New Bern Tours & Convention Services

06/10/2026

Fun Fact Series on Christoph von Graffenried, 1st Baron of Bernberg
Founder of New Bern, NC

In September, 1711, Graffenried was kidnapped by the Tuscarora along with John Lawson, who was executed by the Chief of the tribe. In negotiations with Indian tribes on Virginia's border, Lieutenant Governor Alexander Spotswood of Virginia interceded on behalf of Von Graffenried and demanded his release. Von Graffenried was freed after six weeks of captivity.

When he finally reached New Bern, Graffenried found it abandoned and in flames. On September 22, 1711, while Graffenried was held captive, the Tuscarora and their allies had attacked white settlers in the region. The conflict became known as the Tuscarora War. Sixty Swiss and Palatines in New Bern and the surrounding area were killed and fifteen taken captive. The survivors fled New Bern and sought shelter at a fort built by plantation owner William Brice [yes, Brices Creek is named for him].

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06/07/2026

One of these homes had the first interior oven in the colony, one hosted Babe Ruth for an overnight stay, and the other had the first interior gas lighting.

Fun facts, history, and the beauty of our historic district are all a part of our 90 minute trolley tour. Book a tour today to learn more about the incredible history of our great town!

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06/05/2026

What an exciting piece of history!

“Blackbeard’s House”…Reincarnated!?

We were amazed to see this building design illustration posted at the SE corner of Po***ck and East Front Street!

Affectionately known as “Blackbeard’s House,” the Simpson-Oaksmith House was constructed at this corner circa 1845 and was demolished in 1974. It served as a provost marshal’s office and guard house during the civil war. In the late 1880s, the house was purchased by a most eccentric man, Appleton Oaksmith. Oaksmith went to extreme measures to ensure it reflected his eccentric personality. He added dormers, balconies, pinnacles, a tower, and even faces of a dog, a human, and even a griffin just to keep onlookers confused. In 1888, it was described as the “greatest architectural curiosity in the South!” Many locals will remember it as “Blackbeard’s House,” although there is no true connection to the famed pirate. We’ve even heard fascinating tales of tunnels that existed underneath the home allowing secret access to and from Neuse River…. who knows, maybe that is in the current design plan? See our postcard image and the design plan in our comments below.

It’s always nice to see a “tip of the cap” to our local history when new projects take place!
Brian North WCTI

06/04/2026

Fun Fact Series on Christoph von Graffenried, 1st Baron of Bernberg
Founder of New Bern, NC

Von Graffenried was born on 15 November 1661 in the village of Worb near Bern, Switzerland. He was the son of Anton von Graffenried and Catherine Jenner. His father was lord of Worb and a minor government official. Christoph studied at the universities in Heidelberg and Leyden and then visited England around 1680. While in England he came to know John Colleton and other Lords Proprietors of Carolina. In 1683 he returned home and on 25 April 1684 he married Regina Tscharner, with whom he had thirteen children.

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06/03/2026

Fun Fact Series on Christoph von Graffenried, 1st Baron of Bernberg
Founder of New Bern, NC

The town had been ravaged during an attack by the Tuscarora tribe. with many deaths as a result. During the winter of 1711–1712, Graffenried and the remaining loyal settlers barricaded themselves in the town of New Bern and made plans to move their settlement to Virginia. When supplies ran low, Graffenried went to Albemarle County and obtained a shipload of corn, gunpowder and other provisions. Unfortunately, the ship caught fire on the voyage back to New Bern and the supplies were lost. In the spring of 1712, Graffenried traveled to Virginia to scout for a new settlement site around the falls of Potomac.

Graffenreid lost popularity among the settlers because he refused to seek revenge for the attacks leveled by the Tuscarora. He tried for a while longer to find some way of reviving his colonial venture but his investors had lost faith in him and creditors were threatening to have him arrested and thrown into debtors' prison. On Easter, 1713, he sailed for England, after mortgaging all the company landholdings to Thomas Po***ck of Chowan County. He returned to Switzerland in 1714.

Late in 1714 Graffenried returned to Worb bankrupt and broken in spirit. It was several days before he could bring himself to face his father who had been critical of his efforts from the start. Perhaps in an effort to defend himself from critics, Graffenried soon wrote a manuscript entitled Relation of My American Project, detailing his exploits in America. He wrote at least three versions, one in German and two in French.

Photo: Memorial window in Worb Church

NewBernTours.com

06/02/2026

Fun Fact Series on Christoph von Graffenried, 1st Baron of Bernberg
Founder of New Bern, NC

In January, 1710, Von Graffenried sent 650 Palatine settlers to Carolina under the leadership of John Lawson. Lawson was knowledgeable of the country and promised to guide the settlers to the best sites for their communities. Their voyage was hindered by a series of winter storms and it was thirteen weeks before they landed in Virginia and then proceeded overland to Carolina. Hardship and disease took a heavy toll on the group and half of the original 650 colonists died before reaching their destination.

In July, Von Graffenried sailed with a contingent of about 150 Swiss colonists. Their crossing was relatively uneventful and after landing at Hampton, Virginia, in September, he joined Michel and Lawson in the Neuse-Trent area. He quickly laid out a town at the fork of the Trent and Neuse Rivers and christened it New Bern. When a local tribe complained that the land belonged to them, Graffenried negotiated a settlement and purchased the site of the new town from the tribe. The craftsmen in the group were assigned to the town while the farmers were given 250-acre plots in the outlying areas up the Trent River.

06/01/2026

Gabriel J. Rains (1803-1881)
George W. Rains (1817-1898)

The boyhood home of the Rains brothers stands on Front Street. These New Bern-born brothers followed remarkably similar career paths, each contributing significantly to the Confederate war effort through his explosives expertise. Born to cabinetmaker Gabriel Rains and his wife Hester, both brothers attended New Bern Academy and West Point.

This ‘Sub-Terra Shell’ or time bomb was used to horrific effect during the civil war. The employment of land mines early in the war outraged military men on both sides, who viewed it as a particularly horrendous, inhuman form of warfare.

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05/29/2026

In 1819 George Po***ck, residing in the Coor-Bishop House, is said to have entertained President James Monroe and Secretary of War John C. Calhoun. Discover more interesting tidbits on the trolley tour. Reserve your seat online at www.NewBernTours.com

05/27/2026

In the late 1800's Francis Duffy bought the Lehman-Duffy House for $4,500, a sum much greater than the $2,000 the Lehmans had paid for the house two years earlier.

Learn more about New Bern's history on the trolley tour.

www.NewBernTours.com

05/26/2026

Did you know?

Eastern North Carolina has several ferrys in service, but the first ferry was right here in New Bern and it led to Bath.

The original ferry would have looked something like this one that ran on the Yadkin River.

Today, ferry service is largely a function of the North Carolina Department of Transportation. The state agency operates the second largest state-run ferry system in the country, the largest on the east coast. The state system of 21 vessels operating on 7 distinct routes – primarily on the waters of our broad coastal sounds – carries an estimated 2 million passengers annually.

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