Happy Holiday Season! This year we’ve been reminded again and again how grounding, and powerful local history can be. The Museum of Durham History has had quite an eventful year, and we have been so honored to share our city’s history with our amazing community!

In 2025, the Museum worked hard to bring Durham’s history to life in ways that were meaningful, and deeply rooted in community voices. Early in the year we commemorated Duke University’s Centennial with 100 Years of Duke: Names to Remember, highlighting important figures like Joyce Clayton Thorpe Nichols, the first woman — and first Black woman — to graduate from Duke’s Physician Assistant program. Her story, one of determination and brilliance, continues to resonate. Another pertinent story on display at this time was Nuestra Historia, Nuestra Voz / Our History, Our Voice, an exhibit exploring the Latiné experience at Duke, curated by current Duke students. Their perspectives and personal reflections added new depth to our understanding of Duke and Durham’s interconnected histories.

Outside the Museum walls, our work traveled farther than ever.  Our Faces of Durham traveling exhibit made its way to the Durham Farmers Market, the Black Farmers Market, and Durham Public Schools classrooms, meeting people where they already gather and learn. Our Durham A–Z exhibits continued to circulate through schools, libraries, and public spaces across the county, introducing students and families to the people, places, and events that have shaped their hometown.

This was also a year of remembrance and new powerful exhibits. Through Unearthing Stories of Geer Cemetery: Using Archaeology to Reclaim, Restore, and Respect Sacred Space, we worked with community members and researchers to honor those interred in one of Durham’s oldest historically Black cemeteries. We were also able to display Booker T. Spicely: Citizen, Soldier, Martyr, Hero, which shares the life of a World War II soldier whose story of service and tragic death remains essential to the City’s civil rights history. We opened our current exhibit Made in the Triangle: The Story of RTP, which examines the bold vision that created Research Triangle Park and the impact it continues to have today. At the same time, this exhibit reckons with the lasting consequences of Durham Freeway construction and urban renewal. 

Beyond exhibits, this was a year filled with support from our amazing community! More than 22,000 students and adult learners participated in field trips, talks, events, and programs that offered deeper insight into Durham’s rich history. None of this would be possible without our extraordinary volunteers, who together contributed nearly 6,000 hours of service. They are often the first friendly faces our visitors see, and they help make the Museum a welcoming, accessible place for all.

As we reach the end of the year, we’re inviting you to support this work through a tax-deductible gift. Every contribution—large and small—helps us collect, preserve, and share Durham’s stories in ways that are free and accessible to the entire community.

Monthly gifts make an especially big impact by providing year-round stability.

As a token of our appreciation, donors of $60+ will receive a Museum-branded canvas tote bag, and donors of $125+ will receive a one-of-a-kind waterproof vinyl tote made from repurposed exhibit banners—unique, durable, and perfect for gifting!

Thank you for believing in the power of local history, for supporting community-driven storytelling, and for helping sustain a Durham that remembers where it’s been and imagines where it can go. We are so grateful!