Located in the historic Attmore-Oliver House, the New Bern Historical Society is dedicated to preserving the history of the community and its people. The organization offers tours of the home, educational programs and maintains a portion of the New Bern Battlefield Park which is located a few miles southeast of the town (the New Bern battle occurred in the area on March 14, 1862). The first floor of the house is open for tours and features period furnishings, interpretive displays, a room dedicated to Civil War history, and other historic items. The property is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Originally constructed in 1790, this historic New Bern house has served as a historical museum since 1953. The home was constructed for the family of Revolutionary War officer Samuel Chapman and was acquired and enlarged around the time the property was acquired by merchant Isaac Taylor in 1834. The home serves as the headquarters of the New Bern Historical Society and several of the rooms include period furniture and other artifacts from the colonial period and Civil War era. The home is open and available for self-guided tours, and the historical society recommends that visitors call in advance.
Dating back to the early years of the American republic, the Attmore-Oliver House is one of the oldest remaining houses in North Carolina. The structure has been home to military officers, merchants, and leading families and has also withstood battles and occupation in the Civil War. The home was expanded in 1834 and passed through many of the leading families of the city including veterans of the American Revolution and Civil War.
Hannah Attmore Oliver inherited the property at the time of the Civil War. Her husband and her three brothers joined the Confederacy and her husband William Oliver was a Confederate quartermaster. The youngest of the three Attmore brothers, George Attmore, was only 13 at the time of war but fought at Gettysburg, Spotsylvania Court House, Cold Harbor, and Petersburg. He also was present at Appomattox when General Robert E. Lee surrendered. G
William Attmore and Hannah Attmore-Oliver gave this house to their eldest daughter who was the last person to reside in the house. In 1951, she willed the property to her three nephews and they sold it to the New Bern Historical Society in 1953. The first floor of this historic building includes several exhibits drawn from the organization's collections, including artifacts from the late 18th century and the Civil War.