Southport Magazine

Sometimes we live in a place for so long that we take it for granted.  Southport is teeming with maritime lore and historical significance, but maybe its been a while since you took notice.  The City’s appeal to tourists, who come for the quaint shops, awesome seafood restaurants, and elegant historic homes, is no surprise.  The sleepy seaside community is so charming and quintessentially nautical that it’s a frequent setting for Hollywood films and television series.  Perhaps it’s time for a refresher course!  

The Southport Historical Society (SHS) has created several self-guided, themed walking tours of Southport that are now available on a mobile app called PocketSights.  Choose the one that appeals to your interests, your timeframe, and your walking stamina.  Whether you live in the area or are visiting our beautiful coastal town, we think it’s time for a tour.

Historical Tours Go Mobile

The Southport Historical Society has long maintained a comprehensive, self-guided tour called “Historic Southport.”  The popular tour is mapped out in a bright yellow brochure that’s available at the Visitor Center.

“We were looking for a way to make that tour available on mobile devices, not to replace the brochures but to cut back on the need for so much paper,” said Bob Surridge, Vice President of the Southport Historical Society. “The brochures fly out the door!”

Bob, who moved to Southport from Pennsylvania about 15 years ago, has been a volunteer with SHS for 10 years.  An avid history buff, he wrote a neat book called “Hominy Muffins and Oyster Pie,” recounting the life of 54 female parishioners from St. Phillips Episcopal Church, who all contributed to a parish cookbook in 1907.  (The book, which includes some amazing recipes, is available to purchase at the Visitor Center.)  During his research, Bob became acquainted with SHS and the rest was, well, history!  

A few years ago, Bob discovered a tourism app called “Pocket Sights” that was easy to work with and cost nothing but effort to use.  Based on the success of uploading the Historic Southport Tour, SHS began working with the City of Southport’s Tourism Department to create and install four new themed walking tours of Southport and one driving tour.  

PocketSights is a free mobile app that anyone can easily download onto their cell phone.  Once installed, you’ll have access to all the tours in your area, wherever you are in the country! At the start of each tour, you’ll see the distance, average walking time, and number of stops.  You can preview the tours by clicking on the “Places You’ll See” tab.  A detailed map shows each site marked with a star, with pictures to help you spot them.   Once you start the tour, click on the numbered sites to find historical descriptions and interesting stories.  (NOTE:  The cover page of each tour lists a mileage of 5.9 or 6 miles; ignore that!  Once you click to open the tour, the correct mileage will be displayed.)

I recently headed into Southport to try out a few of the tours myself, and boy did I learn a lot.  It’s a fun way to learn about local history while wandering around at your own pace.  

Memorial Monuments and Museums Tour (12 stops, 0.5miles)

This is the shortest of the walking tours, which is why I chose it as my first route. Not that I’m lazy, but I had picked the hottest day of the summer for my adventure!  Fortunately, the town’s beautiful live oaks provided shade along the way and the ever-present sea breeze was a blessing.  The route took me less than 45 minutes to walk, in sync with the time listed on the mobile app.   

Although I was familiar with most of the monuments, I appreciated the background information provided in the PocketSights tour.  I was grateful to learn more about the monument in the Old Smithfield Burying Ground dedicated to 10 river pilots who drowned in the Cape Fear River during the late 1800s.  I was moved by the quote engraved on this monument: “The winds and the Sea sing their requiem; and shall forever more.”

The streets on this walking tour are peaceful and shady, a nice reprieve from the bustle of Southport’s crowded business district in the summer.  It’s amazing how much more you see when you are on foot! I enjoyed viewing historical homes and lovely gardens that I would not have seen otherwise.    

There are three museums included in this tour; the Old Jail, the Maritime Museum, and the Fort Johnson Museum, which is like a time capsule from Southport’s past.  Add in plenty of time to explore these great places.

Fort Johnson Museum 

I will shamefully admit that although I’ve lived here for five years, I had never been in the Fort Johnson Museum.  What a pleasant surprise I was in for!  Established as a British fort in 1745, it was used for various military purposes and living quarters right up until 2005, when it was donated to the City.  There are many exhibits that cover the town’s military history, as well as an entire room dedicated to the movies and tv shows filmed in Southport, including “Crimes of the Heart” with Sissy Spacek, “The Secret Life of Bees,” “Safe Haven,” and “Dawson’s Creek.”  The day I visited, I had to wait to get in the film room.

“The film room is always the most popular, but I’ve never seen it this crowded before,” said John McDonald, a history buff who has been volunteering at the museum for two years.  “Could be the due to the tv show ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty.’  Some of the scenes were filmed in Southport.”  

Turns out, although the popular Amazon Prime series is set in a fictional Cape Cod town, most of footage is shot in the Southport and Wilmington areas.

The museum also has a fascinating display of Southport legend Robert Ruark, a gifted artist and successful writer.  Several of Ruark’s books were made into Hollywood movies.  The exhibit shows a glamorous life filled with big game hunting, beautiful women, and exotic travels. Looks like Southport had its own version of Ernest Hemingway!  

Other displays depict Southport’s influential African American citizens, its famous 4th of July celebration, its many local artists, and its maritime history.  Leaving with an armload of brochures, I vowed to take all my future houseguests to see this terrific little museum. 

Historic Southport Tour (27 stops, 5.3 miles): The next day I headed back to town early for the much longer “Historic Southport” tour.  This all-encompassing heritage tour begins with visits to Fort Johnson and the Maritime Museum, and continues with stops at several historic churches and homes.  You’ll also visit the Old Jail Museum, the Smithfield Burying Ground, and four City parks. Don’t miss the small but charming Kingsly Park at the end of E. Bay Street, where you have a terrific view of the old Quarantine Station in the Cape Fear River.  You’ll learn about the River Pilot’s Tower on Bay Street, where active river pilots are still headquartered, and the Indian Trail Tree in Keziah Park.

Honestly, I learned so many fascinating things on this tour!  Did you know that St. Philip’s Chapel on East More Street served as a Union hospital during the Civil War, or that the Masonic Hall on E. Nash Street was used as an Army/Navy club during WWI?  How about the fact that there is an Italian ghost who roams around the Brunswick Inn on East Bay Street?

The tour ends with stops in the Franklin Square Art Gallery, originally built as a school in 1904, and the Southport Baptist Church, built in 1871.  It’s a full day and you cover a lot of ground, so bring plenty of water, wear comfortable shoes, and think about breaking up this tour with lunch at one of the many great restaurants in town.

African American Heritage Tour (17 stops, 3.4 miles)

Interestingly, this tour begins at an empty lot on East Nash Street.  It was the original location of the Southport Police Department in 1974, when 33-year-old George McCracken was promoted to Chief of Police, making him one of the first black police chiefs in the state.  Despite unjustified concerns in other parts of the state and the country, McCracken’s appointment was not controversial to the people of Southport, who admired him for his hard-working, honest reputation.

The tour will lead you to several African American churches, schools and shops, including the famous Mr. Willie’s Ice Cream Parlor and Pool Hall, a popular hangout for 58 years until Willie’s retirement in 1958.  It’s worth the walk to see the Brunswick County Training School, built in 1924 as the only African American school that went above the eighth grade until 1950, now the home of Brunswick County Community College.  Nearby is a park at the corner of Clarendon and Owens Street named for Professor Alvin C. Caviness, who served as principal of the BCTS from 1932-1970 and was a beloved role model.  If you’re like me, you’ll want to hop in your car to see the last three stops on this tour: Brown’s Chapel AME Zion, one of the oldest AA congregations in Southport; Eugene Gore’s Flat Top Inn, a popular weekend nightclub for African Americans; and Jabbertown Road, the main street of Southport’s African American community after the Civil War, literally named after the women who were always jabbering outside in the street!

The tour ends at the John N. Smith Cemetery, established in 1880 as the only resting place for African Americans in Southport for more than 70 years. 

Historical Markers Tour (25 stops, 2.2 miles)

This tourtakes you to see all the historical markers, monuments and signs located throughout Southport’s historic district. While the majority are found along East Bay Street, there is a longish trek up to a marker for the Brunswick Training School and a nearby marker depicting the African American churches on Lord Street.  There’s no shame in driving to these sites if the walk is too much.  Another lengthy jog on the back end of this tour takes you to the Bonnet’s Creek marker, marking the site where the famous Gentlemen’s pirate, Stede Bonnet, had his hideout.  Evidently it was not a very good place to hide, as the marker explains a battle broke out there in 1718 and the pirate was captured and hung!

The Safe Haven Movie Location Tour (11 stops, 3.4 miles)

The beginning of this tour goes quickly, as most of the locations are in the business district and the Yacht Basin, but you’ll want a car or bike to visit The Longshoremen’s Association on West 10^th Street and The Southport Fort Fisher Ferry Station.  It’s fun, if you are a fan of the Nicholas Sparks book and movie, to see the house were Alex lived, the City Pier where Katie went to think, the restaurant where they had a romantic dinner, the shopping district where they strolled arm-in-arm.  Go ahead — relive the romance!

Cape Fear River Circle Tour (8 stops in this driving loop to Wilmington and back) 

Begin this day-long driving tour at the Fort Johnson Museum in Southport, then drive over to the ferry for a ride to Fort Fisher and the NC Aquarium.  Continue into Wilmington for a stroll along the scenic River Walk, then take a tour of the battleship USS North Carolina.  Begin heading back and stop in at historic Brunswick Town, a pre-revolutionary port town on the Cape Fear River that was destroyed by the British, and Fort Anderson, a Civil War era military base constructed on top of the old village site.  As you arrive back in Southport, your final stop will be the Maritime Museum, a highlight for anyone fascinated by pirates, shipwrecks, and storms.  

Become a Tourist in Your Own Backyard!

Whether you are visiting Southport for the first time, or have lived in the area for years, you’ll love learning about the history of this great maritime town through any one of the PocketSights self-guided tours.  The Southport Historical Society has done a tremendous job curating interesting facts and stories that bring the sites to life.  If you use the PocketSights phone app, don’t forget to leave a comment at the end of the tour.  It helps the SHS measure the app’s usage and popularity.

Note:  Several of the museums on these tours are closed on Sundays and most have limited hours in the off season, so be sure to plan accordingly.