Southport Magazine

While it’s in our opinion the prettiest property in Brunswick County all of the time, fall is an especially great time to visit the Brunswick Town-Fort Anderson State Historic Site just off Route 133 at 8884 St. Philip’s Rd SE. Two of our favorite annual events are on the near horizon and well worth the drive to check out.

“There will be around 18 stations set up where people can walk the path outside, interact with the different interpreters, and ask questions,” said Assistant Site Manager Makayla Coley. 

On Saturday, Oct. 21 from 10 am to 4 pm, Brunswick Town will come alive as volunteers turn back the clock to show what the town would have been like in fall of 1767.

There’s even something  special for the children! “We will also have a ‘passport’ available for kids where they can go around and ask the interpreters questions. They write down the answer and bring their book back for a small prize,” Coley said. 

Stations will include such colonial-era activities and subjects as crime and punishment, colonial toys and games, naval stores, candles, indigo dying, blacksmithing, medicine, baking, wreath making, pottery, and maybe even a dentist. 

“It really is like stepping back in time,” Coley said. 

And then, on Nov. 4, the Saturday after Halloween, is our very most favorite event anywhere during the fall season, The Great Pumpkin Blowout! Beginning at 11 am and running util 4 pm, visitors can use a Civil War era detonator to blow up a pumpkin with black powder. You just have no idea until you do it how satisfying that is. 

The site will have limited supply of pumpkins for sale, but it’s best to bring your own, whether it’s a jack-o-lantern from Halloween or a new, pristine pumpkin bought just for the explosive fun. For just a $10 donation per pumpkin, you’ll get to wind a little handle to charge the detonator then push the button that blows your gourd to smithereens. 

Coley has some advice for getting the best blowout pumpkin. “Pie Pumpkins that have not been carved. They have a nice little blast!”

You can pay your $10 fee onsite or buy a ticket for your pumpkin at https://friends-of-brunswick-townfort-anderson.square.site/upcoming-events