At Home in the Carolinas
Grounded in Community
Since its inception in 1924, The Duke Endowment is proud to call the Carolinas home — working to strengthen communities across the two states. In the summer of 2014, we moved to our current location at 800 East Morehead Street, Charlotte, North Carolina.
After leasing space within corporate settings for many years, we moved to a centralized and accessible 1.8 acre part of the Dilworth community.Our first standalone home allows us to be "on the ground" as we serve children, promote health, educate minds and enrich spirits.
Space to Collaborate
Today's philanthropy takes place in an interconnected world, so our facility is designed to maximize collaboration and connection. The first floor is devoted to meeting space for Endowment staff, Trustees and visitors. Floors two and three provide spaces for our staff. Two levels of underground parking help us conserve land and protect the character of the neighborhood.
Ties to History
Water, and harnessing its power, is central to the story of James B. Duke. In front of our entrance, a fountain also pays homage to this legacy, as does the courtyard statue of Mr. Duke, an exact replica of the one standing outside Duke University Chapel. Building materials reflect our long-term legacy in the Carolinas.
Taking the Long View
As the first headquarters owned by the Endowment, this facility provides a place to carry out our mission in perpetuity as directed by our founder James B. Duke. We also believe that having our own building helps grantees become familiar with the Endowment so we can serve them better. Our building is designed to be environmentally sustainable, with locally sourced materials, recycled content, a vegetative roof and high-efficiency features. It is LEED certified by the U.S. Green Building Council.
Based in Charlotte and established in 1924 by James B. Duke, The Duke Endowment is a private foundation that strengthens communities in North Carolina and South Carolina. Our simple and elegant landscaping reflects the ideals of our founder, featuring native plants, a "green" roof, courtyard reflecting pool and a cascading fountain at the building entrance. Featuring works of art that bear a special connection to our founder, his legacy and the place he called home. Our new headquarters in Charlotte has been awarded LEED Gold certification. The building features high-efficiency components, locally-sourced materials, recycled content and a vegetative roof.Related Publications & Resources
Going Gold
The headquarters of The Duke Endowment is certified LEED Gold (R) by the U.S. Green Building Council. LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is the nation's preeminent program for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings. Projects must satisfy specific prerequisites to receive certification through the LEED program.
Green Roof
A 6,140-square-foot vegetative roof over the conference wing is planted with drought-tolerant sedum and Northern reedgrass. Green roofs hold water to help reduce storm water costs and can protect a roof's membrane from UV exposure — slowing the rate of roof replacement.
Local Sourcing
From the structural steel and limestone to the furniture and landscaping, many materials were locally and regionally sourced. Components for the concrete, for example, all came from the Carolinas: The cement was from Harleyville, S.C., the sand from Bethune, N.C., and the stone from Charlotte.
Smart Lighting
LED lamps are used throughout to minimize power consumption, and wattage is kept as low as possible. The building also takes advantage of natural light.
Water Efficiency
Inside plumbing fixtures are low flow, reducing water use by 40 percent. Outside landscaping uses efficient drip irrigation, with specially selected native or adaptive plants that require 79 percent less water than turf and shrubs.
Recycling
Workers recycled materials from the site — and most of the materials coming to the site had a high recycled content.
Site Sustainability
The vegetative open space exceeds local zoning requirements by 948 percent. Development avoided sensitive or vulnerable land, and underground parking mitigates the urban heat island effect.
Building Position
The longest facades face north and south. The north side provides constant indirect light from the sun; the south side provides constant direct light. As the sun crosses the sky, east-west exposures fluctuate in temperature — by minimizing this exposure, the building reduces its heating and cooling system demands.
Energy Use
The building is designed to use an estimated 19.3 percent less energy than a conventional design.
Based in Charlotte and established in 1924 by James B. Duke, The Duke Endowment is a private foundation that strengthens communities in North Carolina and South Carolina. Our simple and elegant landscaping reflects the ideals of our founder, featuring native plants, a "green" roof, courtyard reflecting pool and a cascading fountain at the building entrance. Our new headquarters in Charlotte has been awarded LEED Gold certification. The building features high-efficiency components, locally-sourced materials, recycled content and a vegetative roof.Related Publications & Resources
Art Collection
Our headquarters is designed be a more than just a location from which to conduct our work. From the outset, the building was intentionally constructed as a welcoming resource for grantees and as a symbol of Mr. Duke's legacy for the Carolinas.
In that spirit, we are proud to display artwork that inspires the same sense of connection to our region and the place that our founder called "home."
Inspired by the vegetation flanking the Semans Conference Center, Sheila Hicks designed the texture of each panel to evoke the sensation of passing through a forest with light entering from both sides. The vertical lines suggest the abbreviated forms of trees and other vegetation, as if viewed while driving through a forested area.
The Duke Endowment commissioned the original bronze statue of James B. Duke in 1934 as a gift to Duke University. The sculptor, Charles Keck, chose a pensive pose, with Mr. Duke holding a walking stick in his right hand and the ever-present cigar in his left.
Born in Raleigh, N.C., Herb Jackson is intrigued with the mysticism represented by the medieval myth of St. Veronica, who wiped Christ’s face as he carried his cross, leaving his image on her veil. He applies paint mixed with pumice in many layers, which he then scrapes off to allow shapes and marks to come and go.
Born in St. Stephen, S.C., Leo Twiggs has won international recognition and numerous awards for his work. In Mother Image/Father Image, Twiggs explains that the mother and father are separate to suggest their different roles.
This acrylic on canvas painting by Maud Gatewood, one of North Carolina's most important 20th century artists, was inspired by the hustle and bustle of a North Carolina college campus on a wet autumn day. Her paintings have been exhibited throughout the Southeast and have received many awards.
Julyan Davis’ oil on canvas painting connects us to James B. Duke’s advancement of hydroelectric power in the Carolinas. His early autumnal depiction of this waterfall, located near Brevard, North Carolina, captures the energy inherent in the cascading water as well as the subtle variances in the surface of the rock.
A native of South Carolina, Edward Rice is known for his evocative depictions of place. The churches portrayed in these oil paintings were chosen as subjects both for their beauty and as examples of the congregational outreach that takes place. Rhems reflects the Colonial Revival style while Cedar Grove is a more stout Gothic Revival building.
Eugene Healan Thomason aspired to be an artist at an early age and, after completing a portrait of Mr. Duke, the philanthropist supported his academic training. Eugene later moved to the North Carolina mountains, where he painted everyday life in Appalachia. Mountain Church, an oil on canvas, is one of his more narrative treatments.
The landscape surrounding Ayr Mount, a Federal-era plantation house built in 1815 in Hillsborough, N.C., served as the inspiration for this oil on linen painting. John Beerman's poetic interpretation of the scenery is a symbolic evocation of the meditative and spiritual power of nature.
This short video features a behind-the-scenes glimpse of Sheila Hicks as she brings the energy and vibrancy of her highly acclaimed textile compositions to The Duke Endowment
Featuring works of art that bear a special connection to our founder, his legacy and the place he called home.Related Publications & Resources
To foster a spirit of collaboration among our partners, The Duke Endowment is pleased to offer our conference rooms to current and past grantees. If you are an Endowment grantee and would like to hold a meeting in our building, please complete the form below. We will contact you regarding availability and logistics.
Please review our Guidelines for Conference Center and Meeting Spaces.
Named after James B. Duke's great niece and Endowment Trustee of 55 years, The Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans Conference Center is a state-of-the-art, highly versatile space for mid- to large-size groups of almost any configuration. Perfect for mid-sized gatherings, the Washington Duke Conference Room is in the heart of our new building. Adjacent to The Duke Endowment lobby, the Heritage Conference Room provides guests easy access to building services and a perfect meeting space for smaller groups. Oriented to capture natural light and overlooking the courtyard, the Benjamin N. Duke Conference Room is a perfect meeting space for small groups and committee meetings.Related Publications & Resources
Maximum Capacity: 144
Maximum Capacity: 18
Maximum Capacity: 10
Maximum Capacity: 8
