Winston-Salem, North Carolina

• 1. Twin City Origins

  ›

  The year 1913 marked the official merger of two distinct towns into one entity known as Winston-Salem. Before that date, the area contained two separate municipalities with their own histories and identities. The town of Salem originated in 1753 when Bishop August Gottlieb Spangenberg selected a site for Moravian settlers. This settlement grew slowly until the mid-1800s when it became a hub for religious and community life. Meanwhile, the neighboring town of Winston emerged later after the Salem Congregation sold land to Forsyth County in 1849. That new town was initially called the county town before being renamed Winston in 1851 to honor Joseph Winston, a Revolutionary War hero. For decades these two communities existed side by side without formal unification. Business leaders from both sides began discussing connections through the North Carolina Railroad in 1868. By the 1880s the United States Post Office started referring to them together as Winston-Salem. A referendum finally led to their official incorporation as a single city in 1913. Today residents still refer to the place informally as just Winston or sometimes as the Twin City.

• 2. Moravian Heritage

  ›

  On the 6th of January 1766 the first tree was felled for the building of Salem. This event marked the beginning of a unique religious settlement founded by followers of the Moravian Church. The public buildings of the congregation were grouped around a central square known today as Salem Square. These structures included a church, a Brethren's House, and a Sisters' House for unmarried members who owned all property in town. Only members of the Moravian Church were permitted to live there for many years until practices ended during the American Civil War. Old Salem Museums & Gardens now preserves much of this history with restored original buildings. The Moravian sunrise service has been held at God's Acre Cemetery each Easter morning since 1772. Thousands of worshipers attend annually including some traveling from overseas. The community also hosts the Cobblestone Farmers Market every Saturday from spring through early autumn. Bethabara Historic District remains another site where Moravians from Pennsylvania first settled in North Carolina. It includes a museum and offers hiking trails alongside birdwatching opportunities among diverse trees and plants.

• 3. Industrial Titans

  ›

  R.J. Reynolds founded his tobacco company in 1875 and later introduced Camel cigarettes in 1913. By the 1940s sixty percent of Winston-Salem workers employed themselves either at Reynolds or within Hanes textile factories. The Reynolds company imported French cigarette paper and Turkish tobacco so heavily that federal authorities designated Winston-Salem an official port of entry despite its inland location. In 1916 it became the eighth-largest port of entry in the United States. R.J. Reynolds died in 1918 leaving behind a company owning one hundred twenty-one buildings across the city. His firm purchased property in 1917 to build one hundred eighty houses sold at cost to workers forming Reynoldstown. The Reynolds Building completed construction in 1929 as a twenty-one floor skyscraper designed by William F. Lamb. This structure served as headquarters for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company until becoming the prototype for New York City's Empire State Building built four years later. Pleasant Henderson Hanes founded Shamrock Knitting Mills which eventually merged into what is now known as Hanesbrands manufacturing textiles today.

• 4. Educational Landscape

  ›

  Simon Green Atkins founded Slater Industrial Academy in 1892 which evolved into Winston-Salem State University. This public historically black university remains a cornerstone institution serving diverse student populations. Wake Forest College relocated from Wake Forest North Carolina to Winston-Salem in 1956 transforming into Wake Forest University. Salem Academy has provided education to young women since 1772 making it the oldest continuously operating educational institution for women in America. The University of North Carolina School of the Arts stands as the first public arts conservatory in the United States. Forsyth Technical Community College offers vocational training alongside these larger universities. Private institutions include Carolina Christian College and Living Arts Institute among others. The district operates fifty-one elementary schools plus twenty-five middle schools and thirteen high schools totaling about ninety schools with nearly sixty thousand students. West Forsyth High School holds the largest student body population exceeding two thousand four hundred pupils during the 2017-2018 school year. The system ranks fourth-largest in North Carolina by enrollment numbers.

• 5. Modern Innovation Quarter

  ›

  Public and private investment totaling seven hundred thirteen million dollars created the Wake Forest Innovation Quarter. This district anchors the east end of downtown Winston-Salem under governance by the Wake Forest School of Medicine. Ninety companies operate within its boundaries employing over three thousand six hundred workers. Eighteen hundred students seek college degrees while more than eight thousand workforce trainees participate annually. Over one thousand residential units exist inside the quarter covering office laboratory and educational spaces spanning multiple square feet. The goal drives economic development through programs designed for tenants and residents seeking new ideas. In 2019 the Innovation Quarter became one of nine steering committee members of the Global Institute on Innovation Districts. Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist serves as the largest employer in Winston-Salem contributing significantly to medical research growth. Herbalife opened a manufacturing facility in January 2015 occupying space previously vacated by Dell which closed its computer assembly plant in January 2010 due to poor economic conditions.

• 6. Cultural Arts Scene

  ›

  The city established the first arts council in the United States called the Arts Council of Winston-Salem Forsyth County in 1949. Multiple galleries restaurants workshops and theaters populate Sixth and Trade Streets forming the Downtown Arts District. SECCA operates as a multimedia contemporary art gallery founded in 1956 accredited by the American Alliance of Museums in 1979. The Reynolda House Museum of American Art features collections ranging from colonial periods to present day built originally in 1917 by Katherine Smith Reynolds. Kaleideum opened the 17th of February 2024 as an interactive children's museum combining exhibits from previous institutions with new halls including a rooftop playground. Drive-In Studio operated between 1980 and 1994 recording equipment set up inside Mitch Easter parents garage became crucial for early indie rock scenes. Artists like R.E.M recorded their debut EP Chronic Town there in 1981 alongside Pylon Suzanne Vega Game Theory and The Connells. Baity's Backstreet Music Garden burned down in 1993 after hosting performances by Ramones Guns N Roses Blue Öyster Cult and others annually since its establishment in 1982.