bBETH RUTLEDGE IS A SELF-DESCRIBED HISTORY NERD.
THAT’S A BIG REASON WHY SHE AND HER HUSBAND, TIM
MORGAN, MOVED TO WILMINGTON FROM MINNEAPOLIS
TWO YEARS AGO.
“This town is unbelievably special,” she says. “There are eight historic
districts here, and in a town this size that’s almost unheard of. We wanted
to be in a place that values history. We were really drawn to Wilmington
because of all the charm and just
extraordinary beauty that’s in the old,
FAVORITE THING
that’s all around us.”
Their love of history led them to
Front Porch Swing
buy a circa-1906 house with a large
front porch.
“The porch was a huge part of what attracted me to the house, just to be
able to be outside and have such a gracious space,” she says.
Central to the space is what quickly became Rutledge’s favorite thing: her
front porch swing. Sitting outside gives her a wonderful view of the brick-paved
street and the other houses, serving as a daily reminder of why she
moved to Wilmington.
“Wilmington is so special, and being able to experience and enjoy our front
porch is one of the things I most enjoy about being here,” she says. “You see
columns and dentil moldings and hanging plants. You see other porch swings,
you see rocking chairs. You see the simple beauty of porch life. It’s absolutely
wonderful just being able to experience the way life changes when you are so
close to the sidewalk. The neighbors walk by, and that’s how you get to know
them, and their dogs’ names, and their moms and their grandkids.”
Rutledge became
involved with the
Historic Wilmington
Foundation almost
as soon as she moved
here. She began by
volunteering at Legacy
Architectural Salvage,
CLAIM TO FAME
Executive Director,
Historic Wilmington Foundation
and was invited to join the foundation’s board in January 2017. In December
she succeeded George Edwards as executive director.
“He’s just kind of an institution,” she says. “His knowledge is so vast. What
he’s done for the foundation is immeasurable. What he’s done for our com-munity
is immeasurable. I could never fill his shoes. I hold the position he
held, but he is irreplaceable.”
If there are times when she does feel the pressure, Rutledge has a place to
relax at the end of the day.
“There is something calming about being able to sit on your porch and not
do anything,” she says. “You sit on your porch swing. What are you doing?
Nothing, but that’s OK.”
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WBM may 2018