The Raleigh Fire Museum is open once a month on the second Saturday of the month. It is well worth…read morea visit. The museum is a short drive from downtown Raleigh and admission is free. You can park in the road or in their small parking area. The staff are friendly and will answer any questions you have. The museum is only 900 sq feet but full of information about 150 years of firefighting in Raleigh. The museum is no touch because of the historic artifacts they are preserving. You can see jaws of life; a historic alarm bell from 1870; a hose cart are among some of the items you will see. The melted street signs and lights from the trucks as well as the melted helmet from the 2017 fire show just how dangerous firefighting can be and the destruction fire can cause. I liked that tribute was paid to fallen firefighters as well. There are even some artifacts from Ground Zero. Besides going into the museum you can get inside the fire trucks and get a chance to spray the fire hose. It was very hands on. Spraying the fire hose was an experience I will remember!

Inside the gates of the Raleigh Fire Training Center is a modular building housing the Raleigh Fire…read moreMuseum. It's an interesting tour through Raleigh's fire department history. The best part for me was having the opportunity to speak with firefighters and the intern volunteers who staff this museum. I meet people who enjoy what they do and can talk about it easily. However, firefighters take it to another level, I think. Their faces light up, their eyes have an intensity to them, and their voices are clear and strong. It's as though they have so much to tell you and only a short time to do so. It's a self-guided tour of the articles, pictures, stories, but there's always someone to answer questions. The firefighters and the intern who work here genuinely like talking about what they do. Every one of them. Ask them about the old equipment, they'll explain it in terms you can understand. Ask about what they use in place of the old equipment, and they'll tell you. Ask about their experiences and they'll walk you through an event. Ask about some of the old pictures of people, equipment, and buildings and they'll explain what you see and what probably happened. Ask about what it's like in a fire station in between calls, and they'll smile and tell you (but maybe not the entire story). Ask about how they approach a fire or what they look for, they'll explain it simply. I've never quite encountered anything like it. If you're here on the one day a month it's open (the second Saturday of every month), you may see some firefighters-to-be going through some exercises in the nearby buildings. One of the firefighters who works in the museum brings his own fire truck, one he restored himself. It's an nice opportunity to see how Raleigh's fire department has changed over the years, see some of the original equipment, and talk to a group of people who you otherwise never want to meet on the job.

The Wake Forest Town Hall was built in 2010. It is 44,000 square feet and features LEED Platinum…read morecertification. The building focused on energy conservation from lighting to HVAC to reused materials for the construction. The rotunda provides more natural lighting. Centennial Plaza is what you first see as you approach, and it features engraved bricks and a time capsule to be opened in 2059. Parking is available in front of Town Hall on Brooks Street or behind it on Taylor Street.

The Garner Police Department goes above and beyond for their community. Chief Deputy Copeland is…read morean honest and admirable man. Thank you!

Bottom line: Wake County Justice Center is a very nice government building inside. Clean, bright,…read moremodern, well maintained. Security goes fairly quickly and staff are positive. Note there is an on-site cafe to use if needed there. The Deets: Yes, I had received that summons to serve jury duty and asked to report to Wake County Justice Center for it. This review is mainly for the building and service there itself. The center is nice and bright, very clean and well maintained upon entering. The appearance is modern with official tone/classic governmental atmosphere along with it. There is security to go through upon entering and it is very TSA-like. The staff in security were nice and helpful, and the process did not take long. I found staff inside very helpful to ask if you needed any assistance in where you needed to go and areas were well marked. The area for jurors to go was nice, simple but well maintained with different types of chairs/desks/furniture to use and the process to get checked in for the day flowed well. Note there are not a lot of power outlets in the juror pool area, I found them in the seats in the far corners, just a heads up if needed. Of course, jury duty itself is, well, what jury duty is. There is an on-site cafe as well if you want to eat there, a nice touch for what can be a long day or days. Restroom facilities are near to the area and well maintained/clean. This county facility is a well cared for resource and I was pleasantly surprised at how nice it was inside.

This is the building where you'd go for traffic tickets. It gets confused a lot with the building…read moreacross the street. It is NOT the Wake County Courthouse. It is the Wake County Judicial Center. There are other several services here but the most popular is that traffic court is located within it. I am aware of this because I facilitate the driver improvement program which court now mandates for traffic violations. I have also helped students with interpretation from English to Spanish. The place is as secured as you'd expect, dont bring lighters or nail clippers. But the security there are always polite and courteous. There is parking on the street, which I recommend. The parking lots are a bit pricey but if you're running late, you may have to chose that option. You can pay on the street with an app, card or coins. Reach out if you ever need help with a traffic ticket.

This is a beautiful community center located downtown Raleigh that offers so much to the community…read morethey serve. We frequent the center for the city of Raleigh's Girls basketball league practices. The gym here is beautiful and the facility is immaculately clean. The desk staff is pleasant and welcoming. There is a historical carousel that I am in love with here. It's a beautiful touch if you're having an event. This center features a plethora of options to throw an event for a rental cost. They offer a reception hall, studio, carousel house, 2 multi purpose rooms, the gymnasium, and fields. The center offers a beautiful view of the city skyline at night. The park on the property is gorgeous and has a wonderful playground as well as walking trails.

SO MUCH FUN!!! My son loved it and so did I. I just wish it wasn't so far from us! Definitely worth…read morea drive if you're gonna spend a day there.

We've just moved here from the West Coast, and family came to visit. They love historical homes and…read morehistory, but all the ones online that are so beautiful I guess are closed now, which is really sad!! So we didn't have any hopes for this one BUT ladies were there and helped us get a tour the next day!!! They were all so sweet and great!! My parents were so impressed with the facts of the tour and our tour guide that we talked about it for hours afterwards!!! So if you love history and gorgeous homes, make sure you sign up for a tour!! You can also stay in the house if you're having your wedding there!

I got married at Haywood Hall & Gardens on 11/04/2017. We found Haywood Hall in July 2016 and…read moreimmediately fell in love! Greg, Haywood Hall's curator, is so helpful and can answer any question you might have about holding your wedding at the location. The grounds are beautiful and the house as the backdrop to the ceremony is unique. We spent about 16 months planning our wedding. Greg has lots of recommendations for outside vendors, as you need to bring everything, from tables and chairs, alcohol, food, cake, etc. in as none of this is provided by the venue. This gives you a lot of flexibility to plan your own wedding, but does require a lot of time and effort. Both the ceremony and reception sites are outdoor, so be wary of that because there is no flexible rain plan. It might not be the great choice for summer or winter, but mid-April through early June and mid-September through mid-November are perfect for holding a wedding. I've seen the springs blooms and we had peak fall colors the first week of November. Just an all-around unique piece of Raleigh that in my opinion is a great place to have your special day.

If you are curious about one of Raleigh's badasses, make sure to stop at the Fannie Heck historical…read moremarker, located outside of the Heck-Andrews House in Downtown Raleigh on Blount Street. She was a force of nature in North Carolina's history. Fannie Exile Scudder Heck was born during the Civil War in Virginia while her family was literally in "exile", fleeing from West Virginia. She carried that middle name as a badge of her family's resilience through the war. She changed the role of women's organizations in the south. She served as president of the Women's Missionary Union for 15 years. In 1900, she was a delegate to the first Ecumenical Conference in New York. She was a speaker at the Baptist World Alliance in 1911, representing Southern women on a global stage. She changed the way missionary work was thought of and changed the focus from religious teachings to social services. She wanted to help the sick, orphans and underprivileged members of the community. Under her leadership in North Carolina, the number of missionary societies grew from 14 to 1,200. Missionary work was a way for women to enter the male-dominated world of politics and get outside of the home and church. She used the WMU to create a "shadow" power structure. Her "missions" were a way to engage in social activism without the patriarchal gatekeepers. Besides helping the poor and sick, she built large, female-led bureaucratic machines that managed their own finances, published literature and directed global policy. She played a large role in Meredith College. Besides donating money, she spearheaded a fundraiser to finish the original buildings so that the college could open back in 1899. The "Good Women's Movement, raised $6,000. She founded the Associated Charities and the Raleigh Women's Club and served as president to both organizations. She changed social services from being a charity to advocacy work. She was a supporter of the YWCA. Besides her advocacy for women, she was also a writer of many books. She wrote hymns as well. One is said to still be used at Baptist services today. "The Woman's Hymn" ("Come, Women, Wide Proclaim"). Her historical marker stands outside the house she once lived in. Her home is where she conducted activities and coordinated these national movements from her parlor. The Heck-Andrews House was one of the first major homes built in Raleigh after the Civil War (it was completed in 1870). It is a stunning example of Second Empire style, featuring a dramatic central tower and a patterned slate mansard roof. She wasn't just a "lady of the house"; she was the CEO of a global organization of over 100,000 women

Limited text on this marker near downtown Raleigh but the name of the person celebrated gave me a…read moregiggle. "Social activist; writer. Led the Baptist Woman's Missionary Union after 1892. A benefactor of present Meredith College. Lived in this house." Online, we learn "Fannie Heck devoted her life to religious work. Born in Virginia to Mattie and Jonathan Heck, a Confederate lieutenant colonel, she was given the inauspicious middle name of Exile. She later adopted the name Scudder. After the war her family settled in Raleigh and built the manor now known as the Heck-Andrews House. She joined the First Baptist Church, engaging in her first mission work, and attended Hollins Institute." Stop by and pay tribute to this great woman. [Review 11677 overall, 1459 of 2019.]

I was staying in downtown Raleigh, meandered away from my hotel and found myself in the middle of…read morethe Cuegrass Festival. Lucky me. I just wandered in, looked at some selections from local artists, listened to some blue grass, and grabbed a pulled pork sandwich. There was so planning, I kept smelling food, turned left, and there was a festival in the streets. I. Love. That. It is so charming and welcoming. No cover charge to get in, a saxophone player jamming out to Whitney Houston on his speakers, BBQ everywhere, local artists, and a stage with wonderful people performing blue grass. I was lucky to have stumbled upon it, and it just makes me like Raleigh more.

More like sh**ty plaza. Nah not really, it's quite nice and fancy…read more This is the financial center of Raleigh and there are a lot of new trendy businesses popping up in these parts. It's not my favorite part, probably because it's too new, corporate, fancy, and un-Carolinian. But it is a nice sight to see and is a lot more modern than you would imagine for this historical region, the Triangle.