Fayetteville’s first female mayor to be honored with monument

Published on September 19, 2025

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - Fayetteville’s first female mayor and community trailblazer, Beth Dail Finch will be celebrated and honored on Wednesday, Sept. 24 at 10 a.m. as city officials unveil a monument dedicated to the life-long legacy she left in Fayetteville. This public ceremony will take place at Mayor Beth Finch Park, located on Green Street in Downtown Fayetteville, across the pedestrian bridge from Lafayette Park where the Marquis de Lafayette statue is placed.

Finch grew up in Fayetteville and was a civic leader who broke barriers as Fayetteville’s first female mayor in 1975 and the first female mayor of any major city in North Carolina. She also became the first female president of the North Carolina League of Municipalities in 1980. In addition, she was the first woman appointed to the Fayetteville Technical Institute Board of Directors and was elected simultaneously as one of the first woman to serve on the Board of Trustees for the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, formally known as Pembroke State University in 1973.

Prior to becoming mayor, she was elected to the Fayetteville City Council and served from 1971 until 1975, becoming the first woman elected to the City Council. During her tenure on city council and mayor, she advocated for education, youth programs and economic development, including improving Fayetteville’s transit system and strengthening the relationship between the City and Fort Bragg.

In March 2021, City Council unanimously approved the renaming of Cross Creek Park to Mayor Beth Park to honor her dedication and commitment to the City.

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