2026 Oberlin Celebration BBQ & Trolley Tours

Friends of Oberlin Village are hosting the 2026 Oberlin Celebration BBQ & Trolley Tours on Saturday, October 10, at Avance Care, 815 Oberlin Rd in Raleigh. It's a free community gathering that runs from 4 PM to 7 PM, and it's part of Celebrate Oberlin, a program the group puts on each year to honor the residents whose contributions have shaped the city, the state and the nation.

The afternoon is built around two things: food and history. There's BBQ and fried chicken to eat, and trolley tours that take you through Oberlin Village, one of Raleigh's most storied neighborhoods. It's one of North Carolina's largest surviving freedmen's villages, where restored 19th-century houses and bungalows sit alongside newer builds under a canopy of mature oaks.

If you've spent time around the area, you've probably seen some of the landmarks the tours touch on. There's the Latta House and University Site, which preserve the legacy of Rev. M.L. Latta, who founded a school for African American children in the late 1800s, and the Oberlin Cemetery, where generations of the neighborhood's African American residents are buried. The village also draws on local favorites like Jubala Coffee and the nearby Village District, formerly Cameron Village.

It's a neighborhood with a deep history, and the day is about spending some time in it. The BBQ and the trolley tours are both free, and the whole thing runs from 4 PM to 7 PM on Saturday, October 10, at Avance Care, 815 Oberlin Rd.