Start your day at Historic Stagville, once one of the largest plantations in the South. This site explores both the stories of the plantation owners and the lives led by its enslaved people. At one point, the family owned almost 900 slaves and 30,000 acres of land. Visitors can see the fingerprints of slaves on the bricks of their family homes.

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In December 2007, TLC acquired 92 acres that was added to the Stagville State Historic Site. In addition to their historical significance, this land protects high quality streams at the headwaters of Falls Lake. This project is part of a larger conservation initiative in northern Durham, where TLC has conserved more than 1,350 acres with multiple landowners. Much of this conservation is on the Flat and Little rivers just before they drain into Falls Lake, the drinking water resource for more than 300,000 people in the region.

While at Stagville, take time to tour the late 18th-century Bennehan family plantation home, the two-story enslaved family dwellings, a pre-Revolutionary War yeoman farmer’s home and a massive timber framed barn known as the Great Barn.

Catch Orange Factory Road to head back toward the City of Durham. Part of the North Durham Country Scenic Byway, this road takes you past several historic homes including Southerland House, Cox House, Holt House and the site of the village of Orange Factory. To find more information about these places, refer to this Driving Tour website. 

Now we offer a couple choices. If you are hungry, we suggest heading down Roxboro Road to the Braggtown neighborhood for a Mexican treat at one of the renowned taquerias. Los Comales and Super Taqueria were both featured in Gourmet magazine. Or if you would like to have a little more activity before lunch, either drop by the Museum of Life and Science or head to West Point on the Eno Park for a hike and to visit the mill and other historic structures.

End your adventure at Duke Homestead and Tobacco Museum. Duke Homestead is the home of Washington Duke, progenitor of the Duke family fortune and the godfather of North Carolina’s world-wide tobacco empire. Returning from service during the Civil War, Duke found Union soldiers eagerly sampling his Brightleaf Tobacco. This discovery led him to market his product, and his endeavor eventually became the American Tobacco Company, at one time the largest tobacco company in the world. The museum tells the history of the “golden weed” while the homestead provides a living landscape of where this story began.

Best time to visit: Anytime!

Photo by Ty Rhudy