Often we find our forebears on a contraption they never imaged – a computer. Ancestry.com and familysearch.com are popular websites to browse to discover our lineages.
However, right here in Pender County is a treasury of documented family dynasties.
“Families may not live here, but they know their ancestors arrived in North Carolina,” said Mike Taylor, the director of the Pender County Public Library.
Family tree searches often lead to the W. Dallas Herring Carolina Heritage Research Center in Burgaw. Located at 108 S. Cowan St., across the street from the library, the library annex is the Henry – Murphy House.
“We’ve had families come from 19 states, the latest from Oregon, to search for their ancestors,” said Taylor.
In the historic house, where T.T. Murphy, the longest serving school super intent in North Carolina raised his family, are archives from Pender, Duplin, and Sampson counties. Taylor said the collections encompass history on the Lower Cape Fear and the Middle Cape Fear regions.
“It’s all donated,” said Taylor. Some documents are loaned to the center, which are then copied and preserved for others to view.
The center houses the personal records of NC Supreme Court Judge Clifton Moore, the Claudia Stack Collection regarding Rosenwald Schools, the railroad research files of Robert Cooke, and a collection by University of North Carolina Wilmington professor Dr. Ainsley, who researched the Hugh MacRae East European Colonies.
One important collection comes from W. Dallas Herring, the father of North Carolina’s community college system. A resident of Rose Hill, Herring built a genealogy collection focusing mostly on Pender County families. He created a 36,000 index card collection on hundreds of families.
Available to visitors at the center is a collection of research from the estate of Claude Moore of Turkey in Sampson County. A professor of history at Mt. Olive College, Moore gathered a lifetime of research on events, people and places in the region.
Visitors also have free access to Ancestry.com at the center.
There is one restricted access area of the center, but visitors with the assistance of a librarian may view.
“We are here to assist,” said Taylor, adding that genealogy is similar to constructing a puzzle. “We have the tools that can help you get started to organize your information.”
The library accepts donations or loans of photos and photocopied materials. Any and all research materials pertaining to Pender County and southeastern North Carolina in particular and genealogy are appropriate, he said. The library is also interested in journals, diaries, family letters, family Bible records, church histories, publications and research notes.
Duplication and backing up family research at the library also serves as a security measure for irreplaceable documents, Taylor said.
“We have more than 7,000 books, a 36,000 index card file collection, dozens and dozens of manuscripts, maps and more,” said Taylor. “We are welcome you to visit.”
The W. Dallas Herring Carolina Heritage Research Center is open Thursdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Saturdays, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. For more information visit online at genealogy@pendercountync.gov or call 910-259-1906.
