- Next on North Carolina Weekend, join us from the Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum in Gibsonville, as we explore historic sites and cultural destinations like the Scottish Tartans Museum in Franklin, the Wright Brothers Memorial in Kill Devil Hills and the mysterious Judaculla Rock in Jackson County, coming up next.

- [Speaker] Funding for North Carolina Weekend is provided in part by Visit NC, dedicated to highlighting our state's natural scenic beauty, unique history and diverse cultural attractions.

From the Blue Ridge and the Great Smoky Mountains across the Piedmont to 300 miles of barrier island beaches.

You're invited to experience all the adventure and charm our state has to offer.

[bright upbeat music] ♪ - Welcome to North Carolina Weekend everyone.

I'm Deborah Holt Noel, and we are at the Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum at historic Palmer Memorial Institute at Sedalia, in Gibsonville.

It's North Carolina's first historic site honoring an African-American and the state's first historic site honoring a woman.

A pioneer in education and race relations, Dr. Charlotte Hawkins Brown worked tirelessly to improve the quality of life for black citizens.

In 1902 she founded the Palmer Memorial Institute, a nationally recognized and respected prep school that transformed the lives of over 2000 students.

Today visitors can tour the campus and view exhibits on larger themes of African-American women, education and social history.

We'll explore more of the campus throughout the show, but first let's head over to another historic site in Creswell, where families often journey to learn more about their history.

It's called Somerset Place.

[bright upbeat music] - Good evening, everyone.

I wanna welcome you to the Faunsdale Connection Reunion.

It was 10 years ago today that I brought the first descendants of Somerset to Eatonton and North Carolina and Somerset Plantation to walk the grounds where our ancestors walked, worked and lived And I just wanna thank you all for coming and attending this reunion.

Family reunions are social, but they are more history to me or the family and how we're connected than anything else.

My name is Mary Jones-Fitts, and I am the organizer of this event at Somerset Plantation.

I began organizing this reunion last year when I found new found family members of my grandfather.

It's not as easy as people seem to think it is for African-American doing genealogy, it is not.

Because there is a brick wall that you're gonna hit and that brick wall is slavery.

[bright upbeat music] - My name is Michael Backus and I'm on wonderful trip to go back in time to visit the land that our ancestors walked on and connect the dots to where I come from.

This journey actually started through a DNA search where we were trying to connect the dots between the two plantations who were sister plantations.

The Faunsdale Plantation in Alabama, and indeed the Somerset Plantation here in Creswell.

As it turns out my ancestors, the Cabarrus was a common name that connected the two plantations together.

- [Speaker] In 1843, as punishment for an act of rebellion 80 enslaved people were taken from Somerset Place to the Faunsdale Plantation in Alabama.

- It's amazing once you walk the grounds and as you walk in their footsteps and you get to feel in here because all of the stories that you read and all the stories that you heard are really connected when you're able to actually see, touch and feel where they actually slept, ate and worked.

One interesting aspect of a tour in Somerset and tracing the ancestors in the particular family of Cabarrus's, there were carpenters and there were seamen and then they were musicians and they were painters and there were artists.

And as I walk among the grounds with relatives we all have those skills.

So that was amazing to realize that we don't know where they came from, but now we do.

- It is about connecting generations, about connecting lost generations and to gather those people together for a reunion and see all of the smiles on their faces, and to hear them talk about this place that their ancestors are on.

And for me, I guess this is like the epitome of doing research as when I can find relatives and bring them back to the place where all of our ancestors came from, and it's just a joy to me.

- For so long, African-American history has been lost and not properly told.

But by taking trips to places like Faunsdale and to places like Somerset, the actual history, the actual facts and events are laid out for you in the places that they lived and worked.

So it becomes real, becomes realistic.

And you're able to get almost a sense of aura to realize that the things that you do and your DNA and where you come from you could actually see where it all started.

[slow music] - Somerset Place State Historic Site is at 2572 Lake shore road in Creswell.

And it's open Tuesday through Saturday.

For more information, you can call them at 252 797-4560 or go online to historicsitesnc.gov.

This is the home of Charlotte Hawkins Brown.

She not only taught here, she lived on the campus.

She was very well known for teaching good manners.

In fact, she was known as the first lady of social graces.

You know, the Scots are famously known for their tartan and kilt often mistaken as plaid.

Let's learn more about the state's Scottish heritage with a visit to the small town of Franklin.

- [Julia] Nestled within the Nantahala National Forest and near the Appalachian Trail, the little town of Franklin, in Macon County is a hub for mountain history and culture.

- [Speaker] Franklin's main street could introduce you to three fantastic museums.

First of all, the Scottish Tartans Museum and Heritage Center Incorporated the Gem and Mineral Museum and of course last but not least the Macon County Historical Museum.

- [Julia] One of the highlights of a visit to Franklin is a journey through time and place.

My grandmother was a Scot.

So I came to the Scottish Tartans Museum to discover more about all things Scottish.

[accordion] - Franklin, North Carolina has a rich heritage of the Scots Irish immigrants who came here in the 18th century.

Here, we have all sorts of historical figures on display and historically correct outfits.

We also have 600 tartans on display.

- [Julia] Tartan is commonly known in the United States as plaid.

In Scotland, tartans defined clans and families happy.

Kathie I see you got quite a collection of ties and scarves.

Where do they come from?

- They come from Scotland.

We have two mills that we use, Ingles Buchan and Lochcarron of Scotland.

- I see my own Ross Hunting tie here.

And you have socks and hose.

- Yes, we do.

Our hose are House of Cheviot, these are kilt hose.

And then along with the kilt hose, we have the traditional garter ties which holds your socks up or hose.

And then we have the garter flashes, those are with the elastic.

- I remember my grandfather wearing those.

[laughs] [old time military drum] So Dan tell us about what you're wearing.

You look like you're dressed for a war.

- Well, I'm a part of a reenactment group and I'm from the Jacobite period of the 1745 rebellion.

- All right, so tell us about what you've got here-- - This is a targe, and they were designed to fend off the bandits and the muskets of the British army and the spike on it just added ferocity to the weapon.

Normally underneath the targe you held your dark so that you actually had a blade coming out from under it.

- [Julia] Everything Gaelic can be found here.

- We have custom made kilts that are made in Scotland.

We can do ladies hostess skirts.

We also sell the Argo jackets as well as the Prince Charlie jacket.

- It's a great place to visit and a great place to shop.

- [Speaker] Moving down main street, another popular spot is Books Unlimited, presided over by Nancy.

This is also a favorite stop for hikers of the Appalachian Trail.

Franklin is known as the gem capital of the world and this old jail built in 1850 now houses the Gem and Mineral Museum.

Here you'll see North Carolina precious stones, Indian artifacts, fossils and gemstones from all over the world.

And around the corner, the Macon County History Museum is full of artifacts.

[slow music] A vital part of the Macon History Museum is the Women's History Trail.

- We have the only women's history trail in North Carolina.

It's our attempt to have people walk in the shoes of their great grandmothers, their grandmothers and learn what life was like for them in their day.

And discover the wonderful contributions that women have made to our society, the Macon County, our history and the people that we are today.

- [Julia] From books to breweries and tartans to tents, Franklin truly is a gem in Western North Carolina.

[bright upbeat music] - The Scottish Tartans Museum and Heritage Center is at 86 East Main Street in Franklin.

And they're open Monday through Saturday from 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM.

For more information, give them a call at 828 524-7472, or check them out online at scottishtartansmuseum.org.

Here at the Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum you can take a self guided tour of the grounds and see buildings like this one which was a boys' dormitory built in 1934.

Across our state is another historic place that celebrates two brothers who were pioneers in North Carolina.

And right now visitors can enjoy their brand new visitor center at the Wright Brothers National Memorial.

- [Speaker] The Wright Brothers National Memorial Park has attracted millions of visitors over more than 90 years of operation.

First time and repeat visitors will continue to witness the evolution of this revered patch of sand in what is now called Kill Devil Hills.

You can walk the actual 852 foot flight path of 1903, hike to the monument erected in 1932, climb on the sculpture from 2003, and now come to the newly renovated visitors center, a national historic landmark for its minimalist 20th century architecture made of nothing but concrete, steel, wood, and glass.

- It's a real pleasure as superintendent to have the responsibility and pleasure of managing both the building and the site, because this is a rare occasion where the visitor center itself also has incredible historical significance and a very prominent role in the nation's history, when it comes to architecture.

It's built to last and as a matter of fact, these new windows in the building they are actually custom constructed out of a high grade of stainless steel so that they will be not only strong but corrosion resistant.

The windows that you see, hopefully you'll see very clearly through them, they're triple pane glass with both tempered and heat treated glass to make sure that they can withstand high winds.

On the other hand, the building is not very conspicuous.

When you look at it across the landscape it tends to blend in a little bit.

The dome roof gives you the feeling of perhaps sand dunes.

So it's meant both to convey a bit of modern architectural inspiration at the same time it's meant to blend into the landscape.

- [Speaker] And that's just the exterior, inside is where visitors will be immersed in a digital textual and in some ways magical experience.

- It's been pretty incredible to see people's reactions to their exhibits here.

The new exhibits, I think really speak to people.

As they go through, they can see pictures of the Wright brothers working and, you know perfecting their gliders and their flyer, but they also can see pictures of them in their home life.

- As you walk through the building, you'll notice that some of the exhibits, that you have the ability to touch them to feel them to move levers, to read things.

There are videos.

There's a 16 screen LED video wall that presents magnificent historic images and the Wright Brothers accomplishments here on this sacred ground.

- [Speaker] The improved visitor center isn't important but humble 9,000 square foot learning center, anchored in the 450 acre park, honoring one of the most influential accomplishments in the history of mankind.

For each visitor, the experience here is personal.

- For me, one of the most striking parts about Wright brothers National Memorial is the first flight boulder that marks the first place where their flyer is taking off from the ground.

Orville stood right next to that marker when it was dedicated and Amelia Earhart was on the other side.

To see people's reactions when they go out to that first flight boulder is incredible.

You have pilots from all ages that are standing in the same place, you know, where the brothers stood, and also where the first flight happened.

- The Wright Brothers National Memorial Visitor Center is at 1000 North Croatan Highway in Kill Devil Hills, and it's open daily.

For more information, go to nps.gov.

This is Galen Stone Hall, named after the Palmer Institute's largest contributor.

It was the girls' dormitory and inside there was actually a beauty parlor.

I felt that was something to see.

Well, there's something that you can still see today, a fully operational water powered mill, and it's located in Alexander County.

Let's head to Linney's Mill.

[bright soft music] - When you come back in here, you go back to the old days.

You don't get in the computer age.

We don't have none of that around here.

[laughs] I guess we you'd say we live in the stone age.

[laughs] - There are not a whole lot of traffic out here and it's easy to find.

Easy to get to, I mean, it's laid back country city.

- [Speaker] Linney's Mill is located in the New Hope Township, a few miles west of Union Grove.

This site had been a gristmill for over 200 years.

In 1937, W.L.

Linney purchased the mill and it's been in the Linney family ever since.

- He found this place for sale, he had this mill place.

So he started up as a hobby, he liked tinkering with stuff.

He liked to tinker and he ran on weekends, about Fridays and Saturdays just for hobby now it's turned into full-time work.

- [Speaker] Thanks to three generations of the Linney family, the mill has been open to the public for the past 65 years.

It makes cornmeal and other items by a waterwheel powered grinding stone.

- Places like this are rare.

I mean, they're really rare, without this place, I mean, people kind of just lose part of their history.

- For me personally, I like seeing old buildings.

I especially love to see old buildings and old places being used.

And it's neat to see an operation that's, you know, been going on for years and years.

It's great to see it's still going.

- [Speaker] When you visit Linney's Mill, you have to check out the double-breasted overshot waterwheel.

[machine buzzing] - Well, when they come in here, they say, "wow, I'm so glad that I've got here."

And the first thing that they want to go see is "I want to go see the waterwheel."

They think it's so fantastic to see that waterwheel roll for some reason or another.

- [Speaker] Well, first the water goes down the trough through raceway to the wheel and it dumps onto the wheel.

And it's got buckets in, it turns the wheel and it's got drive shaft through the mill.

We've got cleaner in there, and that cleans the corn, so before we grind the corn meal, it makes it look a lot better gets all the shaft out up and everything.

- [Speaker] Corn goes in into the grinder, shoots back up to a holding bin, goes into the mixture.

And then we mix all our soda salts and all that into it to make cornmeal.

And then we bag it out.

- [Speaker] Visitors can also enjoy everything, the old general store has to offer.

- Well, from the day one up here to now it's been like 50 years.

It's still the same product.

You don't have to worry about it changing.

Nobody's messing with it or additives whatever it's still the same.

- [Speaker] The products we got now, the cornmeal grits and pancake mix and it's all right, don't have no preservatives in it.

So therefore you have to put in your refrigerator or in your freezer to make it last longer but it's a lot healthier for you.

- [Speaker] Bill also known as Smiley, enjoys entertaining visitors with storytelling and his Southern hospitality.

- To old Jim and they're sitting in own and I seat back here, listening.

I said, "boys, you better watch out."

I said, "when Mr Dan says open wide he ain't mean your mouth, he means your pocket."

So I left out of there.

[laughs] - Been bringing my grandson up here since he's two years old.

I had to wait for him to get out of diapers before I brought him.

But he'd been coming and he's 24 now.

And he likes the old ways, knows things, and all of that.

I'm just from old roots family and all.

I've made time to come up here.

- In North Carolina, and especially this area here you got so much history about the mountains.

The people that grow apples up here, Billy's doing cornmeal and grits and it's just a unique place.

It's like a little town down here that's hidden away and it's a great place for people to come visit.

It's a good day trip.

It's a good place to learn.

Get off the main road and travel a little bit and go back in time.

- Linney's Mill is at 4635 Linney's Mill Road in Union Grove, and they're open Tuesday through Saturday.

For more information, give them a call at 704-592-2075 or go online to linneysmill.com.

Now let's really step back, so far back in time you can barely put a date on it.

High up in the mountains is an ancient boulder covered with petroglyphs or rock art.

It's called the Judaculla Rock and it's a sacred symbol of the Cherokee people.

♪ Come home, ♪ ♪ Come home ♪ [bright upbeat music] - It is a part of the story of who we are.

It is a definer of what is being a Cherokee.

- People just call it the Indian rock.

Now there's about 10,000 people a year that come here.

- It's really a mixture of science and art.

[bright upbeat music] My name is Scott Ashcraft.

I'm a Forest Service Archeologist for the Pisgah National Forest, but I'm also a co-director of the North County Rock Art project.

When it comes to general petroglyphs, this is a very, very big one not just for Western North Carolina, but for the Eastern US.

It's the most densely carved that we know of.

It is one of the most important places to the Cherokee people.

- It's a form of communication in some ways.

So what is this story?

What are they trying to tell?

- First of all, there is the namesake of the rock itself Judaculla, one of the Cherokees spirit beings, a giant where there's his hand print that has a story behind it.

And then the long line, one story is that he did it with his nail and it represents a boundary.

We think it's also a map of not only this local area but also a map for the spirit world.

[bright upbeat music] - My name is Jerry Parker and my family has been living here, property where the Judaculla Rock is since the 1850s.

For lack of a better description we have been the caretakers or stewards of this property.

- How many acres?

- There is a 133 acres.

Then my father made the reason that he wanted to preserve the rock, so he transferred the rock to the County in 1959.

This is my grandfather in 1932 or three and that's his cornfield behind him.

So the rock was surrounded by the cornfield.

- [Speaker] What's your grandfather's name?

- His name was Milas.

- Milas, I like that name.

- My grandfather's name is Milas Over here's the color postcard, that picture originally comes from.

I've traveled to many places over the world but I always come back here.

And so I look at this as my spiritual low stone sort of just brings me back.

[bright slow music] - My name is Thomas Belt and my home is at Cullowhee Boundary, North Carolina.

This region is our ancestral home.

I am a Cherokee Language Program Coordinator at Western Carolina University.

Cherokee, the word is pronounced as Juthcullah.

The rock is 10,000 years old.

It tells me who I am.

It tells me where I'm from.

[bright slow music] - It's possible to put the entire rock into motion?

- Yeah.

- I'm Brett Riggs, I'm the Sequoia Distinguished Professor of Cherokee Studies at Western Carolina University.

This is a spot that embodies Cherokee belief and embodies Cherokee belonging to this place.

- It's true, I've heard we're from here.

This is us.

- You've got the line.

And then you have the hand print under the line.

- Juthcullah, when he jumps he leaves one world and he comes into another world.

To me, that's what makes this thing so special.

This is the linkage that comes right up to the present.

It gives me a place on the face of the earth that I've been granted to share with my relatives.

It tells me that I'm home.

[slow music] - You can find it the Judaculla Rock at 552 Judaculla Rock Road in Cullowhee.

For more information, go to discoverjacksonnc.com.

And that's it for tonight show.

We'd like to thank the Charlotte Hawkins Brown Museum, for hosting us.

It's a great place to come and learn about North Carolina history.

And if you've missed anything in today's program, remember you can always watch it again online at pbsnp.org.

Have a great North Carolina weekend everyone, goodnight.

[bright upbeat music] - [Speaker] Funding for North Carolina Weekend is provided in part by Visit NC, dedicated to highlighting our state's natural scenic beauty unique history, and diverse cultural attractions.

From the Blue Ridge and the Great Smoky Mountains across the Piedmont to 300 miles of barrier island beaches.

You're invited to experience all the adventure and charm our state has to offer.