honors three North Carolinians, none of whom I am familiar with, who signed the Declaration of Independence. Another plaque notes that North Carolina ratified the 13th Amendment on December 4, 1865 (almost a year after it was passed by Congress and second only to Georgia for taking the longest of the 27 of 36 states that had to ratify it to represent three-fourths of all the states).

There was quite a bit of information about North Carolina's history of slavery--even mentioning the burdens the enslaved had to carry up the capitol stairs.

Today the capitol houses the governor's office and a few other offices, and a second building, the State Legislative Building, houses the Senate and House of Representatives.  However, in the past, the Senate met in this room:

The House of Representatives met here:

Oh goodie! One of my favorite rooms:

This library had all the gravitas and elegance that I love in a library:

Whoa, that looks like the top of my desk!

I don't think I've visited a capitol with a "Geology Room" before. 

In 1852 the governor ordered a geological survey of North Carolina to determine the scope and commercial potential of its natural resources. Shelving with glass doors were constructed in this room for displaying samples, making this room the state's first natural science museum.

Another messy desk! I was feeling right at home.

My last stop was the North Carolina Museum of History.

This is "Sir Wolfter Raleigh."  🤣

The museum is laid out in chronological order. I started with the Civil War information. North Carolina lost 35,000 of its sons in the war, and many of those who returned home had significant injuries or found their homes and farms obliterated. In addition, with the end of slavery, there were no laborers to work the farms.

I had no idea that Lincoln's VP and successor, Andrew Johnson, was from Raleigh, North Carolina--a slave state!

Next are displays on post-war civil rights issues, including giving formerly enslaved peoples the vote and the emergence of the KKK.

The first motor-powered flight occurred in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on December 17, 1903.

Along came World War I and the 1918 flu epidemic

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Then came women's suffrage and the invention of Pepsi--in North Carolina!  Who knew? By the way, did you know the name "Pepsi" came from the company's claim that it calms dyspepsia (indigestion)?

Depression Era art:

World War II:

. . . and the Civil Rights era of the 1950s:

I learned that besides the aforementioned Pepsi, other products originating in North  Carolina include Krispy Kreme doughnuts, Mt. Olive Pickles, and  Vicks VapoRub.

What? The Venus flytrap ONLY grows natively on the North and South Carolina border? I didn't even realize it was native to the United States!

Well, my time was up and I had to head out to the airport, but hey, what a beautiful drive.

The airport was flooded with Duke University merchandise. Duke is in Durham, the "twin city" to Raleigh.

What a great trip!