The past has been preserved at Historic Stagville, a 165-acre State Historic Site, entirely dedicated to teaching about the lives and stories of enslaved African Americans. Through careful research, Stagville documents the history of the enslaved people who lived there, and their descendants. At over 700 acres, it is the largest nature preserve in Durham. These historic grounds are free and open to the public for self-guided exploration. Guided tours at Historic Stagville are $2 for adults and $1 for children and seniors. Call ahead to confirm availability for guided tours.
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Hours:
Monday: Closed Tuesday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM Wednesday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM Thursday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM Friday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM Saturday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM Sunday: Closed
There are two sites on this one park. The Bennehan and the Cameron Plantations. The first is near the visitor center and contains a few buildings and the manor house for the Bennehan family. The house is empty and is not part of the tour. Sad, life happened there whether good or bad, it should be part of the story.
The larger of the two, the Cameron plantation is very well-preserved and has some outstanding buildings. No manor house, but the barn is impressive.
The tour is $2, and I didn't take part as I had gotten to the site at 10 am on Saturday, and the first tour started at 11. They provided a map.
There are some walking trails and in finer weather they'd be a great way to spend the day.
M S
Feb 18, 2025
4
There are two sites on this one park. The Bennehan and the Cameron Plantations. The first is near the visitor center and contains a few buildings and the manor house for the Bennehan family. The house is empty and is not part of the tour. Sad, life happened there whether good or bad, it should be part of the story..
The larger of the two, the Cameron plantation is very well-preserved and has some outstanding buildings. No manor house, but the barn is impressive.
The tour is $2, and I didn't take part as I had gotten to the site at 10 am on Saturday, and the first tour started at 11. They provided a map.
There are some walking trails and in finer weather they'd a great way to spend the day.
TRiiileigh
Dec 31, 2024
5
Stopped on my way home from South Carolina- I love visiting historic sites & learning about them. This was a great tour. For how cheap the tickets were it surprised me that the tour was long & impactful! The tour guide was knowledgeable & friendly! My only complaint was that the main house was not available to view but outside of that I enjoyed the experience!
Ty lee
Oct 17, 2024
5
Visited the Historic Stagville site to learn more about the history of Slavery, Freedom and Resistance. The guide was passionate in relating the stories of lives, culture and labor of enslaved African Americans during the guided walking tour in the 165 acre State Stagville site .The Bennehan House, Great Barn and Slaves quarters at Horton Grove are well preserved to showcase the history. You need to call ahead for guided tour schedule or you can do a shelf guided tour by using the QR code.
Joe Cagnassola
Oct 10, 2024
4
Amazing historical site tucked in the beautiful countryside just north of Durham, wonderfully preserved and very accessible, a must see for history buffs and anyone wanting to connect with nature
Ashley Arnold
Aug 20, 2024
5
Love my experience and my tour guide!!
By chance me and my partner were able to get a sort of private tour and the history lesson was amazing. It was such a small intimate and educational tour. The explanation the story line and the details our guide provided was everything even the personal inputs and conversations that were able to be drawn based on the facts and details for what it was like being enslaved here or even the perspective view for the owners view was superb. The expressed attention to detail and description giving for even buildings that never remained almost made me feel as if I was immersed in the very moment. I was even lucky enough to be on property while descendants of the enslaved people gathered to celebrate their family heritage. It was such a blessing to encounter and learn. The time of the tour was a good time quality and even with all that was shared and explored I was still intrigued to know more! I wish that the Farintosh Farm participated as their farm relates to the family history! That would just make this tour even the more better!!
Kate Grady
Jul 23, 2024
4
The guided tour was amazing. The perspective/purpose of this historic site is to tell about plantation life especially around the 1860s and to tell the stories of enslaved people, their experiences and efforts towards freedom. We had a very knowledgeable and thoughtful tour guide. There isn’t much to the museum and it seemed to focus more on civil rights as a whole than the site specifically. However, my kids enjoyed the books about Black resistance, Juneteenth history, etc.
Also, you cannot beat the price. $2 for adults, $1 for children and seniors. Remarkable to have such a rich experience at such a reasonable cost!
David Appleby
May 27, 2024
5
Learning about our History is something we all should do,this was a very informative Tour and was done very professionally and passionately would recommend to anyone visiting Durham to take this guided tour
