Carolina Beach Town Hall gives historic exhibits new life

CAROLINA BEACH, NC (WWAY) — Carolina Beach Town Hall is unveiling some historic exhibits next week thanks to the help of the folks at Fort Fisher.

“The exhibits that we’ll be unveiling at Carolina Beach were originally part of the Blockade Runner Museum collection,” said Friends of Fort Fisher executive director Paul Laird.

The four dioramas that will be on display are part of the same collection seen at the Fort Fisher Museum.

“These diorama inserts actually have been in storage in the Cape Fear Museum basement for over 30 years. So the public hasn’t had access to them for over 30 years,” said Laird.

The Friends of Fort Fisher Organization was determined to get these pieces of history back on display. But the old dioramas were all inserts, which means they needed cabinets in order for folks to enjoy them once again.

“It was roughly between eight and ten thousand dollars,” Laird said.

They said it’s a small price to pay to educate folks on the rich background of our area.

“This area has been strategically important for the Cape Fear since the hurricane created New Inlet in 1761,” said Fort Fisher assistant site manager John Moseley.

The folks at Fort Fisher said in addition to the four cases at Carolina Beach, another diorama has been given to the National Guard training facility.

“We get numerous military groups that come down here to learn about the battles that happened here and what was going on, and these are visual representations,” said Moseley.

The display at Carolina Beach officially opens next Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. right before the town council meeting.