2019 NC State School of Architecture Design/Build Studio

Princeville Mobile History Museum

Project Summary

As an outgrowth of ongoing CDDL engagement activities with the Town of Princeville, NC, the 2019 NC State School of Architecture Design+Build Summer Program designed and constructed a “mobile museum” to house temporary exhibits that celebrate and honor this historic community. The concept was originally developed by Prof. Kofi Boone, FASLA as a way to make visible and maintain aspects of Princeville’s history while the permanent Princeville History Museum underwent renovations (as a result of Hurricane Matthew). Built at no cost to the town, the unit is constructed on a trailer chassis that allows it to travel freely without the traditional constraints of a permanent site or utility connections. Currently stationed in the community, the mobile museum will soon support traveling exhibits that better enable the Town of Princeville to share its singular history as the “Oldest Town Chartered by Blacks in America.”

This NC State School of Architecture Design+Build Summer Program was led by the instructional team of Randy Lanou + Erik Van Mehlman, AIA, CGP (of BuildSense) and Ellen Cassilly, FAIA, LEED AP (of Ellen Cassilly Architects).

Sample Images

 

Project Start Year

2019

Client

Town of Princeville

Location

Princeville, NC

 

Awards

2025 Community Impact Through Design Award: Freedom River Living History Museum (in collaboration with the Town of Princeville and NC State School of Architecture Design+Build Studio), AIA Triangle

2020 Student Award Winner: Freedom River — Princeville Mobile Museum (2019 NCSU School of Architecture Design/Build Studio), American Institute of Architects | South Atlantic Region, Project Advisors: A. Fox and D. Hill

Exhibit

2025 Rural Witnesses: Retracing & Reimagining Rural Architecture in the South—Freedom River Living History Museum (in collaboration with the Town of Princeville and NC State School of Architecture Design+Build Studio), 701 Center for Contemporary Art in partnership with Clemson School of Architecture and Partners of Place (Columbia, SC)

Funding Source

This project was made possible by the generous support of William “Bill” Valentine, FAIA