"I have found that if you know where a piece is from, or if you know a little bit about it, then you almost have a relationship with it . . . it comes alive . . ." - Bill Ivey

Join us as we spend an afternoon with Bill and Annette Ivey, embracing their mutual passion as collectors of North Carolina decorative arts. Historian, author, preservationist and life-long North Carolinian, Bill Ivey has always had the collector’s eye. “I’ve always had the collector’s instinct,” explains Bill, “I collected…lodge patches when I was a boy scout…and I found then that I love to collect.” Collecting has shaped Bill and Annette’s life journey together. “We’ve done a lot of things that we wouldn’t have done and gone a lot of places [that we wouldn’t have gone], if we didn’t collect,” states Annette.

In addition to being beautiful to behold, Bill and Annette Ivey's personal collection tells stories about North Carolina history. Learn about Piedmont settlers through the study of furniture, compare 19th and 20th century pottery, and come to understand the numerous talents and trades required in fabricating long rifles. Discover this and more with our team, Leland Little, Pam Briggs, and Robbie Smith, as we traverse long hallways and peek in cupboards at Bill and Annette Ivey's home.

Thank you, Bill and Annette, for opening your home and collection to us, and for your hospitality and kindness.