Bellamy Mansion Museum receives $24,000 from the Women’s Impact Network of New Hanover County

Wilmington, NC – On October 12, the Bellamy Mansion Museum received a $24,000 grant from the Women’s Impact Network of New Hanover County at a ceremony held at the Country Club of Landfall. The grant will help the Bellamy Mansion Museum revise and update the museum’s introductory video and audio tour specific to the enslaved workers of the Bellamy Mansion. The money will also help the museum design and print a free informational publication on the lives of the enslaved workers who lived on the Bellamy site before and during the Civil War. Three outdoor educational panels will be designed, fabricated and installed and the funds will also be used to have a free community gathering to celebrate the projects and to honor the lives of the enslaved workers.

“The local focus of the Women’s Impact Network of Wilmington is impressive. These women are investing directly into their communities, and their generosity makes it possible for non-profits in New Hanover County to accomplish projects that would not be feasible without the grant money,” says Leslie Morton, Bellamy Mansion Museum operations manager. “For us at the Bellamy Mansion Museum, it means enhancing the interpretation of the enslaved women and men who lived on site prior to the Civil War. The grant will bring newly researched information about Sarah, Mary Ann, Rosella, Joan, Guy, Tony and the other enslaved young girls to our visitors and brings us closer to a more complete interpretation of what life was like at 503 Market Street in the antebellum period.”

The Bellamy Mansion Museum, located at 503 Market Street in Wilmington, is a non-profit educational institution dedicated to interpreting the social and architectural history of the Bellamy Mansion and promoting a greater understanding of historic preservation, architectural history and restoration methods in North Carolina. For more information about the lecture, contact Carolyn Gonzalez at 910-251-3700 x306 or cgonzalez@bellamymansion.org.