The Executive Mansion

The Carol Woods Special Events Committee organized a trip to North Carolina’s Executive Mansion. Forty-eight Carol Woods residents climbed aboard two buses on December 11 and were off to Raleigh. The holiday-decorated mansion is only open to the public for three days during December and having a special tour during this time was a real treat. Since space on the buses was limited, Mary Harley Kruter, chair of the event for the Committee, held a lottery in November and 48 lucky residents had their names drawn.

Each group of ten had a docent who took them through the public spaces on the first floor and provided them with both history and specifics about each room. The 30,000 square foot mansion was completed in 1891 and is one of only three in the country that is used both for the home of the Governor and family as well as hosting public events.

Each year, the rooms are decorated with 14-foot North Carolina Christmas trees that are in perfect proportion to the 16-foot ceilings. To provide a sense of scale, the carpet in the entrance hall is 76 feet long, and about midway down a grand stairway rises to the family quarters on the second floor. Jack Benjamin took the photo of the Carol Woods group gathered on the bottom ten steps.  You can also take a virtual tour of the Executive Mansion on the NC Department of Natural and Culture Resources website.

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