300+ Great Things About Durham

Durham has always been and continues to be a creative and entrepreneurial community where diverse and passionate people come together to shape a better world. Here are some of the greatest things about Durham.

Durham has great:

For a PDF version of the 300 Great Things about Durham flyer, click here.

Durham Is Really A Sight To See.

Whether you’re into history or sports, art or science, architecture or African-American heritage, Durham has some places that you won’t want to miss. Here are just a few of the things worth seeing in Durham.

  • Bennett Place State Historic Site
  • Historic Downtown, American Tobacco, and Brightleaf Districts
  • Duke Chapel and The Sarah P. Duke Gardens
  • Duke Homestead State Historic Site & Tobacco Museum
  • Hayti Heritage Center
  • Historic Stagville
  • Museum of Life and Science
  • Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University and N.C. Central University Art Museum
  • Patterson’s Mill Country Store
  • West Point on the Eno City Park

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Durham Serves Up Great Food.

Durham has more than 300 wonderful restaurants. And many of those restaurants have received special recognition in the regional and national press, including: Southern Living, The New York Times, Food and Wine, Bon Appétit, Esquire, The Joey Reynolds Show, and Gourmet. CLICK HERE to see the entire list of Celebrated Cuisine Restaurants.

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Durham Is Home To More Than 42 Annual Festivals.

On average, Durham puts on a major festival every week. CLICK HERE for 13 of Durham’s Signature Annual Events with high recognition nationally or significant out-of-state and in-state visitor appeal.

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Durham Has Its Own Place In History.

If you were a history professor, you’d have a field day here. The fact is, Durham has been a part of some pretty amazing events over the years. And you can experience them firsthand yourself. Here are a few historical places.

  • Bennett Place State Historic Site
  • Black Wall Street
  • N.C. Civil War Trail
  • Duke Chapel
  • Duke Homestead State Historic Site and Tobacco Museum
  • Hayti Heritage Center
  • Historic Downtown & Brightleaf Districts
  • Historic Stagville
  • N.C. Central University
  • Patterson’s Mill Country Store

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Durham Has A Rich African-American Heritage.

Durham African-Americans have made tremendous contributions to the State and the Nation, from pioneering the Piedmont Blues to heading the U.S. Olympic Committee. Here are a few of the things Durham’s African-American citizens have accomplished over the years.

  • Largest black-owned financial institution
  • One of the nation’s strongest African-American owned and managed banks
  • 1st civil rights sit-ins to protest segregation
  • 2nd library in N.C.
  • 1st publicly supported liberal arts college
  • 1st interracial basketball game
  • Piedmont Blues style of music
  • Architectural design of Duke University
  • Basketball fast break/zone press innovations
  • One of the first autonomous religious congregations

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Durham Really Knows A Good Sport When It Sees One.

Baseball, golf, football, track and field, oh, and basketball, to name a few. When it comes to sports, Durham is home base. Here are just a few of Durham’s all-stars.

  • Durham Bulls Triple-A Baseball
  • Duke University Blue Devils
  • N.C. Central University Eagles
  • Lady Eagles Classic
  • Duke Children’s Classic
  • City of Medicine Fitness Festival
  • Crystal Downs Polo
  • Durham Striders
  • Carolina Godiva Track Club
  • USA Baseball

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Durham Blossoms With Natural Wonders All Year ’Round.

From state parks and recreation areas to formal gardens and butterfly houses, Durham has some super natural places to see.

  • American Tobacco Trail
  • Duke Forest
  • Durham scenic byways
  • Eno River State Park
  • Lake Michie Recreation Area
  • Little River Lake & River Lake
  • Magic Wings Butterfly House and Bayer CropScience Insectarium
  • New Hope Creek
  • Rollingview State Recreation Area at Falls Lake
  • The Sarah P. Duke Gardens

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Durham Is A Great Place To Play A Round.

Durham’s golf courses have been home to national and professional championships. And seven of them are public or semi-private. You can find your game right here.

  • Croasdaile Golf Course and Country Club
  • The Crossings Golf Club
  • Duke University Golf Club
  • Falls Village Golf Course
  • Hillandale Golf Course
  • Hope Valley Country Club & Golf Course
  • Lake Winds Golf Course
  • Lakeshore Golf Course
  • Treyburn Country Club
  • Willowhaven Country Club

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Durham Has Been Very Inventive.

Over the years, Durham has spawned some pretty remarkable ideas. From headache powders to bar code scanners and from research parks to Astroturf, Durham has led the way.

  • 3-D ultrasound
  • Alzheimer gene breakthrough
  • Astroturf
  • AZT development
  • Barcode reader
  • BC Headache Powders
  • Childproof caps on medicine bottles
  • Ctrl-Alt-Delete computer command
  • Digital cellular telephone
  • On-board plane wind shear warning

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Durham Is Big Into Experimentation.

Durham is home to a number of museums and scientific organizations that are solving some of the world’s problems. Here are just a few of those organizations.

  • Duke Lemur Center
  • Duke Hyperbaric Center & Phytotron
  • Hill Demonstration Forest
  • Museum of Life and Science
  • National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
  • N.C. Beef Cattle Improvement Program
  • N.C. centers for microcomputing & biotechnology
  • Research Triangle Institute
  • Rhine Research Center
  • U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

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Durham Really Makes The Grade When It Comes To Education.

From grammar school through higher education, Durham offers some of the finest learning opportunities in the nation. At almost every level, Durham students outperform their peers. Here are a few of the educational accolades of which Durham can be proud.

  • #6 best university in U.S.
  • #4 best medical school in U.S.
  • National Magnet School of Excellence Award
  • Top 2 universities for African-Americans
  • #3 fastest-growing student body in UNC system
  • Two schools in top 5% of U.S. academically rigorous high schools
  • #10 law and #8 business schools in U.S.
  • Students outscore peers in N.C. & U.S. on SAT
  • #1 best law school for women
  • 1st public, residential high school for science & math

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Durham Is Known As The City of Medicine, USA.

For over 40 years, Durham has been leading the way in medical breakthroughs that make life a little easier. Some amazing things have happened here that make Durham the City of Medicine, USA.

  • #2 healthiest city for women
  • #6 medical center in U.S.
  • 1 in 4 people work in health care
  • $213 million of annual research
  • 50% of N.C. biotechnology firms
  • 60% of N.C. research organizations
  • Physician ratio four times the national average
  • Nurses per capita 3½ times the national average
  • 36% of total payroll from health care
  • Medical breakthroughs such as AZT

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Durham Has World-Class Medical Facilities.

From responding in an emergency to helping you recover after a major trauma, Durham has some of the most advanced medical facilities in the world. Durham is also home to some of the most advanced centers for weight management.

  • Duke Center for Living
  • Duke Diet & Fitness Center
  • Duke University Medical Center & Lenox Baker Children’s Hospital
  • Durham Regional Hospital
  • Lincoln Community Health Center, Inc.
  • North Carolina Eye, Ear, Nose, & Throat, P.A.
  • North Carolina Specialty Hospital
  • Rice Diet Program and Heart Disease Reversal Clinic
  • Structure House, Inc.
  • Durham VA Medical Center

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Durham Houses Magnificent Works Of Art.

Durham is home to more than 100 working artists, 43 museums and galleries, and 74 outdoor sculptures and murals. Here are some of the fabulous places to enjoy the visual arts in Durham.

  • Durham Art Guild—CCB Gallery
  • Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University
  • Durham Arts Council—Allenton Gallery
  • Durham Arts Council—Semans Gallery
  • Durham School of the Arts
  • Hugh Mangum Museum of Photography
  • Louise Jones Brown Gallery
  • Lyda Moore Merrick Gallery
  • Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University
  • N.C. Central University Museum of Art

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Durham Is Home To 100+ Working Artists.

They work in different media, from paints to metals, bringing to life what lies deep within our souls. Here are just a few of the acclaimed artists that call Durham home.

  • Jacob Cooley
  • Al Frega
  • Jose Galvez
  • Michael D. Harris
  • Jim Kellough
  • Irwin Kremen
  • Nancy Tuttle May
  • Caroline Vaughan
  • Francis Vega
  • Conrad Weiser

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Durham Birthed The Piedmont Blues, And The Music Just Keeps Comin’.

Durham’s been moving with the music ever since the Blues came to be. Many nationally known recording artists and songwriters have called this place home. Here are just a few:

  • Shirley Caesar
  • Reverend Gary Davis
  • Nnenna Freelon
  • Blind Boy Fuller
  • John Dee Holeman
  • John D. Lowdermilk
  • Bull City Red
  • Clyde McPhatter
  • Nicholas Kitchen
  • Don Schlitz

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Durham Makes Great Music.

It’s no secret that Durham not only has produced some great musicians, but even produced a great music style, the Piedmont Blues. Durham’s music labels and recording studios support notable musicians both locally and internationally.

  • Sugar Hill Records
  • 307 Knox Records
  • Merge Records
  • Pox World Empire
  • RDU-919
  • Innercore Productions
  • Mr. Lady Records
  • Overdub Lane Recording
  • Inspire Productions
  • Tsunami Recordings

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Durham Wrote The Book. Well, Almost.

Durham is home to numerous publishing companies with international acclaim.

  • Baseball America
  • Carolina Academic Press
  • The Carolina Times
  • Carolina Wren Press
  • Duke Chronicle
  • Duke University Press
  • The Herald-Sun
  • The Independent Weekly
  • Journalistic Inc
  • Kirkland Newspapers
  • Regulator Press

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Durham Really Knows How To Tell A Story.

Prose that ranges from history to business and from nature to ethnic diversity. Fiction that brings to life interesting characters and fascinating places. That’s what these Durham authors write about.

  • Jean Bradley Anderson
  • Clyde Edgerton
  • Eli Evans
  • John Hope Franklin
  • Pauli Murray
  • Katy Munger
  • Gwendolyn Parker
  • Frances Gray Patton
  • Reynolds Price
  • Walter B. Weare

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Durham Is Home To Lights, Camera, Action.

It’s too bad the Academy doesn’t recognize the role of best supporting town. Because Durham has had its share of Hollywood hits. Here are a few of the films that featured Durham.

  • Billy Bathgate
  • Brainstorm (1983)
  • Bright Leaf
  • Bull Durham
  • Getting In (1994)
  • The Handmaid’s Tale
  • Kiss The Girls
  • Once Around
  • The Program (1993)
  • Weeds (1987)

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Durham Deserves A Standing Ovation For Performance Venues.

From historic to contemporary, there are a lot of great places to watch music, theater, film, and dance in Durham. And there are performances year ‘round to delight the entire family. Here are the places to see the shows that Durham has to offer.

  • American Tobacco Amphitheatre
  • B.N. Duke Auditorium
  • Baldwin Auditorium
  • Carolina Theatre of Durham, Inc.
  • Manbites Dog Theater Company
  • Page Auditorium
  • People’s Security Insurance Theater
  • R.J. Reynolds Industries Theater
  • St. Joseph’s Performance Hall at the Hayti Heritage Center
  • University Theater, N.C. Central University

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Durham Hosts Great Minds.

With facilities to host up to 85% of the nation’s meetings and a location that is within an hour’s flight or a day’s drive of half the country’s population, here are just a few of the regional, national, and international meetings that have occurred in Durham.

  • American Chemical Society
  • American College of Surgeons
  • American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists
  • American Peanut Research and Education Society
  • International Society of Pharmaceutical Engineers
  • Southeastern Association for Clinical Microbiology
  • Southeastern Regional Ballet Association
  • Southern Association of Orthodontists
  • Society for Literature and Science
  • Statistical and Applied Mathematical Sciences Institute

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Durham Gets Down To Business.

Durham is home to some major corporations and fascinating start-ups. Here are few of Durham’s business superlatives.

  • #2 best place for business and careers
  • National Top 10 corporation for working moms
  • 3 of Black Enterprise Top 10
  • 8th best bank in U.S.
  • World’s leading R&D center
  • N.C.’s #1 company for which to work
  • N.C.’s highest average weekly wage
  • N.C.’s largest private employer
  • 3 of century’s Top 20 N.C. business people
  • World’s largest clinical research organization

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Durham’s The Perfect Place To Meet.

Durham is within an hour’s flight or a day’s drive of half the nation, with the sights, food, and facilities to handle up to 85% of the nation’s meetings. Here are some of the largest places to meet.

  • Durham Civic Center, managed by Durham Marriott
  • Sheraton Imperial Hotel & Convention Center
  • Millennium Hotel Durham
  • Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club
  • Hilton Durham Hotel
  • Radisson Hotel Research Triangle Park
  • Hilton Raleigh-Durham Airport at Research Triangle Park
  • Charles Hamner Conference Center at the N.C. Biotechnology Center
  • R. David Thomas Executive Conference Center
  • Paul J. Rizzo Conference Center at Meadowmont

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Durham Is Home To Major National Associations.

Not only do the world’s associations and societies come to meet in Durham, some of them call Durham home.

  • American Association of Surgeons Oncology Group
  • American Social Health Association, Inc.
  • American Dialect Society
  • Divers Alert Network
  • ISA: Instrumentation, Systems, & Automation Society
  • Insurance Accounting & Systems Association
  • International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC)
  • Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association
  • National Association of Blacks in Criminal Justice
  • Sigma Xi Scientific Research Society

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Durham Speaks Many Different Languages.

Durham is an integral part of the global economy and home to some of the world’s most innovative companies.

  • AW North Carolina, Inc. — Japan
  • BASF Corporation — Germany
  • Bayer CropScience — Germany
  • bioMérieux, Inc. — France
  • Diosynth Biotechnology — The Netherlands
  • GlaxoSmithKline — United Kingdom
  • Nortel Networks — Canada
  • Reichhold, Inc. — Japan
  • Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications — Sweden/Japan
  • Sumitomo Electric Lightwave Corporation — Japan

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Durham Is A Great Place To Visit.

Durham’s got lots of great reasons to visit, and others are noticing. When compared with other destinations, the Bull City and its features make the grade.

  • #1 CVB website in the nation
  • #1 destination of arrivals at RDU International
  • Three of the Southeast’s Top 20 Events
  • One of the “Top Ten Places To Spend It All In One Place”
  • #4 family-friendly museum in the Southeast
  • More state historic sites than any other N.C. county
  • One of America’s Top Ten Beer Festivals
  • Highest % of 3-or-4-Diamond rooms in N.C.
  • Home to 4 of the top 100 golf courses in N.C.
  • One of the South’s favorite wedding places

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Durham Took “All Politics Is Local” To A National Level.

Representing the needs of Durham’s citizens locally, statewide, and nationally, Durham politicians take leadership roles at all levels of civic life. Here are a few of the political leaders who have called Durham home.

  • E. J. “Mutt” Evans
  • David Gergen
  • Maynard Jackson
  • William Mangum
  • Floyd McKissick Sr.
  • Richard M. Nixon
  • Kenneth Royall Jr.
  • Terry Sanford
  • Elna Spaulding
  • William Umstead

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Durham Is Home To Strong Local Government.

Durham City and County are two of the reasons this is one of the nation’s best places to visit, live, do business, and raise a family. Here is how Durham’s local government rates.

  • Among top places to live & do business
  • AAA bond ratings for both city and county
  • 1st free & publicly supported library in N.C.
  • 1st commercial historic district in N.C.
  • 1st with both police & sheriff accredited
  • Top WorkFirst caseload reduction
  • Best drinking water in N.C. for urban areas
  • #2 leading small transit agency in U.S.
  • Six Honor Schools of Excellence; 11 Schools of Distinction
  • 7th largest school district, students from 60 countries speaking 79 native languages

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Durham Is Home To A Lot Of Acclaim.

The list keeps getting longer every year. Durham is:

  • #1 on Creativity Index among 274 similar-sized counties
  • #2 Best City for Women to Live
  • #3 Most Enlightened City
  • home to one of world’s largest R&D centers
  • #8 on Gay Index among 274 similar-sized counties

Durham is the pinnacle of a region:

  • #1 in economic strength for 25 years
  • #2 best places to live in the South
  • #2 healthiest area in America
  • #2 most educated area in America
  • #6 in business competitiveness

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Durham Rolls Out The Red Carpet For Over 5.2 Million Visitors A Year.

Durham has a lot to offer visitors. There’s history, sports, arts, culture, ethnic diversity, and nationally-acclaimed restaurants. Visitors also do a lot for Durham. Here are just a few of the benefits of bringing visitors to Durham.

  • Create jobs
  • Fuel the business climate
  • Broaden the tax base
  • Provide quality of life
  • Bring continuing education
  • Showcase the community
  • Require less infrastructure
  • Attract dining and shopping
  • Justify airport/interstate amenities
  • Introductions for new & relocating business

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Durham Is Finally Getting Its Name On The Box.

To make sure that Durham gets its due, a lot of Durhamites worked with the Durham Convention & Visitors Bureau to better identify Durham with its assets. Here are just a few of the breakthroughs.

  • Durham now the core city of new MSA
  • Creation of the Durham Public Information & Communications Council
  • Datelines on Durham news stories
  • Roadway sign improvement audit of Durham
  • New highway welcome signs
  • Online mapping databases’ inclusion of RTP and RTP owners/tenants for directional purposes
  • RTP communications guidelines
  • New brand for region highlighting individual cities and towns as part of a Family of Communities
  • Correction of some postal delivery designations
  • Research Triangle Region postmark

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