WILSON, N.C. — February 11, 2025 — Barton College is pleased to welcome LeRae Umfleet as the featured speaker for the upcoming BB&T Heritage Lecture in American History scheduled for Tuesday, March 4 at 6 p.m. in Howard Chapel, located on the Barton campus.
Umfleet’s lecture is titled “A Day of Blood at Wilmington—November 10, 1898,” and will feature research from her book “Day of Blood,” which was awarded the American Association of State and Local History Award of Merit and their prestigious WOW Award in 2007. This program is open to the public free of charge, and the community is invited to attend.
Prior to the BB&T Heritage Lecture, Barton College will host a campus screening of the PBS “American Experience” documentary, “American Coup: Wilmington 1898,” which features Umfleet’s expertise. The screening will take place on Thursday, Feb. 27, from 7 to 9 p.m. in Howard Chapel.
Dedicated to bringing North Carolina history to life, Umfleet works with the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources to develop outreach and specialty programming projects on behalf of the secretary’s office, including her latest project: coordinating the America 250 NC commemoration. With a career spanning multiple historic sites and institutions, Umfleet has worked with the Office of Archives and History, the North Carolina Collection in Chapel Hill, the Joel Lane Museum House in Raleigh, and Historic Hope Plantation in Windsor.
A native of Bath, North Carolina, Umfleet earned her Master’s degree from East Carolina University in 1998. Reflecting on her personal interest in plantation slavery, her thesis was entitled, “Slavery in Microcosm: Bertie County, North Carolina 1790-1810.”
This lectureship is endowed by BB&T, sponsored by the School of Arts & Humanities at Barton College, and co-sponsored by the Wilson County Historical Association.
For additional information, contact Dr. Lydia Walker, assistant professor of history and religion at Barton College, at lmwalker@barton.edu or 252-399-6440.
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