By virtue of its geography, Wilmington was a space of shared medicinal plant knowledge from Native Americans, Europeans, Africans and Caribbean peoples. Victorian era locals grew these plants at home until the practice was challenged by the rise of professionalized medicine in the late 1800s. We examine the spread of medicinal plant information, how these plants were used, and the ways in which contemporary ideas about modernity affected healing practices in the region. The final session meets at the Latimer House for a tour of the medicinal plant garden.
Ginger R. Davis is the Executive Director of the Lower Cape Fear Historical Society, Latimer House and Kellam Archive. After more than 25 years as a history professor, she is now semi-retired from academia. A Fulbright awardee, she taught at Vietnam National University before returning to her home state, where she taught at Duke University and Norwich University and became involved in local historic preservation efforts.
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