Wilmington, NC

Wilmington: Port City With Plenty to Offer

Wilmington is the ideal locale for just about any recreational activity, thanks in part to its mild climate. Whether golf's your bag, or your angling to fish, boat or surf, there's something to pique your outdoor interests in Wilmington.

The city has been called everything from New Liverpool, to New Carthage, to New Town, to Newton. Settled in 1729, Wilmington is situated between North Carolina's Cape Fear River on the west and the Atlantic Ocean on the east, which explains why it's also known as the "Port City of Progress and Pleasure."

The city's history is steeped in battle. Wilmington became involved in the Revolutionary War when Loyalists battled the Patriots at Moore's Creek in February 1776. British forces captured the city in 1781 and were withdrawn later that year.

Following the Revolutionary War, numerous estates and plantations were established on the outskirts of Wilmington. In the early 1800s the city floundered because of poor roads, few bridges, swamps surrounding the city, inadequate medical and sanitation facilities, and navigation problems on the Cape Fear River.

The economy picked up on the heels of steam power, railroads and navigational improvements to the river, and by 1840 it was the largest city in North Carolina.

During the Civil War, Wilmington was the Confederacy's most important port. Fort Fisher, built in 1861, was the last fort to fall to the Union army. In 1866 the town officially became a city. During World War I, a shipbuilding industry developed and cotton exports peaked. Then the Great Depression of the 30s hit and Wilmington suffered. World War II brought the resurgence of shipbuilding, and in 1945, the North Carolina Legislature created the State Port Authority, which enabled the transformation of the shipyards into a modern port facility. In 1947, Wilmington College was established, which is now the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.

The railroad has also played a major role in shaping Wilmington. The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a major employer in the city, but in 1955 their offices moved to Jacksonville, Florida. The city sought diverse industry, and in 1966 Wilmington was rebounding and was designated an "All American City."

During the 70s, the downtown area was the focus of major revitalization and preservation. In the 80s, major companies including Corning Inc., General Electric, Applied Analytical Industry, and Takeda Chemical Products moved to Wilmington. Wilmington's own Pharmaceutical Product Development was also formed.

A major film studio launched in Wilmington (currently known as Screen Gems Studios , and many movies have been made in the area, earning Wilmington the nickname "Wilmywood" among locals. The first movie filmed here, Dino DeLaurentiis' Firestarter in 1983, has led to more than 300 movies and seven television series, including Matlock, Dawson's Creek, and One Tree Hill.

Wilmington has one of the largest districts listed in the National Register of Historic Places and is a leader in preservation efforts. Many of the town's Victorian, Georgian, Italianate and antebellum-style homes, buildings and churches have been restored and are now used as museums, stores and bed-and-breakfasts.

Annual events include the North Carolina Azalea Festival in the spring, RiverFest in the fall, the History-Mystery tours during Halloween and the Old Wilmington by Candlelight in December.

Downtown holds dance clubs, jazz bars, local and touring musicals, and venues for rock 'n' roll, rhythm and blues. Thalian Hall--the oldest community theater tradition in the U.S.--and the Community Arts Center are changing the art scene and nightlife. There are also art galleries and music shops downtown.

In Wilmington's Historical District (about 300 blocks), many of the homes and buildings bear plaques indicating their age: red indicates 75 to 100 years and black indicates the structure is more than 100 years old. There are year-round tours available via horse-drawn trolley/carriage, riverboat, motorized trolley car, or walking tours. Seasonal theme tours explore historic homes, gardens, churches and cemeteries.

The Riverwalk offers a view of the Battleship North Carolina moored on the western shore and is a great place to stretch your legs while enjoying the river activity. There are many wide patio-style areas and pocket parks with benches, allowing for photo opportunities and peaceful relaxation.

A visit to Wilmington would not be complete without a stop at the Battleship North Carolina, which is located on Eagles Island across the Cape Fear River from downtown. The 45,000-ton warship wields nine 16-inch turreted guns and carries nickel-steel hull armor 16 to 18 inches thick.

The Bellamy Mansion, a four-story, 22-room wooden palace completed in 1861, offers volunteer-led guided tours. The mansion's museum exhibits embrace regional architecture, landscape architecture, preservation and decorative arts.

The Cape Fear Museum , established in 1898, features a miniature re-creation of the second battle of Fort Fisher and a remarkable scale model of the Wilmington waterfront, circa 1863. The Michael Jordan Discovery Gallery (which includes a popular display case housing many of the basketball star's personal items) is a long-term interactive natural history exhibit for the entire family. The Discovery Gallery includes a crawl-through beaver lodge, Pleistocene-era fossils and an entertaining Venus's-flytrap model you can feed with stuffed "bugs."

The Cape Fear Serpentarium features more than 100 species of snakes, most of them poisonous, as well as the largest collection of venomous snakes in the world. Owner Dean Ripa is a major breeder of the South American bushmaster, the world's longest pit viper and the rarest of venomous snakes. In addition to 37 bushmasters, the Serpentarium also houses gaboon vipers, king cobras, Australian taipans, a 23-foot python, black mambas, a Nile crocodile and a six-foot monitor lizard.

Take the Wilmington Trolley for a 45-minute guided tour of historic downtown Wilmington over a course of about eight miles. There are some evening tours available during the summer months.

At the Wilmington Railroad Museum, you can climb into a real steam locomotive and clang its bell. Learn why the 19th-century Wilmington & Weldon Railroad was called the "Well Done." The museum building was the railroad's freight traffic office and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Visitors can run the model trains in the enormous railroad diorama upstairs. Downstairs, enjoy the Lionel trains, and a new, unique HO scale train set worth approximately $10,000.

The Wilmington National Cemetery was established in 1867 on five acres of land about a mile east of downtown. The cemetery originally contained the remains of more than 2,000 Union soldiers, many of whom died at Fort Fisher and were later interred here. More than 1,300 are unidentified; many are black, identified as U.S.C.T. (United States Colored Troops) or U.S. Col. Inf. (United States Colored Infantry). Markers with round tops indicate known burials, and stones with flat tops indicate unknowns. Since the Civil War period, the Wilmington National Cemetery has received the remains of Americans through the Vietnam conflict.

The Wilmington Adventure Walking Tour offers information about local architectural details, family lineage and historic events. You'll see residences, churches and public buildings.

Formerly known as the Tote-Em-In Zoo, Tregembo Animal Park features more traditional animal sightings such as camels, lions and bears, as well as exotic animals including a giraffe, a zebra and a group of ring-tailed lemurs that reside on their very own Lemur Island.

The Thalian Hall Center for the Performing Arts was conceived as a combined political and cultural center and built between 1855 and 1858. During its first 75 years, the Hall brought every great national performer and some surprising celebrities to its stage: Lillian Russell, Buffalo Bill Cody, John Philip Sousa, Oscar Wilde and Tom Thumb, to name a few. Today, full-scale musicals, light opera and internationally renowned dance companies are a part of the programming. Thalian Hall, on the National Register of Historic Places, offers backstage tours.

Experience Wilmington's charm and historical continuity by strolling The Riverwalk, where you'll find dining, shopping and lodging. Riverfront Park is also the site of the Sundown Shindig, a street fair with merchants, food vendors and entertainment.

The Oakdale Cemetery, Wilmington's first municipal burial ground, opened in 1855. At the cemetery office, you can pick up a free map detailing some of the more interesting interments, such as the volunteer firefighter buried with the faithful dog that gave its life trying to save his master, and Mrs. Rose O'Neal Greenhow, a Confederate courier who drowned while running the blockade at Fort Fisher in 1864.

The Henrietta III is a refurbished riverboat--a large three-level, paddle-free vessel with a capacity for 600 guests. You can cruise the Cape Fear River aboard the Henrietta III for a 90-minute narrated sightseeing cruise, narrated lunch cruise, or a dinner dance cruise.

Or travel downtown Wilmington the old-fashioned way--by horse-drawn carriage or trolley. Take a half-hour tour in a fringed-top surrey (open-air trolley) narrated by a knowledgeable driver wearing 19th-century garb. Take the Ghost Walk of Old Wilmington, a nightly walking tour of the area around downtown Wilmington. Or take the Haunted Pub Crawl, a tour of Wilmington's most wildly haunted pubs.

The Front St. Free Trolley is a great way to see the riverfront area. Trolley stops are marked along the route, which goes along Front, Water and Second streets.

Visit Chandler's Wharf, which was once crowded with mercantile warehouses. Chandler's Wharf is still a business district, or, more accurately, a shopping and dining district. Two historic homes transformed into shops stand on the cobblestone street, beside wooden sidewalks and the rails of the former waterfront railway.

Traffic from the west on U.S. Highways 17, 74 and 76 enters Wilmington via the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge. From downtown, the routes split, with U.S. 17 and 74 following Market Street on a more or less easterly direction through the city. U.S. 76 heads toward the ocean on Dawson Street, then Oleander Drive, Wrightsville Avenue and finally Eastwood Road as it rejoins U.S. 74 and continues into Wrightsville Beach. U.S. 17 continues in a northeasterly direction on Market Street and provides access to Figure Eight Island and the Topsail Island beaches on its way to Pender and Onslow Counties plus Jacksonville and Camp Lejeune.

Traffic from the north on I-40 flows onto College Road, N.C. Highway 132, the main north/south route through Wilmington. College Road crosses Market Street and Oleander, then ends at Monkey Junction where it joins with Carolina Beach Road (U.S. 421) coming southeast from downtown. Carolina Beach Road continues south to Pleasure Island (Carolina Beach and Kure Beach).

There are four area airports. Major airline service is offered through two-Wilmington International Airport and Myrtle Beach International Airport. Brunswick County is midway between both airports and about 45 minutes away from each. There are also two small airports-Ocean Isle Beach and Oak Island.