Read this week's Pender County Tourism Update to stay in tune with all that's happening. Click here to read the March 7 edition. If you wish to add your email address to this free update, email tproctor@pendercountync.gov.

Penderlea Homestead Museum, located at 284 Garden Rd., is open every Saturday. The museum is a perfectly preserved Penderlea home built in the 1930s. While Penderlea is historic, so is its church, Potts Memorial Presbyterian Church. Penderlea was the first New Deal farming community authorized by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Proposed by Hugh MacRae, Penderlea was designed to give unemployed and tenant farmers...

The Holly Shelter Game Land Shooting Range is well underway. According to a report for the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, the pistol and rifle range shelter is framed. Shingles have been installed on the rifle range shelter. The pistol shelter roofing is approximately 40 percent complete. Benches have been constructed in the pistol range. Benches in the rifle shelter are underway. A liner for the...

Topsail Island was, and remains today, a fishing destination. Before there were multi-story beachfront houses, there were fishing cottages. Once upon a time, Topsail Island was home to Salty’s Pier, Ocean City Pier, Scotch Bonnet Pier, Barnacle Bill’s Pier, the Surf City Pier and the Jolly Roger Pier. Doug Medlin, Surf City mayor pro-tem, remembers when a handful of business owners and fishing pier owners...

I used to run to meet the waves when I was a child. “Putting my best foot forward” for the first time each summer was a magical time for me. I can’t explain it. I can only relive it in the eyes of my six grandchildren. I’m native to Topsail and still experience wonder every time I walk on the beach. I am at peace with the world. …… it never gets old. Remember when you vacationed...

Swing Bridge, Draw Bridge and The Bridge, whatever you call it. The Surf City bridge has its days numbered. It is falling to the march of time. There are at least two camps you know Let’s keep it and wait for the boat parades go by. Let’s raze it and replace it with a long concrete winding snake connecting us to the mainland. Can you guess which camp I favor? I keep a paperback underneath my car...

There's so much to do in Pender County this weekend. Click here for this week's listing. If you would like to receive a free, weekly e-mail of upcoming events, email us at tproctor@pendercountync.gov. If your Pender County event is not listed, pleae email Stephanie Key with your information.

Burger King recently announced the fast food restaurant will offer hot dogs. In Pender County, we have the king of hot dogs – Paul’s Place Famous Hot Dogs. Since 1928, Paul’s Place has been a local favorite. Located at 11725 US Hwy 117 S, in Rocky Point, the Paul family opened a restaurant to serve fried chicken and barbeque. “My granddaddy cooked hogs on the wood fire,” said David...

The mailing address is the Town of Wallace, but few Pender County residents know they have an airport in their backyards. The Pender County commissioners and Matt Livingston, the town manager in Wallace, are raising public awareness. “A lot of people don’t know we have an airport,” said Livingston. We do. It’s named Henderson Field Airport and the call letters are ACZ. It’s located...

Here is the Feb. 15 Presidents Day edition of our e-newsletter. For more presidential facts, see our Facebook Page, Pender County Tourism. Click here to read the newsletter.

It’s a jewelry store owner’s dream. Christmas and Valentine’s Day bring new engagements. Wedding dates are set and plans begin. In Pender County, we have perfect romantic backdrops for dream weddings. Couples travel hundreds of miles to have a beach wedding. They travel long distances to marry in the gazebo at Poplar Grove Plantation. The historic Train Depot in Burgaw is a popular setting for...

Pender County has a smorgasbord of dining choices. From Bandana’s in Burgaw to Sears Landing in Surf City, we are blessed to have the best seafood, barbeque, pizza, and steaks. We also are blessed to have one of the few remaining American icons – the lunch counter. Let's tour Dees Drug Store & Grill. History and memories have been made at America’s lunch counters. At a time, boyfriends...

BURGAW – Pender County families have donated items from businesses and their homes with the simple desire to preserve our rich history. Those donated items are on display for all to see, to treasure, to remind us of our Pender legacy. The storehouse of history is the Pender County Museum. Located in the first brick home built in Burgaw in 1917, the Pender County Historical Society exhibits our history for all...

Surf City Disc Golf is on the way! An initial nine holes on a new Town course are approaching completion on H20 Place (off Highway 210) in mainland Surf City and are projected to open for play this spring. The layout is the brainchild of Interim Police Chief Major Ron Shanahan who was looking for off-duty recreational activities for the Surf City Police Department that would tie into the Town’s Employee Wellness...

Stomp the Park, an April 16-17 event, will feature a statewide Dance Battle competition and a concert by Grammy nominated singer Ryan Daniel. “His reggae-hip hop-rock style is a force that can’t be denied,” said Mary Bushey, Stomp the Park organizer. Daniel has risen on the Reggae Hip Hop music scene. His recent release, “Battle Cry,” is an old-school block party thump with strong...

Genealogy and family history are of great interest to many Americans. We want to know, as Alex Haley documented, our “Roots.” 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...

TOPSAIL BEACH – There’s a new eatery in town and it’s worth a try. Cora’s Isle-End Deli opened in July and the menu is garnering rave reviews on TripAdvisor. “We’re not your normal beachy deli,” said Jeff Voelck, the owner of Cora’s Isle-End Deli. “We bring in different flavors – Indian, Asian, and Thai - and combinations of flavors.” Voelck is...

SURF CITY – Stomp the Park, a statewide step show competition and concert, is coming to Holly Ridge and Surf City April 16-17. The step show competition will take place at the Holly Ridge Community Center from 1-6 p.m. Teams are encouraged to register now by calling 763-232-1759. Registration is $15 per team. “The teams will be judged,” said Mary Bushey, the local organizer for Stomp the Park....