The Bennett Place State Historic Site

Pros: Location of the end of the civil war.
Cons: N/​A

As a history teacher for 20 years, I have barely touched on Johnston’s surrender to Sherman, so visiting this location will help me to bring it to life for my students. Once the museum staff knew that I am a history teacher, they were gracious and helped me get the most of my visit, which lasted about 45 minutes. The museum is small, but gives a good overall view of the events leading to the surrender. The movie is good for adults, but children under high school age might not understand it. The buildings are recreations (original ones burned down) but gives a good representation of what things were like at the surrender. Private tours are offered by the staff and provide great information that this Civil War buff didn’t even know! Not good for young children, but high school history buffs might like it. More for adults, though.

This is an important part of history and it’s ignored in many popular histories.
It’s within quick driving distance of downtown Durham so we should all know about it.

Very nice historical civil war site. The museum tells the story of how the war impacted the family who owned the farm. The Bennett family’s losses were staggering. What the museum does not, thankfully, do is glorify the confederate cause.

Recently visited in honor of the 150^th anniversary of the historic surrender, and the unveiling of their revamped museum. Though small, the museum is well curated and informative. But we certainly got way more enjoyment out of the tour we attended; the guide was very knowledgeable and provided a fantastic balance of history and anecdote to not only relay the tale of Bennett Place, but also illustrate the yeoman farmer way of life and other tidbits of the era. The various cabins and storage spaces were open for viewing, with a few actors demonstrating how to operate the loom, load a rifle, and so on. I especially loved the two friendly horses grazing on site!
There appear to be some trails that snake through the property, however, a rainstorm cut our stay short so we didn’t get a chance to explore these. Recommended for a visit, but urge visitors to check the Events calendar and attend when there’s something being offered, as it makes for a much fuller experience.

As Civil War surrender sites go, Bennett Place is fantastic. Seriously, though — this is a well reconstructed site that pays homage to a small, but important aspect of the Civil War.
In response to an overly-​critical co-​reviewer, I would say that Bennett Place does a good job with what must be a shoestring budget. Sites like this aren’t economic engines (and will probably never be), but the exhibits tell its story honestly and without too much embellishment. What they lack in shizzle they make up for in earnestness.
Yes, it’s a farm. Lots of Civil War sites are farms. I’d rather an honest representation of a farm than the Civil War Disneyland nonsense that some of the larger sites have devolved into.

Something to do while you’re killing time to fly back home. Nothing spectacular.

As you walk through the grounds here, you can almost feel like the troops of the North and South are not far away. Amazing history took place here. Generals Sherman and Johnston came up the road in front of this cabin, went inside, and agreed to end the hostilities. Armaments were piled up and soldiers left to return to their homes, farms and businesses. Plenty of history in the Carolinas, and this is a very significant part of it.

I thought, for my first time in North Carolina, I’d stop by this historical place to check out the local sites. I seriously thought I’d just pop in for a quick look, but I was greeted by Keith, a serious history buff. This was true Southern hospitality. He told me the significance to the Bennett cabin and how the two generals, Confederate Gen. Joseph E. Johnston and Union Gen. William T. Sherman made a peace agreement, making it the largest troop surrender of the American Civil War. There’s a little museum with artifacts, a movie and you can get one of the guys to give you a tour. They know lots of historical facts that are quite interesting. like the saponification process. Keith truly loved his job and was excited to tell me about the random facts of history he knew, unbiased. He even bared the sweat as we toured the Bennetts’ cabin, kitchen and smoke area. The two pillars representing the North and South with the words unity across, is symbolic of the peace that was established there, and is quite picturesque. They also have a good collections of reading material and tourist information for other historical sights in NC. I think it’s worth checking it out.