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Perfect Weekend | Winston-Salem | December 2001 Beyond Old Salem By Ralph
Grizzle With good reason, Winston-Salem's dominant tourism attraction is Old Salem. The historic district near downtown is one of the most authentic restorations in the United States. No visit to Winston-Salem would be complete without a stroll along Old Salem's cobblestone streets. And while doing just that would be part of my perfect weekend here, my assignment was to look deeper into what the city has to offer beyond Old Salem. The possibilities appeared to be boundless. For starters, consider the arts. Winston-Salem, which bills itself as the "City of the Arts," has received national acclaim for its arts programs. Show magazine called the city the "culturopolis of the South" in 1964. In 1978, U.S. News & World Report called Winston-Salem a cultural "miracle." The next year, Smithsonian magazine said that being in Winston-Salem was equivalent to being in Pamplona for the running of the bulls. "It is that festive, that devoted to what is happening, that spirited and, in fact, that inspiriting," the magazine reported. Winston-Salem boasts not only the nation's first arts council but also first place nationally in per capita contributions to the arts. The city has impressive art galleries, museums and performance centers. The renowned North Carolina School of the Arts is here as well as a symphony and even an opera company. Surely, these could provide worthwhile diversions for the tourist. Then there's the Moravian influence, which adds cultural and historical depth that appeals to visitors in places other than in Old Salem, at Historic Bethabara, for example. The Moravians also perpetuated the artistic endeavors that later would put Winston-Salem on the cultural map. Moravians created some of the earliest chamber music in North America and crafted pottery from Carolina clay. Moreover, residents of Winston-Salem enjoy one of the highest qualities of life in the state. Forsyth County per-capita income for 1998, the latest year for which figures were available, was $31,304, nearly 25 percent more than the statewide average of $25,181. The same data that year reveals that Forsyth ranked third among the state's 100 counties in per capita income. The region's quality of life surely would manifest itself during my visit through fine restaurants, upscale shops, galleries and museums. But Winston-Salem beyond Old Salem poses problems for the visitor. First, there is no hub from which spokes project to the various attractions. While Old Salem is conveniently located and easy to get to, other attractions are miles apart and often difficult to reach for those unfamiliar with the layout of the city. Aware that visitors are challenged in linking the disparate pockets of attractions, the Convention and Visitors Bureau is working to develop "trails" to ease the process of getting from one attraction to another. Downtown
itself, which could serve as the hub, offers little of interest to the
visitor. City officials are working to improve and revitalize downtown,
but for now, only a smattering of attractions draw visitors to city
center. Day
One For dessert, I was tempted to have a B&G Homemade Pie, made and packaged in Winston-Salem. I enjoyed these as a kid, but after examining the calorie and fat content, I put the pie, packaged in wax paper, back in its carton by the cash register. I talked briefly with the restaurant's owner, Richard Berrier, who bills himself as "chef de swine." Berrier founded the restaurant with a partner in 1991 (the restaurant appears to be older because the building it is in was erected in 1968). A few years back, the partner split and opened another restaurant, which he also called Little Richards, in nearby Clemmons. No bitter feelings, but Berrier said he wants folks to know that his location is the original location and the only one in Winston that continues to cook its barbecue over a pit of hickory and hardwood coals. The proof was in the pork. I loved it. In the city center, I checked into the Adams Mark Winston Plaza on Cherry Street. As North Carolina's second largest hotel, the towering Adams Mark has 605 guest rooms. I had booked mine on the upper floors with views of distant Pilot Mountain and Hanging Rock. Club Level access allowed me entrance to the staffed Club Lounge, which provided not only great views southward but also complimentary continental breakfast and evening hors d'oeurves. There are other equally good accommodations in Winston-Salem, including the Brookstown Inn, a 71-room room property adjacent to Old Salem. On the National Historic Register, the inn was a former warehouse and Winston-Salem's oldest factory. One of the largest historic Inns in North America, it features guest rooms typically with exposed brick, original beams and rafters. The high-ceilinged rooms are spacious and comfortable. Also appealing was the Augustus T. Zevely Inn, the only lodging in the Old Salem Historic District. The 12-room bed and breakfast has been meticulously and accurately restored to its mid-19th century appearance. The "Winter Kitchen" suite accommodates four, great for families. A "continental plus" breakfast is served during the week and a full buffet breakfast on weekends. Fresh fruit, fruit juices, and Moravian baked goods are always offered at breakfast. I turned in to the twinkle of city lights spread below me and awoke the next morning to blue skies and views of the mountains to the north. Time to get going. Saturday
Morning: Old Salem Though I would be here only for the morning, tickets allow for two days unlimited admission to the homes and community buildings on the self-guided tour. I visited the Single Brothers House, a restored example of a Germanic half-timbered construction (1768-86). It was used as a trade school for Moravian boys beginning at around age 14 and as a dormitory for master craftsmen, journeymen, and apprentices. Inside,
costumed interpreters were busy at work, and I learned a great deal
about colonial craftsmanship. The tavern's most important guest was George Washington, who stayed from May 31 to June 2, 1791. Moravian records show the president arrived the afternoon of the 31st in a cream-colored coach with his secretary, several outriders, and servants. A brass band and a cheering crowd greeted him. I was greeted less ceremoniously, with only a polite hello. Mid-morning, I stopped at Old Salem's Winkler Bakery, established in 1800. I watched as costumed interpreters loaded and unloaded the old wood-fired oven with loaves of bread. I found the smell of fresh baked bread to be immensely pleasing, and on the way out, I sampled a piece of the famous coffeecake, which piqued my hunger. I considered
taking lunch at the 1816 tavern annex, where a costumed staff serves
lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday (plus lunch on Sunday, March
through December). Some menu items are authentic Moravian fare. My favorite
on past trips was the Moravian Chicken Pie. Not this time. I returned
to my car to make my way across town to Reynolda Village. Afternoon
At Reynolda After lunch, I walked to Reynolda House and the Museum of American Art where I paid $6 to view the impressive collection of American masterpieces scattered throughout the gracious 64-room estate where R.J. and Katherine Reynolds lived. The architecture, furnishings and costume collection reflect the Reynolds' tastes. The artwork, on the other hand, reflects three centuries of major American paintings, prints and sculptures by the likes of Jacob Lawrence, Jasper Johns, Stuart Davis and Georgia O'Keeffe. The works are regarded as one of the finest collections of American art in North America. A National Historic Property, Reynolda House adjoins Reynolda Gardens of Wake Forest University. Originally a part of the 1,000-acre Reynolds estate, the gardens include four acres of formal gardens, a greenhouse range, and 125 acres of fields and woodlands. The gardens were sublime. Nearby
Reynolda House is the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art (SECCA),
a series of cascading galleries housed in the 1929 English hunting lodge
home of the late industrialist, James G. Hanes. I intended to visit
the galleries but was pressed for time, as I wanted to make back downtown
for a street festival at the city-designated "Avenue of the Arts,"
on Trade and Sixth streets. Eclectic
Arts At 600 North Trade Street, I stopped in at the Fiber Company, a collective established by fiber artists and designers. I browsed the shop and gallery, which presents the work of member artists as well as that of other craftsmen. Nearby, at 560 North Trade Street, was Artworks Gallery, an artist-run cooperative that also exhibits member work. Because the owners were so friendly and the beads so appealingly abundant, I stopped in at The Bead Bar, 537-A Trade Street. After pondering the colorful and exotic beads, I wandered along to 610 Trade Street, where Earthbound Arts bills itself as "a magical world of handcrafted soap, candles, stained glass, copperwork, natural herbs, cards, jewelry, gourmet pickles and jams, and much more." All products are made locally. I've never been in a place that smelled better. I could have made an entire weekend of shopping. Hanes Mall, the largest mall between Washington D.C. And Atlanta, features more than 200 stores. erl Originals, at 3069 Trenwest Drive, represents more than 400 American artists in 8,000-square-feet of gallery space. Piedmont Craftsmen Gallery, at 1204 Reynolda Road, showcases the work of more than 350 of the Southeast's finest craft artists. Well, I could have shopped the weekend, but I did not. It was time for dinner. Within walking distance, albeit a long walk from the Avenue of the Arts, I dined at Fourth Street Filling Station, at 871 West Fourth Street. Originally an old gas station, the restaurant offers what locals tell me is the best patio dining in town. If the weather outside is too chilly for dining al fresco, inside there is a fireplace to break the chill. I dined on the pan-seared Filet Mignon with cognac cream sauce served over buttermilk mashed potatoes. It was divine. The evening ended back at the Adams Mark, where a friendly bartender poured me a Newcastle. I spent time that evening in the glass-enclosed, heated swimming pool and sweated in the dry sauna. Later, I went down to one of the hotel's two lounges, where a jazz band played for a small group of customers. Day
Three My destination was Historic Bethabara, the first colonial town established in the Carolina Piedmont. Originally intended to be a temporary town from which the central Moravian town of Salem and outlying farming communities would be developed, the settlement continued as a Moravian community long after Salem was established. A National Historic Landmark, the 1753 site of the first Moravian settlement in North Carolina was the area's frontier trade and religious center until 1772. Set in a beautiful 175-acre park, Bethabara was the only "House of Passage" built by the Moravians at any of their colonial settlements in the New World. I toured the 1788 congregation house known as the Gemeinhaus; visited the archaeological remains in the reconstructed palisade fort; and strolled through the historic gardens. Satisfied that I had sufficiently edified myself, I returned to downtown, and over a hoagie at the West End Café, I read the Sunday edition of the Winston-Salem Journal. I learned that my trip coincided with the first installment of a five-part series that suggested that Winston-Salem was at a crossroads. In recent census data, the Journal reported, Durham edged out Winston-Salem as the state's fourth largest city. One reason for sluggish population growth, the Journal reported, was Winston-Salem's inability to attract and keep young adults to the area. Contrast this to 1920, when, thanks to the tobacco, textile, furniture and other industries that lured thousands of workers, Winston-Salem was the largest city in North Carolina. Wachovia Corp.'s merger with Charlotte-based First Union will mean the loss of what the Journal called, "the most dependable of the four large corporations that helped define the city," and that too cannot bode well for the city as it struggles to attract young adults. "The past lingers brightly here," the Journal reported. "It is a past built on everyday items such as cigarettes and socks, made in Winston-Salem and shipped around the world." But tobacco is no longer king, and socks and other textiles are now shipped to North Carolina from around the world. Even Winston-Salem's reputation as the City of the Arts is being eclipsed. Charlotte, for example, though admittedly richer and more populous boasts more galleries and works of public art than Winston-Salem. And as a place for artists and craftspeople to live, Asheville is emerging as the destination of choice for many. Being in Winston-Salem may no longer be the equivalent to being in Pamplona during the running of the bulls, but there is something satisfying in the charm and history that remains on this chunk of land that German-speaking Protestants were drawn to centuries ago. |
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