Museum hosts Pioneer Night, July 21: Do you have what it takes to survive?

For immediate release ‐ June 30, 2016

Contact: Emelia Cowans, 919.707.9837. Images available upon request

RALEIGH — Can you  imagine a world without cell phones, the internet or electronics? Could you survive off the land if you had to? Could you navigate without your GPS or make fire to stay warm? You might be surprised to find out just how skilled at survival you really are. On Thursday, July 21 from 6 to 8 p.m. join survival experts, tool smiths and historians for Pioneer Night at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences’ Nature Research Center.

At Pioneer Night, visitors can learn survival skills through hands-on activities, games and more. Highlights include rope-making, wilderness canoe survival, making clothing from leather and cloth, and snake identification. Visitors can also test their knowledge about hypothermia, weather conditions and the various diseases early colonists faced from the 1600s through the 1800s, or try their hand at identifying flora and fauna. Visitors will receive a “passport” upon arrival and will have the chance to win a variety of items, including snakeskins, laminated poison ivy and 3D-printed models of artifacts uncovered in Jamestown.

In addition, the NC Museum of History, NC Commission on Indian Affairs, NC Wildlife Resources Commission, NC State Parks and the Great Outdoor Provision Company have partnered for this event.

Pioneer Night complements the Museum’s current featured exhibition “American Adventure,” a highly interactive maze that takes visitors on an immersive, educational role-playing adventure that asks people to conquer one great challenge: survive a year as one of the original colonists of the first permanent English settlement — Jamestown in 1607.

Tickets to Pioneer Night can be purchased online at http://naturalsciences.org/pioneernight or at the Box Office for $10/person; $5 for Friends of the Museum. The ticket price includes admission to “American Adventure” to be used at a later date. For more information about Pioneer Night, contact Debbie Huston, Scheduling Coordinator, at 919.707.9840 or via email at debbie.huston@naturalsciences.org.


The North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences (11 W. Jones St. and 121 W. Jones St.) in downtown Raleigh is an active research institution that engages visitors of every age and stage of learning in the wonders of science and the natural world, drawing them into the intriguing fields of study that are critical to the future of North Carolina. Hours: Mon.- Sat., 9 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sun., noon-5 p.m. Visit the Museum online at www.naturalsciences.org. Emlyn Koster, PhD, Museum Director; Susan Kluttz, Secretary, N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources; Pat McCrory, Governor.

The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (NCDNCR) is the state agency with a vision to be the leader in using the state’s natural and cultural resources to build the social, cultural, educational and economic future of North Carolina. Led by Secretary Susan Kluttz, NCDNCR’s mission is to improve the quality of life in our state by creating opportunities to experience excellence in the arts, history, libraries and nature in North Carolina by stimulating learning, inspiring creativity, preserving the state’s history, conserving the state’s natural heritage, encouraging recreation and cultural tourism, and promoting economic development. NCDNCR includes 27 historic sites, seven history museums, two art museums, two science museums, three aquariums and Jennette’s Pier, 39 state parks and recreation areas, the N.C. Zoo, the nation’s first state-supported Symphony Orchestra, the State Library, the State Archives, the N.C. Arts Council, State Preservation Office and the Office of State Archaeology, along with the Division of Land and Water Stewardship. For more information, please call (919) 807-7300 or visit www.ncdcr.gov.

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