Aiming for a Rockingham County Museum & Archives (MARC), the Rockingham County Historical Society and the Rockingham County Museum & Archives merged on January 1, 2011 with a new name, Rockingham County Historical Society Museum & Archives (RCHSMA). The two groups shared a common goal in preserving, exhibiting and promoting the history, culture, human and natural resources of Rockingham County for the benefit of present and future generations. In April Rockingham County Historical Society members approved the merger unanimously at a General Members Meeting. The merger is complete.

Rev. John Burton, President of the Rockingham County Historical Society, says, ”Members of both groups see this as a merger of equals with a common vision of the future. This reorganization will smooth the way as we work to create a countywide historical museum. Each group brings tangible assets and we project our current membership of 300 will grow to 1000 within five years. Preserving and sharing the rich history of Rockingham County can provide a valued economic engine in our county. This new impetus for historic preservation will encourage Tourism, improve quality of life, and stimulate our tax base."

Operating since 1954, the Rockingham County Historical Society owns one of the earliest surviving commercial properties in North Carolina, Wright Tavern, as well as the High Rock Ford and Troublesome Creek Ironworks sites, important during the Revolutionary War. However, the Society’s collection of artifacts is now too extensive for the relatively small Tavern. Members have seen potential donations of local importance leave the county for want of a place to display them.

The two-year-old Rockingham County Museum & Archives, a non-profit organization formed to advocate for a county historical museum, contributes leadership and organizational skills and grant-writing ability along with museum display cases already donated by the Greensboro Historical Museum.

The Rockingham County Historical Society Museum and Archives is fully committed to the establishment of a museum and possess an established membership, an experienced board representing the entire county, programs and publications, valuable collections of artifacts, museum display cases, rental income, an endowment, and significant historic property.

John M. Burton, Sr., a retired United Methodist minister, served in active ministry for 44 years in the Western NC Conference. He is a graduate of High Point College and Duke Divinity School. In 1965, he served three years as Director and Minister of the Yuma Methodist Indian Mission in Fort Yuma, CA. His last appointment was the Main Street UMC in Reidsville. In retirement, he has served two interim pastorates, his home church, Bethlehem UMC, and its sister church, Salem UMC; and at Leakesville UMC.

In 1995, John and Peggy restored and moved into the house that his paternal grandparents built in 1895 and in which he grew up and where they operated Fairview Farm Bed and Breakfast for ten years. The Burtons enjoy their “country museum” which houses many of their collectables including automobiles, horse-drawn vehicles and farm equipment, antique clocks, mechanical musical instruments, quilts, Coca Cola items and a country store.

John is a former member of the Reidsville Downtown Commission and served on the Reidsville Historical Commission. He is Vice President of the Eden Preservation Society and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Eden Historical Museum. He was actively involved in the formation of The Rockingham County Historical Society Museum and Archives (RCHSMA), is its current President, and a member of its Executive and Presentation Committees.

Marguerite Harris Holt A native of Roxboro, North Carolina, Marguerite Holt was fascinated with all things "historical" from an early age. She earned a B.A. Degree in History from Salem College and a M.Ed in History from U.N.C.-Greensboro. She taught history in Reidsville for over thirty-five years, and a focus on local history has always been important in her classroom. In addition, she has offered students opportunities for foreign travel as she led numerous tours to Europe. Marguerite has thoroughly enjoyed working as a volunteer with the Historical Society, especially with the on-going inventory of the "treasures" that have been donated through the years. She is currently a member of the Preservation Committee, and also serves as RCHSMA Vice-President.

Ira L. Tilley, a life-long resident of Rockingham County, is a Funeral Service Licensee, who joined Citty Funeral Home, Inc. in 1996. A graduate of Guilford Technical Community College with an AS degree in Criminal Justice and Gupton-Jones College of Funeral Service with an AS degree in Funeral Service, he is past President of the Men's Garden Club of Reidsville. Ira currently serves at-large on the Board of Directors for the Reidsville Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of Jefferson Penn Masonic Lodge #384 AF&AM and Reidsville Elks Lodge No.1723. He attends First Baptist Church and is married to Aimee Smith Tilley. Mr. Tilley is the current treasurer of the Rockingham County Historical Society Museum Archives and he serves on the Executive and Presentation Committees.

Kitty Williams lives in Madison, North Carolina, in the 1825 Wall House which she moved and rehabilitated to prevent its demolition. In her career as a professional artist, her large-format drawings appear in galleries and showrooms throughout the US as well as Canada. In addition to an MFA in Textiles from California College of the Arts, she has a Postgraduate Certificate in Historic Preservation from UNC Greensboro. She is a member of the Rockingham County Friends Meeting (Quakers) and chairs the Madison Historic Districts and Properties Commission. Current RCHSMA Board Secretary, Ms. Williams serves on the Executive and Preservation Committees.

Jean McKee Bullins is a lifelong resident in the Madison and Mayodan communities. Her first involvement with historic preservation was in 1970 when she and a friend recorded engravings from the tombstones at the Old Presbyterian Cemetery in Madison. That school project is now a valued record of graves that have been lost or destroyed over the years. Jean and her husband, Jeff Bullins, have continued to collect photographs and artifacts, particularly items related to Mayodan history, and have displayed them at several Mayodan Homecoming celebrations. Jean served a term on the board of the Historical Society in the early 1980's.

Jean earned a B.S. Degree in Business Administration at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. She is employed by Rockingham County Schools as the bookkeeper for Dalton L. McMichael High School. Jean serves as co-chair of the Publicity and Membership Committee for RCHSMA.

Dr. Lindley S. Butler, a senior North Carolina historian, resides in Wentworth. He received his Ph.D. from UNC, Chapel Hill, and is Professor Emeritus and former Historian-in-Residence at Rockingham Community College (RCC). He is currently Historian of the Queen Anne's Revenge Shipwreck Project. A member of the Rockingham County Historical Society since 1968, he has served on the Board of Directors; as Director of the Wright Tavern Restoration; as founding editor of the Journal of Rockingham County History and Genealogy. He also founded the Rockingham County Historical Collection at James Library, RCC, and chaired the Rockingham County Museum & Archives. Among his numerous publications are Pirates, Privateers, and Rebel Raiders; The Papers of Governor David S. Reid (2 volumes); The North Carolina Experience; and two histories of Rockingham County. In the Rockingham County Historical Society Museum & Archives, he serves on the Board of Directors, as co-chair of the Operations/Executive Committee, co-chair of the Governance Committee, chair of the Editorial Board, and a member of the Archaeology and Architecture Oversight Committee.

Robert W. Carter, Jr. (Bob) is a native of Rockingham County and has lived his entire life in the Sandy Cross Community located five miles west of Reidsville. He graduated fro m Wentworth High School and has attended a number of local history classes taught by Dr. Lindley Butler at Rockingham Community College.

Bob has had a lifelong interest in Rockingham County history and served on the Board of Directors of the Rockingham County Historical Society from 1976-2010. He served as chairman of the Historical Society's Publications Committee for many years and as editor of the Journal of Rockingham County History and Geneaology from 1984-2010. In addition, he has written a number of articles for the jounral and area newspapers. In 1987, he received the McDaniel Lewis Award as North Carolina's Historian of the Year from the NC Society of Historians. Since 1991, he has served as Historical Consultant for Rockingham Community College, working in the Historical Collections Room located at the college. In 2002, he was apointed Rockingham County Historian by the County Commissioners. Today, Bob serves on the Board of Directors of the Rockingham County Historical Society Msueum & Archives (RCHSMA) and is a member of the RCHSMA Presentation and Program Committees. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the Eden Historical Museum, the Wentworth Historic Preservation Committee, and the Mayo River State Park Advisory Committee.

Robbin Glenn Dodson is a native of Madison where she spent many days bike riding down the neighborhood streets and exploring her parents' hardware store. She now lives in Stoneville. She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro with a B.A. in History and an M.A. in European History. In past years she has been a teacher and on the staff of the Eden Public Library. She has served on the boards of the Madison Historic Properties Commission and the Rockingham County Historical Society. Mrs. Dodson was also a member of the Heritage Book Committee which produced The Heritage of Rockingham County, North Carolina in 1983. Currently she is on the board of the Rockingham County Chapter of the American Red Cross and serves on the Publicity and Membership Committee of RCHSMA.

Charles Rodenbough is a retired businessman who now spends his time as an author and historian (biography of Gov. Alexander Martin, History of the Land of Eden, historical novels: Pine House and If the Lord is Willing) has been a member of the RC Historical Society since 1958. He served two terms as president and was an active member of the group that organized RCHSMA. Mr. Rodenbough is currently a member of the RCHSMA Board of Directors, the Journal Editorial Board and the Governance, Presentation, Program, Preservation, and African American Committees. His current projects include The Sauratown Project, in affiliation with the Institute of African American Research at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Melissa Silk Whitten was born in Greenville, North Carolina, raised in Connecticut, and, now lives in Eden, North Carolina. She graduated from The American International High School in Vienna, Austria in 1972. She then returned to North Carolina and completed her B.A. in Education and English at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Whitten taught for 30 years at Holmes Middle School in Eden, North Carolina and is now retired. She has completed a number of courses through the Museum Studies graduate program at UNCG and has been the director of the Eden Historical Museum since 2007. Whitten has given numerous historical presentations to various civic groups, organizations and school groups, and has helped to develop fundraisers and special exhibits at the museum. She is a member of the Eden Historical Society, the Leaksville-Spray History Club, the Eden Women's League and the Rockingham County Historical Society Museum and Archives, the Twin Rivers Downtown Development Corporation, and Eden's Riverfest Committee. Whitten also serves on the Board of Directors and the Presentation Committee of RCHSMA.

The Alfred Scales Law Office in its original condition.	The Alfred Scales Law Office as it stands today.
A cemetery is being restored after it was severely damaged.	The Rockingham County Historical Society played a vital role in creating the Historic Village at the Rockingham Community College Campus. Today it includes a restored tobacco factory & barn, a corn crib and a one room school house.
Wright Tavern in the earlier years.	Wright Tavern in its current state.