Meet the Staff!

Lori Sanderlin

Wilmington native, Lori has worked in the museum field since 1999. In 2007, she started with the Maritime Museum System in Beaufort and then returned home to work as the Curator of Education for six years in Southport. She accepted the position as Museum Manager in 2018. Lori earned her BA in History from University of North Carolina t Wilmington and a Masters in Maritime and Naval Studies from state University New York Maritime College. she has also gained her Certificate in Non-Profit Management from Duke University.

Research interests include…
– Civil War: Lower Cape Fear, Politics of Command and Social History
– Turn of the 20th Century History
– World War II Social and Political History
– Funerary practices and culture

Katy Menne

Growing up in a military family, Katy has had the opportunity to travel all over the world, however, she calls California home. She earned her BA in History and Masters in Teaching Secondary Social Studies at the University of South Carolina. Katy has been teaching in formal and informal settings since 2011. She joined the museum in 2018 as the Curator of Education.

Research interests include…
– World War II: German tactics, Russian involvement, Pacific theater
– 1960s: Music and media influence, Cuban Missile Crisis, Presidency and family dynamics of the Kennedy’s
– US Life-Saving Service
– Lighthouses
– Military History

Kristan Phillips

Ultimately landing in Wilmington, Kristan earned her BA and MA in History from University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Working in public history from historical societies to libraries and historic sites, Kristan landed at the museum in 2016 at the Visitor and Volunteer Services Coordinator.

Research interests include…
– Sanitation and hygiene in 19th – 20th century America
– Social medicine in 19th and 20th century America
– Death and funerary practices in 18th and 19th centuries
– Diseases and social conditions from American Revolution to World War II