What to See in Raleigh - Top Sights and Attractions

Museum of NC's geology, flora and fauna. The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences is located in Raleigh, North Carolina as the oldest established museum in North Carolina and the largest museum of its kind in the Southeastern United States. With about 1.2 million visitors annually, as of 2013 it was the state's most popular museum or historic destination among visitors.

The museum has six facilities on five campuses: the Nature Exploration Center and Nature Research Center on Jones Street in downtown Raleigh, the Prairie Ridge Ecostation satellite facility and outdoor classroom in northwest Raleigh near William B. Umstead State Park, the former North Carolina Museum of Forestry in Whiteville, and the former Grifton Nature & Science Center in Grifton. In 2020 the newest facility, the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences at Greenville, was announced and opened to the public on September 18th, 2021. NCMNS is a division of the state Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.^[1]

Museum in Raleigh, North Carolina. The North Carolina Museum of Art is an art museum in Raleigh, North Carolina. It opened in 1956 as the first major museum collection in the country to be formed by state legislation and funding. Since the initial 1947 appropriation that established its collection, the Museum has continued to be a model of enlightened public policy with free admission to the permanent collection. Today, it encompasses a collection that spans more than 5,000 years of artistic work from antiquity to the present, an amphitheater for outdoor performances, and a variety of celebrated exhibitions and public programs. The Museum features over 40 galleries as well as more than a dozen major works of art in the nation's largest museum park with 164-acres. One of the leading art museums in the American South, the NCMA recently completed a major expansion winning international acclaim for innovative approaches to energy-efficient design.^[6]

Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. PNC Arena is an indoor arena located in Raleigh, North Carolina. The arena seats 18,680 for ice hockey and 19,722 for basketball, including 61 suites, 13 loge boxes and 2,000 club seats. The building has three concourses and a 300-seat restaurant.

PNC Arena is home to the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League and the NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team of NCAA Division I. The arena neighbors Carter–Finley Stadium, home of Wolfpack Football; the North Carolina State Fairgrounds and Dorton Arena (on the Fairgrounds). The arena also hosted the Carolina Cobras of the Arena Football League from 2000 to 2002. It is the fourth-largest arena in the ACC (after the Carrier Dome, KFC Yum! Center and the Dean Smith Center) and the eighth-largest arena in the NCAA.^[7]

Museum in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Joel Lane House, also known as Wakefield, was built in 1769 and is now a restored historic home and museum in Raleigh, North Carolina. It is the oldest dwelling in Wake County and contains collections of 18th century artifacts and period furnishings. The museum grounds include a detached middle-class home built circa 1790, a formal city garden, and a period herb garden. The house is named after Joel Lane, the "Father of Raleigh" and "Father of Wake County."

In the late 1760s, Lane settled at Wake Cross Roads located in colonial Johnston County. Lane and his house played a key role in North Carolina's transition from colony to state and in the establishment of Raleigh as the state capital. Joel Lane's plantation manor stood on a small hill overlooking the future site of Raleigh. Lane owned thousands of acres, which enabled him to be influential in politics.

Lane was a member of the colonial General Assembly, and successfully lobbied to create Wake County in 1770, which was, at the time, a sparsely-settled wilderness. The county was named "Wake" in honor of Margaret Wake, wife of colonial Governor William Tryon. In 1771, Wake County's first county court is believed to have convened at his home. Lane was appointed a member of the court, a position he held until his death. During the Revolutionary War, Wake Cross Roads was the site of important government meetings, both formal and informal. In 1776, Lane hosted the colony Council of Safety; the following year, he obtained a license for a small inn. From May to June 1781, Lane's property was the setting for a session of the state General Assembly. Lane served in the state Senate in 11 of the 14 sessions from 1782 to 1794. He was also a delegate to the 1789 convention in Halifax that ratified the United States Constitution.

Lane was directly involved in the decision to locate the permanent capital of the state in Wake County. In 1792, the legislature authorized the purchase of 1,000 acres (4 km2) of his land upon which to establish the city of "Raleigh" as the new center of state government. The community's western boundary was drawn just east of Lane's house, and a street of the city was named in his honor. After Lane's death in 1795, Lane's house served several owners before being purchased by businessman William Boylan in 1818. The house, along with Montfort Hall, remained in the Boylan family until 1909. During this time, the city of Raleigh absorbed the house into its expanding boundaries. Lane's former plantation became the site of new streets, homes and businesses. In 1911, the house was moved a short distance. In 1927, Lane's house was purchased by the National Society of Colonial Dames of America in the State of North Carolina to ensure its preservation. The organization continues to operate this Raleigh Historic Landmark as a house museum.

In 2019, to celebrate the house's 250th anniversary, a restoration team removed 26 layers of paint in order to repair the damaged wood underneath. The house was then repainted to match its original color of garnet red.^[10]

Amusement park in Raleigh, North Carolina. Pullen Park is a 66.4-acre public park immediately west of downtown Raleigh, North Carolina. It is located on Ashe Avenue and is adjacent to the Main and Centennial campuses of North Carolina State University, covering an area between Western Boulevard and historic Hillsborough Street. Founded in 1887, Pullen Park is the oldest public park in North Carolina.

The park features picnic areas, a concessions stand along with several small rides including the Pullen Park Carousel, train, and kiddie boats. Pedal boats are also available for rent seasonally on the park's small lake. The Pullen Aquatic Center, Pullen Arts Center and Theatre in the Park are also located on the park grounds. It is one of the most famous and well-known parks in the Research Triangle region.

The East Coast Greenway, a 3,000 mile long system of trails connecting Maine to Florida, runs through Pullen Park.^[11]

Auditorium in Raleigh, North Carolina. Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts is the main venue for the performing arts in Raleigh, North Carolina.

The naming rights to the center currently are held by Duke Energy (formerly Progress Energy), which purchased them from the city in 2005 for a 20-year term at the cost of $7.5 million. The original naming rights previously were held by Business Telecom, Inc. (now EarthLink)), and the facility was known as the BTI Center for the Performing Arts from 1997-2005. BTI Owner Peter Loftin donated $3.1 million to the center in 1999, matching BTI's earlier donation.

The center consists of:

• Raleigh Memorial Auditorium (opened 1932, renovated 1990)
• Meymandi Concert Hall (opened 2001)
• A. J. Fletcher Opera Theater (opened 2001)
• Kennedy Theater (opened 2001)
• Lichtin Plaza (opened 2001)

Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina. William Neal Reynolds Coliseum is a multi-purpose arena located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States, on the campus of North Carolina State University. The arena was built to host a variety of events, including agricultural expositions and NC State basketball games. It is now home to all services of ROTC and several Wolfpack teams, including women's basketball, women's volleyball, women's gymnastics, and men's wrestling. The university named the court in Reynolds "Kay Yow Court" on February 16, 2007 with the assistance of a substantial donation from the Wolfpack Club. That same night, the Wolfpack women upset #2 North Carolina, just two weeks after the men upset #3 North Carolina at the PNC Arena.^[17]

Museum in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Mordecai House, built in 1785, is a registered historical landmark and museum in Raleigh, North Carolina that is the centerpiece of Mordecai Historic Park, adjacent to the Historic Oakwood neighborhood. It is the oldest residence in Raleigh on its original foundation. In addition to the house, the Park includes the birthplace and childhood home of President Andrew Johnson, the Ellen Mordecai Garden, the Badger-Iredell Law Office, Allen Kitchen and St. Mark's Chapel, a popular site for weddings. It is located in the Mordecai Place Historic District.

The oldest portion of the house was built by Joel Lane for his son, Henry. At one time, the plantation house was the center of a 5,000-acre (20 km2) plantation, one of the largest in Wake County. Lane is considered a founder of Raleigh, as 1,000 acres was sold from his plantation as the site of the city.

The house was named after Moses Mordecai, whose first wife, Margaret Lane, had inherited it from her father Henry. After she died, Mordecai married her sister Ann Lane. In 1824, Mordecai hired William Nichols, State Architect at the time, to enlarge the house. The addition was considered a significant work of Nichols, who had also been responsible for remodeling the original building containing the State House. With the addition of the four new rooms in 1826, the Mordecai house was transformed into a Greek Revival mansion.

The Mordecai family, descended from immigrant grandfather Moses Mordecai (1707–1781) of Bonn, Germany, became one of the original three hundred Jewish families in the United States and one of the few of Ashkenazic Jewish descent. The family members were prominent in local and state affairs. Jacob Mordecai, Moses' father, founded a girls' school in Warrenton, North Carolina. A prominent lawyer, Moses Mordecai was a member of the 1805 Court of Conference. With his first wife Margaret, Moses Mordecai had two sons, Henry and Jacob, and one daughter, Ellen. He and his second wife Ann had a daughter, named Margaret after his late wife, Ann's sister. Henry Mordecai became a prosperous planter at Mordecai House and was elected to the State Legislature. The family were also prominent slave owners, and many slaves, both those who worked in the home and those who worked the fields, lived on the former plantation. The State Historic site narrates the stories of both the free and enslaved residents, including moving testimonials from three former slaves. His daughter Margaret Mordecai married and inherited the mansion; her descendants owned and occupied Mordecai House until 1967.

During the 19th and early 20th centuries, the Mordecai family sold off land, which was subdivided for the continuing expansion of Raleigh. In 1867, George Washington Mordecai donated land east of the city to establish a Confederate cemetery; he donated another plot for Wake County's first Hebrew Cemetery. (The adjacent Oakwood Cemetery, chartered in 1869, became the namesake of the large suburb that developed in the adjoining wooded land, which was earlier known as Mordecai Grove. In 1974, Oakwood became the first neighborhood in Raleigh to be listed in the National Register of Historic Places.)

Mordecai descendants owned the mansion property until 1967, when the house and its surrounding block were put on the market. Local preservationists protested and the city purchased the property, turning it over to the Raleigh Historic Sites Commission to supervise and develop as a historic park. The commission was able to obtain many original Mordecai furnishings, as well as preserve the family papers and library. Mordecai Historic Park is now managed by the City of Raleigh's Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Department. The Mordecai House is a designated Raleigh Historic Landmark. Mordecai House was featured in a season two episode of Ghost Hunters in which the TAPS team investigated claims of paranormal activity. Mordecai Historic Park has an exclusive paranormal research team since 2017, The Ghost Guild Inc. a registered nonprofit organization that investigates the house and its surrounding buildings at least three times per year. They present their findings at the annual Haunted Mordecai Festival in October.^[21]

Park in Raleigh, North Carolina. Historic Oak View, also known as the Williams-Wyatt-Poole Farm, is a 19th-century historic farmstead and national historic district located east of downtown Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded as a forced-labor farm worked by black people enslaved by the land's white owners, Oak View features an early 19th-century kitchen, 1855 farmhouse, livestock barn, cotton gin barn, and tenant house dating to the early 20th century. The Farm History Center located on site provides information to visitors regarding the history of the Oak View and the general history of farming in North Carolina. Aside from the historic buildings, the site also features an orchard, a honey bee hive, a small cotton field, and the largest pecan grove in Wake County.^[22]

Presbyterian church in Raleigh, North Carolina. First Presbyterian Church is a historic Presbyterian church located at the corner of Morgan and Salisbury Streets in downtown Raleigh, Wake County, North Carolina.

The church was established in a meeting of Presbyterians at the North Carolina State House (predecessor of the North Carolina State Capitol) on Jan. 21, 1816. The congregation purchased land at the present location and erected a brick church building that opened its doors on February 7, 1818. The church served as the site for the State Constitutional Convention of 1835 and as the meeting place for the North Carolina Supreme Court for several years.

That original structure was torn down and a new church building completed in 1900. It was designed in the Romanesque Revival style. The initial design was by architect A.G. Bauer, but Bauer's health problems caused the project to be turned over to architects Charles E. Cassell and Charles Pearson. The sanctuary has been extensively remodeled twice, in 1955 and 2012.^[26]

Live music venue in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Red Hat Amphitheater is an amphitheatre in Raleigh, North Carolina. It is adjacent to the Raleigh Convention Center.

The Raleigh Amphitheater books acts through an agreement with Live Nation, and is owned and operated by the City of Raleigh. The Amphitheater’s season currently runs from April through October. Capacity is 5,990: 1,800 fixed seats; 2,700 movable seats; and lawn space for 1,000.

The venue's name has changed several times during its construction and first few months of operation. Plans to accept $300,000 from the local Budweiser distributor to name the venue the Bud Light Amphitheater fell through when the North Carolina Alcohol Control Board refused to grant an exception to rules which disallow naming rights for public facilities to be sold to alcohol manufacturers. On September 4, 2012 Red Hat struck a deal with the City of Raleigh for naming rights to the amphitheater. The company paid the city $1.175 million for the deal.^[28]

Cemetery in Raleigh, North Carolina. The City Cemetery of Raleigh, also known as Old City Cemetery, was authorized in 1798 by the North Carolina General Assembly as Raleigh's first burying ground. It was laid out on 4 acres of land just outside the original 1792 eastern boundary of Raleigh and bounded by East Street on the west, East Hargett Street on the south, and Morgan Street on the north. It was originally laid out in four equal quarters with the northern two quarters reserved for residents, the southwestern for visitors, and the southeastern for Negroes, both free and slaves. Over time, the cemetery has gradually been enlarged toward New Bern Street in 1819, 1849, and 1856 and now contains approximately 7.5 acres. The cemetery was enclosed in 1898 by a cast-iron fence that was formerly around Union Square to keep straying livestock out of the State Capitol grounds. A network of cobblestone driveways with granite curbstones run through the cemetery. In 1857, the city boundaries were extended to include the cemetery, and the city charter provided for a resident caretaker. Many persons of Raleigh's and North Carolina's early period are interred at City Cemetery including governors, mayors, politicians, newspaper editors, military officers, ministers, doctors, planters, attorneys, bankers, and Scottish and English stonemasons who helped build the Capitol.

City Cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on 12 September 2008.^[31]

Cloud Chamber for the Trees and Sky is a site specific outdoor artwork by Chris Drury. It was commissioned by North Carolina Museum of Art in 2003 made possible by the Robert F. Phifer Bequest and located in the 146 acre museum park adjacent to the museum known as the Ann and Jim Goodnight Museum Park at state capital Raleigh. The artwork is situated in woodland with other large sculptures and is accessed along a woodland path.

The chamber itself is a round building built of stone, wood, and turf approximately 12 feet in diameter (3.66 metres) with a single door to admit the viewer. It is light-tight when its door is closed, except for one small, round opening in its roof which allows the building to act as a camera obscura. Images of the sun, clouds, and trees are projected onto the smooth white walls of the interior of the chamber. Classed as a public artwork, there is no admission charge to the park.^[32]