Going to Wrightsville Beach in the early 20th century was like no other attraction in the state thanks to Lumina Pavilion, a grand and glowing venue for dancing, music and merriment. The staple of the coast and the South enjoyed decades of prominence until cars, war and rock 'n' roll brought about its demise.
This week, we revisit the Palace of Light with special guest Madeline Flagler, the executive director of the Wrightsville Beach Museum and History.
Cape Fear Unearthed is written, edited and hosted by Hunter Ingram.
Additional editing by Adam Fish. Recorded at WHQR in downtown Wilmington.
A StarNews Media Production. This season is sponsored by Northchase Family Dentistry.
Sources:
"Wrightsville Beach: A Pictorial History," by Greg Watkins and the Wrightsville Beach Preservation Society
"Wrightsville Beach: The Luminous Island," by Ray McAllister
Cape Fear Museum archive photos
Wrightsville Beach Museum of History exhibit
UNC-TV’s “Lumina: Remembering the Light,” PBS, 1999
Christmas shopping in the downtown Wilmington of yesteryear
Film documentary 'McKinley's Guns' digs into 1898 coup
'Race, Place and Memory': Wilmington's troubled racial history
When Shell Island was an island, and a Black beach resort
Revisiting The Barn: a legendary Wilmington jazz club and dance hall
A brief history of Eagles Island and Wilmington's 'west bank'
Wilmington corner stores, gone but not forgotten
Roots of the GOAT: Michael Jordan's history in Wilmington
Train tracking: The lost Wilmington, Brunswick & Southern Railroad
Losing, and preserving, Black historic sites in Wilmington
Photographic memories: Wilmington's history in photos
Wilmington's Temple of Israel: storied past, building a future
The curious case of the Christmas flounder
Preserving history, one window and door at a time
Commemorating 1898, and the search for descendants
The bridges of New Hanover County
Ideal location: Wilmington film history and the Ideal Cement factory
Century club: Wilmington's 100-year-old businesses
Wilmington goes to the movies: bygone theaters and drive-ins
Historic Wilmington Foundation takes the past into the future
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Irish Songs with Ken Murray
History Obscura
Historycal: Words that Shaped the World
The Rest Is History
Lore