Port City Living — May 2026
This issue has a photo up top that's worth seeing — click "Read Online" above to view the full experience. I grew up making trips to downtown Wilmington with my mom — the kind of trips that felt like a big deal when you were a kid. One of those stops was Belk-Beery on the corner of Third and Chestnut. I can still picture the paneled walls of the men's section, the candy counter that always caught my eye, and that basement discount store that felt like its own little world.Everybody has a story about that building. For years it was the place to shop in downtown Wilmington. In March of 1981, after Belk moved out to Independence Mall, the New Hanover County Public Library moved in — and a whole new generation made their own memories inside those same walls.Now the building sits empty. The library has moved to its new home on Grace Street, and the old building is slated for demolition.Wilmington keeps changing. That's not always a bad thing. But some places carry so much of who we were — and who this city was — that it's hard to just let them go quietly.
