MANTEO, N.C. — National Trails Day is June 1, and Fort Raleigh National Historic Site and the Dare County Trails Commission will celebrate the day by unveiling new educational exhibits along Fort Raleigh's Freedom Trail.
Roanoke Island, home to Fort Raleigh, was a place of community for thousands of freedom seekers during the Civil War. When Union forces occupied the island in 1862, it became a safe haven for African American families in the region, leading to the establishment of a Freedman's Colony on the northern end of the island.
The new exhibits include eight educational signs and nine life-sized silhouettes highlighting the hardships and triumphs experienced by those who were formerly enslaved during the Civil War. The exhibits are the first to bring personal narratives about the Freedman's Colony to Fort Raleigh.
The unveiling kicks off at 9 a.m. Saturday, June 1 with brief remarks about the research that went into the project and National Trails Day. Then, attendees will go on a ranger-led walk highlighting each sign and historical individual.
