Contact the Center
Center for Southeast North Carolina Archives and History
UNCW Library, Discovery Hall, 2nd floor
5162 Randall Dr.
Wilmington, NC 28403
csencah@uncw.edu
910-962-7810
Visit the Center
Location
The Center for Southeast North Carolina Archives and History is located on the 2nd floor of Discovery Hall in the UNCW Library.
Hours
From May 19th through August 15th, 2025, the Center will be open by appointment only due to reduced staffing. 48 hours' advance notice is required for appointment requests. Visit our website to request an appointment.
Access Policies
Prior to visiting the Center, users should familiarize themselves with our access and use policies.
Other Collections Related to SENC History
If the information you're seeking isn't available from the Center for Southeast North Carolina Archives and History, there are several other archival repositories throughout the state that collect materials related to this region. The links below will take you to these institutions' websites, where you can find more information on their collections.
-
Cape Fear MuseumCape Fear Museum’s collection of more than 57,000 objects sheds light on the history, science, and cultures of the Lower Cape Fear. The bulk of the collection spans the 17th through 21st centuries, with a heavy concentration in the 20th century. It includes historical photographs and documents as well as three dimensional artifacts such as furniture, tools, clothing, and toys.
-
David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript LibraryDuke University's archives and special collections are housed at the Rubenstein Library. The collection includes several manuscripts and historical publications related to the southeast North Carolina region.
-
ECU Joyner Library Special CollectionsThe Special Collections unit at ECU's Joyner Library consists of ECU's university archives, the North Carolina Collection, manuscripts and rare books, and digital collections.
-
Lower Cape Fear Historical SocietyThe Lower Cape Fear Historical Society has been collecting materials relating to the history of the Lower Cape Fear and its inhabitants since the 1950s. Today the Archive contains a research library of approximately 3,000 volumes, several thousand photographs, and several hundred cubic feet of archival material.
-
NCSU Special Collections Research CenterNC State University's Special Collections Research Center contains several collections documenting the southeast North Carolina region, particularly related to architecture, agriculture, and tourism.
-
New Hanover County Public LibraryNew Hanover County Public Library's Local History Room collections encompass as many aspects of the Lower Cape Fear Region’s history and culture as space and interest dictate, including, but not limited to, the history of the people, places, culture, and natural environment of the Lower Cape Fear Region.
-
Outer Banks History CenterThe Outer Banks History Center is a regional archival research facility in Manteo, N.C. on historic Roanoke Island administered by the Special Collections Section of the State Archives of North Carolina. Its holdings document the history and culture of the North Carolina coast and adjacent areas, including the Cape Fear region.
-
Pender County Library W. Dallas Herring Carolina Heritage Research CenterThe W. Dallas Herring Carolina Heritage Research Center offers genealogy and local history resources concentrated on eastern North Carolina, particularly Duplin, Pender, and Sampson counties.
-
State Archives of North CarolinaThe State Archives of North Carolina collections private collections, organizational records, and government records from across the state. Records of interest to genealogists, including county records, birth and death records, and other vital records are housed at the main repository in Raleigh. Additionally, the State Archives holds numerous manuscript collections related to southeast North Carolina families and organizations.
-
Wilson Library, UNC Chapel HillThe Louis Round Wilson Special Collections Library at UNC Chapel Hill includes extensive documentation of the Cape Fear region. Researchers will find the resources within the Southern Historical Collection, Southern Folklife Collection, and North Carolina Collection particularly useful.
-
Wrightsville Beach Museum of HistoryThe collections of the Wrightsville Beach Museum of History consist of artifacts and photographs documenting the history of the town of Wrightsville Beach and its residents.
Searching for Archives and Manuscript Collections on the Internet
-
ArchiveGridArchiveGrid includes over 7 million records describing archival materials, bringing together information about historical documents, personal papers, family histories, and more. With over 1,400 archival institutions represented, ArchiveGrid helps researchers looking for primary source materials held in archives, libraries, museums and historical societies. You may be able to use this database to locate archives and manuscript collections related to people and families that may not be represented in the Center's collections.
-
National Union Catalog of Manuscript CollectionsThe National Union Catalog of Manuscript Collections was created by the Library of Congress provides a gateway for searching nearly 1.5 million catalog records describing archival and manuscript collections and individual manuscripts in public, college and university, and special libraries located throughout North America and around the world. This website will allow you to search across these resources for keywords, subjects, personal and family names, and more.
If you are not able to locate the information you're looking for using these two resources, sometimes you will have better luck using a basic internet search engine, such as Google. When searching, enter the topic, person, or family you're researching and add a phrase such as "papers", "records", "collection", or "digital collection" in quotation marks. For example, if you were looking for information on the Smith family of Columbus County, you might try searching the following phrases:
- Smith family Columbus County "papers"
- Smith family Columbus County "collection"
- Smith family Columbus County "archives"
- Smith family Columbus County "digital collection"