Winston-Salem and Triad North Carolina

[giradman]

This was a very interesting travel story, thanks for an interesting read. The history in your area goes back much further than in Saskatchewan, where I live. The oldest European settlement in Saskatchewan is Cumberland House, dating to 1774 and is a former Hudson's Bay Company trading post. The oldest existing buildings date to the late 19th century. Cumberland House, Saskatchewan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Thanks Scifan.. - just posted Part II of our visit today - bought some 'goodies' at the Winkler Bakery, which still uses a 'domed oven' heated by wood (and as described in the short quote below).

Also, thanks for the info & link on Saskatchewan - Susan & I have been to Canada many times, but not to the middle Provinces - our visits have included British Columbia & Alberta on the west, and many more visits to the Eastern Provinces, i.e. Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and PEI - our last visit was to Quebec but has been nearly 10 years ago - Dave

The dome bake oven at Winkler is typical of bake ovens used in Salem, both in public buildings such as the Tavern and the Single Brothers’ Workshop, and in private homes such as the Vierling House. The Bakery’s oven is still heated with wood as it was nearly 200 years ago.

 

[giradman]

MESDA - Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts

The Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts is one of the Old Salem museums opened in 1965 by Frank L. Horton and his mother - a couple of quotes below from the link - check the website for MUCH more information. Today, we just did the self-tour, but a guided tour is available that explores the nearly dozen rooms representing a variety of 'arts' (e.g. furniture, paintings, pottery, silverware, etc.) from the following states - Maryland, Virginia, Carolinas, Georgia, Tennessee, & Kentucky. I've done the guided tour twice in the past but not since the move to the present building - its length is at least 90 minutes, so not sure that Susan would survive w/o a nap - - SO, I'll probably schedule one just for myself - as an amateur woodworking, this is truly a unique experience. The pics below are all from the web showing a number of the rooms that are available to view on the guided tour. Dave

The Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA) is the preeminent center for researching, collecting, and exhibiting decorative arts made and used by those living and working in the early South. One of the museums at Old Salem Museums & Gardens, MESDA is home to the finest collection of southern decorative arts in the country. The museum is internationally recognized for its contributions to the study and understanding of the history, decorative arts, and material culture of the American South.

MESDA is the realization of a vision shared by two extraordinary individuals: Frank L. Horton and his mother Theodosia "Theo" L. Taliaferro, who were pioneering antiques dealers and collectors who dedicated most of their lives to raising awareness of and appreciation for domestic objects made in the South. MESDA is the fruition of their aspirations - a museum solely dedicated to the preservation, scholarship, and connoisseurship of southern decorative arts and material culture.

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[giradman]

Moravians & Music - Moravian Music Foundation

The Moravians have a rich musical history, both sacred & secular - instrumentation varies widely from use of the organ, string chamber music, sacred concerted vocal works, to woodwind/brass bands - quoted below just a few excerpts from the FAQ of the Moravian Music Foundation (links in quotes), which was chartered as a nonprofit corporation in Winston-Salem, North Carolina in May 1956, so 60th anniversary this year. The organization archives the musical accomplishments of the Moravians throughout the centuries, presents educational activities, and publishes music. Below is a link to a YouTube video of a 60+ minute talk on the history of Moravian music - the first 30 minutes will provide a sufficient introduction but will be hard to stop listening.

The Moravians were also important in instrument building w/ one of the first (and most famous) organ builders in America, David Tannenberg (1728-1804) - he constructed a number of organs in Salem, the largest now in the Old Salem Visitor's Center (see pic below and a CD of the organ being played by Peter Sykes - I've also heard this instrument 'in person'). The other CDs that I own (both 2-disc sets) are secular chamber works by John Antes (1740-1811) (American born) and Johann Peter (1746-1813), who came to Salem in 1780, stayed 10 years, and had much impact on its musical activity. Brass Bands were and still are important in Moravian music - a famous NC regimental band from the Civil War is also pictured below - the Moravian Music Foundation has published several recorded volumes of the music they played (one disc below which I do not own but may obtain).

An excellent book on America's Music by Gilbert Chase is in my book collection and devotes about 4-5 pages to the Moravians and their musical accomplishments w/ discussions of the two composers mentioned above. The roster of Moravian composers then and now is impressive - from the book "thus for more than a century and a half there was an unbroken tradition, w/ a cohesion & continuity unmatched in the annals of American musical composition.”

Finally, Moravian music continues to the present in many forms - e.g. Moravians from around the world meet in 'brass band' conventions (several are planned for Winston-Salem in 2017 & 2018). Lovefeasts and Easter Sunrise events are common - the last pic below of the Easter Sunrise Service held at God's Acre in Old Salem just a few months ago. Dave

The 18th and 19th century Moravians considered music as a necessity of life. Many Moravian clergy and lay people were well trained in music, and thus came to the New World fully conversant with the taste and practice of European classicism. In Moravian life there was no distinction between what we now call “sacred” and “secular”, nor between what part of life is musical and what is not. Each person’s gifts were used for the benefit of the entire community (Source).

During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, the Moravians in America fostered musical activities of high quality and rich diversity, both instrumental and vocal, both in organized worship services and in recreational pursuits. The early Moravian settlers in America enjoyed a rich musical culture, which has been preserved to a remarkable degree; their musical life thus represents a significant contribution to the American musical scene, though they had little appreciable influence upon it. No examination of the music of early America can be complete without taking the Moravians into account (Source).

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[giradman]

Winston - Origins & Another Story!

In 1849, the North Carolina legislature divided Stokes County and created Forsyth County (see first map below) - the new county was named after Benjamin Forsyth (ca. 1760s - 1814), born in Virginia or possibly in Stokes County - he was an officer in the War of 1812 and campaigned in the Northern Theater; he was killed in 1814 (see the additional pics below).

The logical site for the 'new' county seat and courthouse was Salem, but the Moravians were strongly opposed, wanting to maintain their 'isolationism.' Instead, they sold 51 acres of land to the county for the site of the new town (and county seat) - the land was nearby, and in 1851 named Winston in honor of the North Carolina Revolutionary War hero, Joseph Winston (see first quote below). The closeness of the two towns can be seen in the modern aerial view which I've annotated - Business 40 is the dividing line but the distance is easily walked. The last map is modern Forsyth County - Winston-Salem is the largest city followed by the smaller towns of Clemmons & Kernersville (circled in blue) - presently, the county has over 350,000 people. The next posts will discuss the growth of Winston, especially following the appearance of RJ Reynolds - Dave

Col. Joseph Winston (1746 – 1815 near Germanton, North Carolina) was an American Revolutionary War hero from North Carolina, and the first cousin of statesman and Virginia governor Patrick Henry. In 1766, Winston moved to the area which subsequently became the current Stokes County, North Carolina.

During the American Revolutionary War he was a major, leading a company of riflemen in several important battles, including the Battle of Kings Mountain and the Battle of Guilford Court House. Winston later represented North Carolina as a U.S. Congressman and also served in the North Carolina Senate. He is buried in the National Park at the site of the Battle of Guilford Court House, where a monument was erected in 1893. The town of Winston, North Carolina (which later became part of Winston-Salem) is named for him (Source).

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[suenc]

Thanks Scifan.. - your continued interests in my travelogues (although this one is my home town, so different) spurs me on!

As stated, Susan & I are planning to go to Old Salem tomorrow - I want to explore the Visitor's Center more and also see the renovated MESDA (Museum of Southern Decorative Arts) - this will be my next post (but after our tour there) - will also dine at the Salem Tavern - have not eaten there in years, so hopefully will be good? Dave

Salem Tavern has greatly improved its menu from "

Thanks Scifan.. - just posted Part II of our visit today - bought some 'goodies' at the Winkler Bakery, which still uses a 'domed oven' heated by wood (and as described in the short quote below).

Also, thanks for the info & link on Saskatchewan - Susan & I have been to Canada many times, but not to the middle Provinces - our visits have included British Columbia & Alberta on the west, and many more visits to the Eastern Provinces, i.e. Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and PEI - our last visit was to Quebec but has been nearly 10 years ago - Dave

Ginger cookies! I bought and ate too many. The official Moravian cookies are paper-thin. Ginger is traditional but there are other yummy flavors.

 

[suenc]

Moravians & Music - Moravian Music Foundation

The Moravians have a rich musical history, both sacred & secular - instrumentation varies widely from use of the organ, string chamber music, sacred concerted vocal works, to woodwind/brass bands - quoted below just a few excerpts from the FAQ of the Moravian Music Foundation (links in quotes), which was chartered as a nonprofit corporation in Winston-Salem, North Carolina in May 1956, so 60th anniversary this year. The organization archives the musical accomplishments of the Moravians throughout the centuries, presents educational activities, and publishes music. Below is a link to a YouTube video of a 60+ minute talk on the history of Moravian music - the first 30 minutes will provide a sufficient introduction but will be hard to stop listening.

The Moravians were also important in instrument building w/ one of the first (and most famous) organ builders in America, David Tannenberg (1728-1804) - he constructed a number of organs in Salem, the largest now in the Old Salem Visitor's Center (see pic below and a CD of the organ being played by Peter Sykes - I've also heard this instrument 'in person'). The other CDs that I own (both 2-disc sets) are secular chamber works by John Antes (1740-1811) (American born) and Johann Peter (1746-1813), who came to Salem in 1780, stayed 10 years, and had much impact on its musical activity. Brass Bands were and still are important in Moravian music - a famous NC regimental band from the Civil War is also pictured below - the Moravian Music Foundation has published several recorded volumes of the music they played (one disc below which I do not own but may obtain).

An excellent book on America's Music by Gilbert Chase is in my book collection and devotes about 4-5 pages to the Moravians and their musical accomplishments w/ discussions of the two composers mentioned above. The roster of Moravian composers then and now is impressive - from the book "thus for more than a century and a half there was an unbroken tradition, w/ a cohesion & continuity unmatched in the annals of American musical composition.”

Finally, Moravian music continues to the present in many forms - e.g. Moravians from around the world meet in 'brass band' conventions (several are planned for Winston-Salem in 2017 & 2018). Lovefeasts and Easter Sunrise events are common - the last pic below of the Easter Sunrise Service held at God's Acre in Old Salem just a few months ago. Dave




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MESDA is Dave’s dream museum because it combines history and wood working. He plans to go back for an in-depth tour.

 

[giradman]

Salem Tavern has greatly improved its menu from "

Ginger cookies! I bought and ate too many. The official Moravian cookies are paper-thin. Ginger is traditional but there are other yummy flavors.

We have not been to the Winkler Bakery in a while - just a few pics below of the brick oven used w/ some descriptive information (Source) - the oven is heated until the bricks are white hot (about 600 degrees F) - the bread is baked first (the oven can handle over 90 loaves), followed by the sugar cake, and then the cookies. We've already gone through nearly a tin of the ginger cookies and half a tin of the sugar ones - impossible to resist! Dave
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[scifan57]

If the Moravians had agreed to allow what is now Old Salem to become the new county seat, the modern downtown would have been on the site of historic Old Salem and an important piece of American history would have been lost.

 

[giradman]

MESDA is Dave’s dream museum because it combines history and wood working. He plans to go back for an in-depth tour.

Apparently, the tours take 90 minutes minimum to view the nearly 10 rooms - Susan would not make it through (she has been a good sport over the decades visiting old houses, etc.), so one day I'll scheduled a tour and go myself. Dave

 

[giradman]

If the Moravians had agreed to allow what is now Old Salem to become the new county seat, the modern downtown would have been on the site of historic Old Salem and an important piece of American history would have been lost.

Hi Scifan.. - thanks for your continued interest in my threads - kind of starting w/ part two of this one.

Concerning your question, who knows - similar to the restoration of Colonial Williamsburg, Old Salem was saved and is thriving w/ plenty of private citizens restoring these houses to their colonial historic appearances (but w/ modern inside conveniences - both a non-profit & public effort.

Now if Salem had become the county seat, I suspect the needed governmental buildings, e.g. the courthouse, might have been built somewhere adjacent to Old Salem, whether to the current location of downtown W-S, impossible for me to say - there are extensive archives on Old Salem, so maybe there had been some discussion back then? Dave

 

[giradman]

Salem's Decline Post-Civil War

The Civil War and post-war reconstruction ended the growth and economic prosperity of Salem; the Bank of Cape Fear in the town collapsed and the Salem businesses w/ funds and stocks tied up in that bank faced ruin. Reconstruction brought an end to Salem’s domination as the trade and business center of the region.

Most of the commercial growth in the area was now taking place in Winston. The Hanes brothers established a tobacco factory in Winston in 1872; in 1884, RJ Reynolds came to Winston and built a two-story tobacco factory which launched an empire. In between, railroad service expanded into the area. By the late 19th century, Salem had lost its identity as a unique, self-contained town.

In 1888, there were 8,000 people in Winston and about 3000 in Salem. This discrepant population ratio continued into the early 1900s when the cities united in 1913 and became the hyphenated city of Winston-Salem, but these are stories yet to be told.

Several quotes below about Salem around the time of the Civil War - check link for more information (Source) - Old Salem is now on the 'North Carolina Civil Wars Trails'. Not many pics to show in this post - there have been many books written on North Carolina and the Civil War - the one shown below concentrates on one of the Forsyth/Winston-Salem regiments. Most of the major battles in the state occurred in the east as shown by the map. Near the end of the war, Union General George Stoneman raided throughout western North Carolina as shown by the second map.

My attention in the next posts will turn toward what was happening in Winston, still a separate town in the latter half of the 19th century. Dave

P.S. Many southern states have monuments dedicated to the Confederacy and its soldiers - the last pic below is the one in downtown Winston-Salem near the Reynolds Building. Many of these have become controversial and I have no desire to start a discussion on this issue here, but for those interested, there is plenty of information on the web, such as this recent article.

The changes that took place in 19th Century Salem transformed the Moravian community into a town rooted in the culture of North Carolina and the American South. The creation of a militia company in 1831, the construction of textile mills in the 1830s and 1840s, the discontinuance of slave regulations in 1847, and the end of the lease system in 1856 broke down the power of the Moravian theocracy and allowed the outside world to influence the thoughts and activities of the former congregation town. It was these changes that allowed a formerly pacifist, theocratic society to devote itself to participation in the Civil War.

The citizens of Salem suffered many privations and tragedies during the Civil war. The rising cost of goods affected the traditional Lovefeast services held at the church—the scarcity of coffee, sugar and milk prevented food from being served. Many of the men who left for war did not return as Salem’s companies were involved in heavy fighting in Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania.

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[giradman]

For those reading this thread, Susan & I are going on a short trip tomorrow to the Tennessee Mountains, northeast of Knoxville - a one day trip will be to the Cumberland Gap National Park where Daniel Boone found a way to cross the Appalachian Mountains into Tennessee & Kentucky - a new visit for us. BUT, I'll return to this thread since MUCH else needs to be covered in my review of Winston-Salem - Dave

 

[scifan57]

For those reading this thread, Susan & I are going on a short trip tomorrow to the Tennessee Mountains, northeast of Knoxville - a one day trip will be to the Cumberland Gap National Park where Daniel Boone found a way to cross the Appalachian Mountains into Tennessee & Kentucky - a new visit for us. BUT, I'll return to this thread since MUCH else needs to be covered in my review of Winston-Salem - Dave

I await your thread on the Cumberland Gap.

 

[giradman]

I await your thread on the Cumberland Gap.

Will add some additional posts to my Knoxville travelogue - looking forward to seeing where Daniel Boone developed a 'gap' between the mountains! Dave

 

[giradman]

Post-Civil War Winston & Salem

Well, several months ago, the last posts to this travelogue discussed the effects of the Civil War on Salem w/ its decline as the companion community of Winston emerged and prospered as the county seat with the arrival of a number of important individuals (particularly RJ Reynolds & the Hanes family), who established important industries in the town related to tobacco initially, but expanding into textiles and furniture; railroad activity was also important - short quote below of this development (Source).

Richard Joshua Reynolds began his tobacco empire in Winston in 1875, and by the time of his death, he had become the wealthiest man in North Carolina. The legacy of the Reynolds family to the Winston-Salem community over the decades of the 20th century were astounding, including land donated (e.g. Wake Forest University Campus, just a single example) and money infused into the area, mainly for philanthropic purposes. The Reynolds tobacco buildings were mainly in the downtown area initially, and then expanded near the Wake Forest campus - a number of these downtown warehouses have been developed into the Wake Forest Biotech Place (see second quote below w/ pics) - much more to talk about relative to the impact of the Reynolds family and company on our community - additional images below w/ labels - further posts to follow! Dave

For its first two decades, Winston was a sleepy county town. In 1868, work began by Salem and Winston business leaders to connect the town to the North Carolina Railroad.[9] That same year, Thomas Jethro Brown of Davie County rented a former livery stable and established the first tobacco warehouse in Winston. That same year, Pleasant Henderson Hanes, also of Davie, built his first tobacco factory a few feet from Brown's warehouse. In 1875, Richard Joshua Reynolds, of Patrick County, Virginia, built his first tobacco factory a few hundred feet from Hanes's factory. By the 1880s, there were almost 40 tobacco factories in the town of Winston. Hanes and Reynolds would compete fiercely for the next 25 years, each absorbing a number of the smaller manufacturers, until Hanes sold out to Reynolds in 1900 to begin a second career in textiles.

Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center is driving the redevelopment and economic revitalization of a large section on the eastern edge of downtown Winston-Salem. A prime example is Wake Forest Biotech Place, a state-of-the-art multipurpose biotechnology research and innovation center and the sixth building Wake Forest Baptist opened in the growing Wake Forest Innovation Quarter, formerly Piedmont Triad Research Park. The Biotech Place is a world-class 242,000 square foot historic structure comprised of two former R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. warehouses that have been redeveloped into a modern biotech research laboratory (Source).

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