Johnston County Heritage Center

“If you don’t know history, you don’t know who you are.” This idea is at the core of what the Johnston County’s Heritage Center stands for - making the lessons of the past accessible to future generations. The tall building on East Market Street, in the heart of downtown Smithfield once housed First Citizens Bank. It still contains an enormous vault, but these days it holds a different kind of treasure.

Within the walls of the Heritage Center are artifacts dating back to the Revolutionary War, antique documents telling first-hand accounts of Johnston County’s history and an impressive collection of historical photographs. Visitors from near and far stop by to explore family genealogy in hopes of further connecting branches on their family tree.

Here is an inside look at how the Heritage Center serves the community. Filmed over the course of several months, the video features several rarely seen artifacts from Johnston County’s history, gives a tour of North Carolina's last-standing Freedman Schoolhouse and offers a first-look at the County's newest museum.

Join Heritage Center director Todd Johnson and the dedicated few who preserve Johnston County’s history as they take us on a journey through the past.