Historical Society Luncheon & Learn | NC Maritime Museum System | John Moseley | Jan 8, 2026

Luncheon Lecture
Jan 8, 2026 11:00 AM

The Historical Society of Topsail Island invites you to a great Luncheon Lecture. To begin with, this event features the NC Maritime Museum System. Mainly, it tells the story of our local coast.

Historical Society Speaker: John Moseley

John Moseley is the head of teaching for the North Carolina Maritime Museum at Southport. He grew up in Florida and finished at The Citadel in 1989. Later, he went to school at UNC Greensboro for his master’s degree. While there, he won a top award for history in 2003. He finished his studies in 2005. His work focused on early American history.

After school, John taught in middle and high schools. In fact, he taught about the U.S. History and the Constitution. In 2011, he joined the Fort Fisher State site. There, he led school programs and trained workers. He also taught folks about old tools and arms. In 2022, he moved to the State Museum in Southport. Today, he helps the community learn about our past.

Historical Society Project: The Camp Davis Marker

John hit a big goal in 2019. At that time, he asked for a new road sign to honor the brave women pilots at Camp Davis. So, in 2021, the town put up this sign in Holly Ridge. This sign tells a rare World War II story. Also, John still studies local war heroes today.

Register with the Historical Society by Monday Jan 5th 8:00pm

Save the date: January 8, 2026.

Also, ask the Historical Society to join the email list.

From the Website:

Maritime Museum History

Three North Carolina Maritime Museums save our coast’s past. In fact, they tell of sea life, pirates, and shipwrecks. Each site is unique and has free entry. Moreover, the public can join fun programs all year. Therefore, gifts of money help keep these sites open.

This museum system began in 1904. At first, it was just a small group of items on Pivers Island. But, it grew into the current museum by 1984. Shortly thereafter, the state added a boat center in 1992.

In 1997, the state culture group took over. Also, the museum grew in 1999 to include Roanoke and Southport.

Now, the system has three main spots. These are the museums in Hatteras, Beaufort, and Southport. Today, they are part of the State of North Carolina.

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