Julia Brick established the Bricks Junior College in 1895 through a gift of land and endowment to the American Missionary Association
Physical Address:
281 Bricks Lane Whitakers, NC 27891 Hours of Operation Tuesday-Thursday 10:00am to 3:00pm *Tours available by appointment only to schedule an appointment call us at (800) 345-1850 |
Why visit the Bricks Museum?
Nestled in rural Whitakers, N.C., Franklinton Center at Bricks is a former slave plantation that was transformed into one of the first accredited schools for African Americans in the South. Today, it is a retreat center with a public museum and library focusing on social justice advocacy and leadership development. Franklinton Center also serves the local community through various partner projects, including food justice and literacy outreach and programming. The Bricks Museum and Library host a walking tours with reminders of the past: two buildings from the original school still exist, as does a magnolia tree that marks where a plantation whipping post once stood. The Bricks Museum at Memorial Hall offers a collection of historical documents that include photographs, paintings, artifacts, journals, and materials from the many lives of the site, including an early 20th-century post office and various schools
National Museum Trends and Research
Research finds museums increase visitors and improve economics. There are approximately 850 million visits each year to American museums, more than the attendance for all major league sporting events and theme parks combined (483 million in 2011). By 2006, museums already received an additional 524 million online visits a year just from adults, a number that continues to grow (Institute of Museums and Library Services study, cited from http://www.aam-us.org).
Museums employ more than 400,000 Americans and directly contribute $21 billion to the U.S. economy each year (AAM Financial Information Survey). Seventy-eight percent of all U.S. leisure travelers participate in cultural or heritage activities such as visiting museums. These travelers spend 63 percent more on average than other leisure travelers (U.S. Travel Association). The nonprofit arts and culture industry annually generates over $135 billion in economic activity, supports more than 4.1 million full-time jobs and returns over $22 billion in local, state and federal tax revenues (U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Economic Analysis, Arts and Cultural Production). Museums are committed to ensuring that Americans of all backgrounds have access to high-quality museum experiences, regardless of an individual's ability to pay or to traditionally access a museum. In 2012, 37% of museums were free at all times or had suggested admission fees only; nearly all the rest offered discounts or free admission days (American Alliance of Museums ‘Annual Condition of Museums and the Economy’ study , 2013). Museums are considered a more reliable source of historical information than books, teachers or even personal accounts by relatives (Indiana University study, cited from http://www.aam-us.org
The Tri-County Demand for the Bricks Museum
A 2007 study supported by the North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center entitled Arts, Culture, and Design in Rural North Carolina found arts related programs likes museums are deeply rooted in the cultural history of rural communities and have found to be more sustainable than industry (2007 p.42). The North Carolina Museums Council reports there are seven museums in Nash County, four museums in Halifax County and only one Museum in Edgecombe.
Research finds museums increase visitors and improve economics. There are approximately 850 million visits each year to American museums, more than the attendance for all major league sporting events and theme parks combined (483 million in 2011). By 2006, museums already received an additional 524 million online visits a year just from adults, a number that continues to grow (Institute of Museums and Library Services study, cited from http://www.aam-us.org).
Museums employ more than 400,000 Americans and directly contribute $21 billion to the U.S. economy each year (AAM Financial Information Survey). Seventy-eight percent of all U.S. leisure travelers participate in cultural or heritage activities such as visiting museums. These travelers spend 63 percent more on average than other leisure travelers (U.S. Travel Association). The nonprofit arts and culture industry annually generates over $135 billion in economic activity, supports more than 4.1 million full-time jobs and returns over $22 billion in local, state and federal tax revenues (U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Economic Analysis, Arts and Cultural Production). Museums are committed to ensuring that Americans of all backgrounds have access to high-quality museum experiences, regardless of an individual's ability to pay or to traditionally access a museum. In 2012, 37% of museums were free at all times or had suggested admission fees only; nearly all the rest offered discounts or free admission days (American Alliance of Museums ‘Annual Condition of Museums and the Economy’ study , 2013). Museums are considered a more reliable source of historical information than books, teachers or even personal accounts by relatives (Indiana University study, cited from http://www.aam-us.org
The Tri-County Demand for the Bricks Museum
A 2007 study supported by the North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center entitled Arts, Culture, and Design in Rural North Carolina found arts related programs likes museums are deeply rooted in the cultural history of rural communities and have found to be more sustainable than industry (2007 p.42). The North Carolina Museums Council reports there are seven museums in Nash County, four museums in Halifax County and only one Museum in Edgecombe.