This Month

One of New Bern’s finest artisans died during this month in 1834.  Who was he and how did he leave his mark on our young town? During the 1700’s-1800’s, New Bern was a prosperous town filled with skilled craftsmen of all types.  Of New Bern’s many silversmiths, one of the most prominent was Freeman Woods. 

After the Civil War, as part of a reconstruction plan, William H. Holden was appointed the provisional Governor of North Carolina by President Andrew Johnson.  He was ordered to call for a state convention to restore North Carolina to the Union, and to provide for the election of a new governor, state legislators and US

A Formidable Fighting Family Robert J. “Strawberry” Conderman was the first person in Craven County to be killed in WWII.  He was born August 13, 1918, and upon graduating from New Bern High School, entered the University of North Carolina, receiving a bachelor’s degree in commerce and becoming an aviation cadet at Pensacola.  Upon completion

On July 1, 1863, the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg, the 26th NC infantry encountered the famed 24th Michigan, known as the “Iron Brigade.” The battle was long and bloody, but the 26th NC defeated their opponent on that day. While their courage will be forever remembered, the unit suffered unparalleled loss. Prior

A man credited with revolutionizing naval warfare was born in this month in New Bern.  Gabriel James Rains was born in June 1803, the eldest son of Ester Ambrose and Gabriel Manigault Rains, a cabinet maker. He and his younger brother, George Washington Rains, both attended New Bern Academy and West Point, and were said

In 1893, a local Pharmacist invented a drink named Pepsi Cola and started a company which by 1915 had $1 million in assets. However, on May 31, 1923, his company officially declared bankruptcy. Who was he and what happened? Pepsi-Cola Plant in New Bern at the corner of Hancock and Johnson Street which became Pepsi

What Happened in New Bern in April Cullen Andrews Battle was born in Georgia, grew up in Alabama, died in Greensboro, NC, and was buried in Virginia.  Yet nearly three decades after his death on April 8, 1905, a temporary Army camp at Glenburnie Park, New Bern, was named in his honor – Camp Battle. 

On March 14, 1862, Kady McKenzie Brownell became known as the “Heroine of the Battle of New Bern.”  Kady McKenzie was born in a tent on a battlefield in Caffaria, South Africa, the daughter of a French mother who died shortly after giving birth.  Her father, Colonel George Southwell, a Scotsman, gave Kady to the

On February 8, 1864 the 35th Regiment of the United States Colored Infantry was organized. This Regiment was formed from the 1st North Carolina Colored Volunteers established in New Bern in 1863.  At the beginning of the Civil War, African Americans were not permitted to serve in the armed forces of the United States. Congress