From political acts that triggered revolution in North Carolina, to the last armed action in the state, the First and Last Tour covers all eight years of open rebellion. The first gathering of rebel leaders from across the state took place in New Bern in 1774. The first state governor tried using Tryon Palace there, but soon moved the capital to his hometown in today’s Kinston. Frenchmen drew trouble in New Bern but built the state a fort at Cape Lookout. Ocracoke saw naval action before independence was declared, and became a vital supply route for the nation. The final fight in North Carolina—against the last Redcoats to appear in the state—happened in Beaufort after the war was effectively over in 1782.

The tour starts near the end for the British Army of the South, in a moment of token resistance during its retreat from the state.