Old Salem
Museums & Gardens a biannual magazine for friends and supporters | spring 2o14
gardens | meet people behind old salem | boys’ school
board of trustees
old salem museums & gardens 6oo south main street winston-salem, north carolina 271o1 oldsalem.org | phone 336-721-735o | fax 336-721-7335
Old Salem Museums & Gardens consists of three museums: The Historic Town of Salem is a restored Moravian congregation town dating back to 1766, with costumed interpreters bringing the late-18th and early-19th centuries to life. Restored original buildings, faithful reconstructions, and historically accurate gardens and landscapes make the Historic Town of Salem one of America’s most authentic historical attractions. The Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA) collects, exhibits, researches, and educates the public about the decorative arts made and used by people living and working in Maryland, Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, Kentucky, and Tennessee, from the 17th century to the beginning of the Civil War. The Gardens of Old Salem are award-winning restorations that create a landscape reminiscent of early Salem where utility, practicality, and beauty are united. The gardens are authentically planted with open pollinated heirlooms that have been propagated from the museum’s heritage seed saving program.
Ms. Betsy Annese Dr. Anthony Atala Mr. Nicholas B. Bragg Mr. Michael Ernst Mr. Paul Fulton Mr. W. Ted Gossett Mr. James A. Gray, III Mr. Robert E. Greene Dr. Edward G. Hill, Jr. Mrs. Ann A. Johnston Mr. Henry H. Jordan, II Ms. Judy Lambeth Mr. Joseph P. Logan Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Mercier Mrs. Erika Mielke Mrs. Christine Minter-Dowd Mr. Anthony Montag Mrs. Paulette J. Morant Count Christoph Nostitz Ms. Margaret Beck Pritchard Dr. Thomas H. Sears, Jr. Mr. Anthony Slater Mr. Daniel R. Taylor, Jr. Mrs. Margaret D. Townsend Mr. Samuel H. Wauford, Jr. Mr. Philip Zea
ex-officio members Mr. Franklin C. Kane Ms. Molly A. Leight Mr. Tracey Parks Dr. Susan Pauly
senior staff
This publication is produced by Old Salem Museums & Gardens, which is operated by Old Salem, Inc., a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit educational corporation organized in 1950 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The Old Salem Museums & Gardens logo and name are registered trademarks, and may not be used by outside parties without permission. © 2014 Old Salem Museums & Gardens Produced by Capture Public Relations & Marketing Editorial Support by Tyler Cox
Ragan Folan President & CEO Eric Hoyle Vice President Administration & CFO Frances Beasley Vice President Development John Larson Vice President Restoration Robert Leath Vice President Collections & Research Paula Locklair Vice President Education
Contents
spring 2o14 | volume 9 | number 1
1 2 7 12 14 16 18 2o 22 26 28 29
From the President News & Notes from Old Salem The Gardens of Historic Salem: A Bountiful Place MESDA Transforms Metals and Chowan Galleries Cindy Kepley: Best Part of the Day is When a Child Makes a Connection Leo Rucker: “I’m Not Just a Tour Guide, I’m a Storyteller” Stewart Butler: MESDA’s Newest Tour Guide Learns More with Every Tour A Treasure Trove of Historical Resources: MESDA Research Center New to the Collection The Salem Boys’ School: A Re-interpretation Pillars of Our Community: Bonding Together as Business Friends of Old Salem Calendar of Events
Cover photo: Vegetables flourish in the Triebel Lot Garden against the backdrop of the Single Brothers’ House. Photo by Jay Sinclair.
Find Inspiration for Your Garden at
the Garden Shop at
t. bagge merchant
626 S. Main Street · Winston- Salem Featuring heirloom plants grown by Old Salem’s Horticulture staff, seeds, pots, windchimes, decorative items, and much more.
oldsalem.org
336-721-735o
Letter from the President Dear Friends, As I look at out my window, I can see that spring has finally arrived here at Old Salem Museums & Gardens. Like much of the east coast, we had a tough winter in North Carolina, so it is exciting to witness the flowers blooming and the leaves budding on the trees. Doesn’t it seem that spring always brings a sense of renewal and fresh energy? Here in the district, we call it “Springtime in Old Salem, Where Everything is New Again.” As I reflect on the feeling of new energy that the warm weather brings, I am delighted to report that there’s more than just springtime “newness” at Old Salem. There’s an overall sense of new energy, new ideas, and new projects that are propelling us forward. Not only are we working on new exhibits and new activities, but in addition, our museums and gardens are getting more and more exposure locally and nationwide. Our staff is out presenting, lecturing, and participating in events and conferences throughout the Southeast, helping spread the word about our wonderful organization. The Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA) has been connecting and reaching out in many new ways. In January, MESDA’s programming went on the road to Charleston, South Carolina for the biennial textile seminar, which included partnering with three prominent local institutions: Historic Charleston Foundation, the Preservation Society of Charleston, and Middleton Place Foundation. In February, MESDA was prominently featured at the 2014 Williamsburg Antiques Forum. Robert Leath, Chief Curator and Vice President, Collections and Research, serves on the advisory board and governing board for Montpelier and advisory boards for the Charleston and New Orleans Antiques Forums. The education department also has been busy! Cheryl Harry, Director of African American Programming, spearheaded our partnership with Wake Forest University and Winston-Salem State University to present a conference in October, Lay My Burden Down: Freedom and Legacies of the Civil War. Darlee Snyder, Director of Education and Outreach Programming, and Joanna Roberts, Supervisor for Living History, attended the Mars American Heritage Chocolate Society meeting at Mt. Vernon. Because we have done an excellent job incorporating heritage chocolate into our programming and education, Mars awarded us a special $3,000 grant.
Vice President for Restoration John Larson gave the keynote address at the Colonial Dames Annual Meeting in Charlotte in April and is currently serving on the Architectural Review Board at Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest and on the Mt. Vernon Advisory Committee. As you can see, our team is working hard to share our talents and scholarship. I hope you will enjoy reading more about all the good work occurring in the Town of Salem, at MESDA and in our Gardens in this issue. Please come visit us soon and feel the energy of springtime in Old Salem! Best,
Ragan Folan President & CEO Old Salem Museums & Gardens
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News & Notes from old salem New Faces and Old Faces in New Places Old Salem Welcomes Joseph Hamby Joseph Hamby has joined Old Salem as Visitor Center Manager. In this role, he is responsible for all activities relating to the Visitor Center, including retail operations. A key part of his focus is the customer’s experience at the Old Salem Visitor Center, which is a crucial point of interface with our visitors. “The Visitor Center is the primary source for general information, programs, memberships, and tickets for the Museums & Gardens,” said Eric Hoyle, Vice President-Finance & Chief Administrative Officer. “It is often a visitor’s first point of contact with our organization and we’re excited to have Joseph helping us make this experience the best it can be. He’s already implemented some new ideas that have improved our presentation.” Prior to coming to Old Salem, Hamby served as the Manager of Tucker Student Center at Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs, North Carolina. He was also previously employed as a Student Pastor at Westview Baptist Church, and as a Membership Specialist at the Cleveland County YMCA, both in Shelby, North Carolina. Hamby received his B.A. in Communications from Gardner-Webb University in 2009 and his M.A. in Leadership from Liberty University in 2013. Jenny Garwood Moves Into New Role at MESDA Jenny Garwood, a former Guide Coordinator at the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA), has moved into a new position in the MESDA Research Center. Her new title is Research Associate and in this position her primary responsibility is reading period newspapers, estate records, court records, and other materials from MESDA’s seven-state region in an effort to identify new craftsmen working in the early South. In her previous position as Guide Coordinator, she helped oversee the guide staff and also led tours on a variety of subjects. She has a special interest in textiles and has lectured and completed independent research on a variety of textiles including samplers, quilts, coverlets, and more.
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Recent Additions and Changes in the Development Department Wilson Pace, who has been part of Old Salem’s Development Department since June 2010, has moved into a new position as Development Officer at MESDA. In this new role, he is focusing on acquisition, retention, and stewardship for Friends of MESDA and the Frank L. Horton Society. Wilson also is responsible for coordinating MESDA’s fundraising events and assisting with special fundraising projects. Another important function for Wilson is stewarding gifts to our collections. Two new employees have joined the Development staff. Sarah Chandler is the new Coordinator of Development Events and Constance Moore is the Coordinator of Gift Records. Sarah is responsible for growing the fundraising and revenue goals associated with donor and prospect events and programs that support the overall fundraising goals for Old Salem Museums & Gardens. She also is responsible for cultivation, stewardship, and membership events, and will work collaboratively on events that engage community members at special events. Constance is responsible for coordinating and implementing all aspects of gift entry, gift acknowledgment, and donor records management. She also provides general office support for the Development Department and supports the overall fundraising goals and objectives of the museums.
News & Notes from old salem MESDA Launches Online Craftsman Database Identifying the people who made antique furniture, ceramics, and other decorative arts just became much easier. The Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA) is delighted to announce that it launched its full-text, online Craftsman Database in early January 2014. The database is a powerful resource for historians, collectors, and those researching their family histories. “It is very exciting to see this project come to fruition. Now decades of MESDA research will be searchable in more flexible ways and available to a much broader audience spurring new discoveries,” Maurie McInnis, Professor of American Art and Material Culture, Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, University of Virginia, said. MESDA’s Craftsman Database contains information about artisans gathered through primary research in public and private records. The purpose of the database is to collect and make accessible data on the lives and working habits of artisans working in the South before 1861. Focusing on Maryland, Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, Tennessee, and Kentucky, the MESDA research associates scour newspapers, city directories, court records, probate inventories, wills, and private papers in search of information pertaining to southern craftsmen working in 127 trades. The records for the craftsmen vary from simple directory listings to complex descriptions of work produced, land transactions, vital statistics, and how products were produced and sold, as a few examples. “The online version of the MESDA Craftsman Database has raised the nation’s premier archive on the subject to a new level of accessibility,” Ronald L. Hurst, Vice President for Collections, Conservation, and Museums and Chief Curator, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation,
said. “This is an essential tool for anyone doing research on the material culture of the Early South.” Anyone with a computer and an internet connection will be able to search and browse this invaluable resource—for free. Simply visit mesda.org and click on the “Research” navigation button. There you will find the online Craftsman Database, which is not only keyword searchable but also has advanced search features that allow for researching in ways not possible with the original “analog” index cards. New information is being added to the database as MESDA’s research associates continue reading primary documents from the antebellum South. Digitizing the approximately 250,000 index cards in the database was not a simple process. To accomplish the task, MESDA partnered with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Carolina Digital Library and Archives to assess the project and follow through with its completion. Funding was provided through a grant from the MARPAT Foundation and a generous gift from David and Martha Rowe. The online Craftsman Database allows for keyword searches as well as advanced searches to filter by artisan name, geographic location, trade, and dates.
Old Salem reaches 1o,ooo Facebook Likes Although the town of Salem was established in 1766, it is keeping up with the times and embracing Social Media. In February, Old Salem’s Facebook Page reached 10,000 likes and the number continues to climb! This is a great indicator that we’re reaching more and more people and keeping up-to-date with the various ways audiences are now accessing information. If you haven’t liked Old Salem on Facebook, do it today! You can also follow Old Salem on Twitter at @OldSalemInc. Or find us on Instagram @oldsaleminc #oldsalem.
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News & Notes from old salem The 18oo Tannenberg Organ Celebrates Ten Year Anniversary! 2014 marks the tenth anniversary of the restoration of the 1800 Tannenberg Organ. Located in the James A. Gray, Jr. Auditorium in the Old Salem Visitor Center, this magnificent organ is an important part of Moravian history. David Tannenberg completed the organ in 1800 for Home Moravian Church here in Winston-Salem. It was dismantled in 1910, but thankfully its historical significance was recognized and it was not destroyed. Instead it remained in storage in various locations for 88 years, until its restoration was undertaken beginning in 1998. Tannenberg built about 40 organs during a career that began in 1758 and ended with his death in 1804. Unfortunately, only nine organs survive, and many of these have been significantly modified from their original design. The organ built for Home Moravian Church, the largest extant example of Tannenberg’s work, is the only surviving two-manual Tannenberg, and is largely intact. With meticulous care, this organ was restored to its original state by Taylor & Boody Organbuilders of Staunton, Virginia. The restoration process took place from 1998 – 2004. Musically and visually it stands in Old Salem as a tribute to the talent and craftsmanship of a master organ builder and his remarkable musical achievement in the North Carolina Backcountry. To honor this organ, Old Salem is holding many concerts and events throughout the year. The celebrations kicked off the weekend of March 14 and 15 with a special evening concert Friday night featuring organist Peter Sykes. The next day, Saturday, March 15, offered visitors an opportunity to view and hear the organ at a free “birthday party.” Visitors enjoyed organ demonstrations and even a birthday cake in honor of David Tannenberg, who was born on March 21, 1728. 4 | old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14
additional celebrations include: Wednesdays in July, 12 p.m. Tannenberg Organ Recitals Free admission, featuring various local and regional organists September 26, 7:30 p.m. Organ Concert* Peter DuBois, Assistant Professor of Sacred Music, Eastman School of Music, Rochester, NY September 27, 11 a.m. Lecture: The Future of Church Music and Thoughts on “With Heart and Voice” Free admission! Presented by Peter DuBois, Assistant Professor of Sacred Music, Eastman School of Music, and host of the public radio program “With Heart and Voice” Wednesdays in December, 12 p.m. Tannenberg Organ Recitals Free admission, featuring various local and regional organists *Organ Concert Admission: $15 adults / $5 students. To purchase tickets, please contact Tours & Reservations (1-800-441-5305). Tickets will also be available for purchase at the door, pending availability. A reception with the organist will follow each concert.
News & Notes from old salem New Exhibit in the J. Blum House:
“Karsten Petersen & Sons: A Trade Shop in Transition” The dawn of the 19th century brought new woodworkers to Salem. One of these, Karsten Petersen (1776 – 1857), originally from Christiansfeld, Denmark, arrived in 1806 only to leave shortly thereafter to serve as a Moravian missionary and tradesman at the Creek mission established by Colonel Benjamin Hawkins, the chief United States agent to the Creek Indians. Petersen returned to Salem in 1813, set up a turner’s shop and focused on the production of chairs, tables, and textile equipment such as reels and spinning wheels. Before long, Petersen’s establishment transitioned into a shop that also produced case furniture in the new classical style. Petersen and his sons, William (1817 – 1898) and Edward (1827 – 1906), operated one of the most important cabinet shops in 19thcentury Salem. Although there were other cabinetmakers’ shops in Salem at the time, some of which were founded by Petersen apprentices, such as Jacob Siewers, the Petersen shop is credited with defining the style of mid19th century Salem furniture. The Petersen school of cabinetmaking shows the influence of Danish-born Karsten Petersen and his sons as the two generations worked side by side. After their father’s death in 1857, William and Edward continued the shop until the end of the 19th century. A new exhibit opened March 21, 2014, in the J. Blum House at Old Salem Museums & Gardens that showcases examples of the furniture and equipment produced in the Petersen family shop and explores the Petersens’ influence on furniture style in Salem in the 19th century.
desk and bookcase by karsten petersen
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News & Notes from old salem Things are happening on Salt Street in Old Salem!
Hagen House
Barbara Babcock Millhouse has donated the Hagen House on Salt Street to Old Salem Museums & Gardens. She purchased the home in 1956 from Old Salem, Inc. and restored it in 1957 to the way it looked in 1828. The home was originally built in 1816 by a tailor named John Hagen, who made several additions to the home in 1828. Francis Hagen, one of John’s sons, grew up in the home and went on to compose the wellknown Moravian Christmas hymn “Morning Star.” The restoration of the Hagen House in 1957 was one of the first restorations of a building after the creation of Old Salem Museums & Gardens that was not on Salem Square. Millhouse was an early pioneer in the restoration efforts that began after Old Salem, Inc. was established in 1950.
Salt-Flax House
The ca. 1815 Salt Flax House at 508 Salt Street has been purchased by Margaret Bullock. As reported in the last issue of this magazine, the Salt-Flax House is one of the last remaining unrestored original structures in Old Salem. During the 19th century, John Leinbach used this house, which was originally a one room log house, for his trade in salt and flax seed. The purchase of this house by Margaret Bullock means that it will be restored to its early 19th-century original form. The restoration will be made much easier due to the recent architectural research performed by Jason Aldrich (a National Society of Colonial Dames of America, North Carolina intern who worked with Old Salem during the summer of 2013) with the supervision and assistance of John Larson, Vice President, Restoration, and David Bergstone, Director, Architecture.
“We are extremely grateful to Barbara Babcock Millhouse for this donation,” said Ragan Folan, President & CEO of Old Salem. “The Hagen House was an early building in the Salem settlement and therefore is important both historically and architecturally.” The Hagen House will remain a private residence.
top left: barbara babcock millhouse and ragan folan bottom left: the hagen house today top right: a rendering of what the salt-flax house looked like in the early 19th century. above: ragan folan and margaret bullock
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the gardens of historic salem
A Bountiful
Place
by gregory carpenter
“People who come to Old Salem see gardens that they can relate to. These are not vast, vast gardens. These are small gardens that the homeowner can come and see and even think about putting in his own backyard . . . the gardens make Salem come alive.� Flora Ann Bynum old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14 | 7
Ask a member of the Old Salem Museums & Gardens Horticulture staff for his or her favorite time of day to experience the glory of the historic gardens, and you’ll hear a unanimous response: Early mornings—when the landscape shimmers from a summer morning’s dew. “In addition to the sparkle of the morning dew, I appreciate the serenity and quiet during this time of day,” Vonnie Hannah, Old Salem’s Greenhouse and Programs Manager, said. “Mornings also are a time to appreciate the fauna in the gardens, from the darting birds to the lazy hum of self-pollinators, like the wealth of bees that call our gardens home.” Admiration for the gardens of Old Salem didn’t begin on a morning in 2014 or even during the decades since the restoration of the village began in the 1950s. Listen to the observations of William Loughton Smith from his 1791 journal about life in Salem: “The first view of the town is romantic, just as it breaks upon you through the wood; it is pleasantly seated on a rising ground and is surrounded by beautiful meadows, well-cultivated fields and shady woods.” Today, Old Salem’s Horticulture Program is focused on re-creating a landscape where utility, practicality, and beauty unite for the enjoyment of visitors and residents alike. Relying on the highly detailed records of the Moravians, the Horticulture Program at Old Salem has worked for more than 40 years to establish a historically accurate landscape. Seeds have been carefully preserved, native trees and shrubs have been reintroduced, historic fencing separating lots and meadows has been reconstructed, and research continues to learn more about Moravian gardening practices. The result: beautiful, productive gardens once again are a dominant feature of the entire historic area. “One of our primary gardens is the Single Brothers’ Garden, located on the site of Old Salem’s former visitor center. At the time it was restored a decade ago, it was considered the largest garden restoration project in America,” Robbie King, Old Salem’s Director of Facilities, said. “The original intent of the Single Brothers’ Garden, which began about 1769, was to grow food for members of the Single Brothers’ House.”
above: ellen mccullough and robbie king top, third from left: chet tomlinson
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The gardens at Old Salem showcase horticulture practices of the Moravians in Salem from 1769, when the Single Brothers’ Garden was first planted, to 1856, when Salem’s gardens transitioned from mostly food production to ornamentals as exhibited in the Cape Fear Lot
garden. Although Salem was not a farming community, each resident’s lot featured a yard for household chores, a large garden area, and a small rear orchard—all neatly fenced.
In addition to records of the Moravians of the 18th and 19th centuries, the gardens of Old Salem would not be showcased without the tireless efforts of a 20th century gardening visionary: Flora Ann Bynum.
“Today, we try to grow as many vegetables and herbs as possible from that “Flora Ann is largely responsible for gathering the data that is used to prepare today’s gardens in Salem. She was the driving force behind the period in the gardens,” King said. “Our goal is to give visitors a crossrestoration and beauty of the gardens that visitors now enjoy,” King said. section of Salem’s gardening history.” “Although Flora Ann uncovered an incredible wealth of information about the gardens, much more research is needed not only about the Salem’s historic methods and sustainable practices remain more relevant plantings but about the arbors, fences, and other ‘bones’ of historic today than ever, and Old Salem’s gardens include open-pollinated Salem.” Currently, gardener Bill Crow is scouring the records with the vegetables, flowers, herbs, fruits, and grains with seed saving as a core aim of creating a compendium of all documented plants. mission. Bounty from the gardens and orchards is used seasonally in Old Salem’s museum kitchens, where delicious smells draw visitors As a part of that aim, Eric Jackson, Heritage Gardens and Outreach to firesides and bake ovens to experience—and learn—about early staff at Old Salem, is working to discover gardening secrets from past American cooking techniques. generations. He initiated a program called Seeds with Stories, which is an effort to collect heirloom seeds from the Moravian community along Another showcase garden at Old Salem is the Triebel Lot Garden, which with the related gardening stories. features a diagonal pattern of planting that was inspired by the design of the 1759 Upland Garden in Bethabara. While records are not clear as to the exact nature of the diagonal plan, the plan does functionally provide “From time to time, people come to Old Salem to share seeds from their grandparents’ or even great-grandparents’ gardens,” Jackson said. for varying lengths of planting rows and may also address erosion from “Of course, the seeds are very old, but we try to germinate them and water flowing across the bed—not to mention the inherit beauty of the have a good track record of success. Almost as important as growing diagonal form. plants from the seeds is capturing the wonderful gardening stories of earlier generations.” The Moravians were meticulous record keepers, including extensive journals, diaries, plant lists and, later, photographs of the gardens. The As a complement to Old Salem’s museum gardens, many of the private detailed records have made it possible for Old Salem to accurately rehomes in the historic community feature vegetable and flower gardens. create the gardens, as well as incorporate authentic plant materials.
Old Salem’s Gardens: Where Utility, Practicality, and Beauty Unite! Support Old Salem Museums & Gardens’ beautiful gardens as well as the Horticulture program by becoming a Friend of the Gardens! Friends of the Gardens memberships begin at $35.
Flora Ann
bynum society
Flora Ann Bynum Society Donors who make unrestricted annual gifts of $1,000, or more, are members of the Flora Ann Bynum Society. Flora Ann Bynum devoted her talent and time to historic preservation and the restoration of gardens and landscapes. Mrs. Bynum served as the Chairman of the first Landscape Restoration Committee, and was a recognized authority on Moravian horticulture. Restoring the gardens and landscapes of early Salem was made possible by her leadership. For more information visit oldsalem.org/friends-of-the-gardens
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Like the exhibit gardens, the Salem residents’ gardens reflect the period associated with their corresponding homes. Old Salem provides a guide for residents to assist with planning gardens that correspond to a period up until about 1850. As a contrast to the strive for authenticity in Salem’s gardens, the museum also boasts two modern buildings—the Visitor Center and the Horton Museum Center, both located on the southern edge of the district and joined by the impressive wooden Heritage Bridge, which guides visitors across Old Salem Road. In these two locations, Old Salem’s Flowers & Herbs Gardener, Ellen McCullough, orchestrates containers and beds that abound with more contemporary flowers and plants to create seasonal splashes of color and texture. Many days, a visitor can watch McCullough tending one of the modern “gardens” while also enjoying either Greg Jaynes, Family Gardens Manager, or Scott Sipes, Single Brothers’ Garden Manager, toiling away in one of the many exhibit gardens. “By the early 1800s, Salem had a meat market and brought in other products from outlying farms,” King said. “The gardens began to contain more pleasure plants by the mid-1800s but always included vegetables, fruit trees, and herbs for cooking and medicinal purposes.” The centerpiece of Old Salem’s family gardens is located on the Miksch Lot, which was reopened in 2011 after an extensive restoration. The Miksch property now features costumed interpreters in the garden and kitchen who harvest and prepare food grown in the home’s gardens—a seed to table process in action. Before any vegetables are picked or flowers bloom from any garden at Old Salem, there, of course, has to be a seeding process. Old Salem has its own greenhouse to propagate heirloom varieties both for planting and for sale in the T. Bagge Garden Shop. Seeds are either saved from the previous planting season or are acquired from heirloom seed providers. There are no hybrid varieties in Old Salem.
above: vonnie hannah opposite page, first from left: eric jackson
“During the day the weather became much milder than it has been for some time now. The peach trees make a beautiful appearance now, being in full bloom. Got a half bushel sweet potatoes of Mr. Ackerman, which I intend to plant, meaning to raise sweet and Irish potatoes, corn, grass, pumpkins, broom corn and everything else I may need, all on an acre and a half of ground.” John Henry Leinbach diary, 1830 – 1843 1o | old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14
“One of the most common questions our interpreters are asked is what we do with the produce,” King said. “It may seem odd to visitors that we let some of the plants ‘go to seed’ each season, but that’s a crucial step in our preservation program. In addition to seed saving, much of the produce is used in cooking demonstrations and some is even prepared at the Tavern in Old Salem. In the Moravian tradition, nothing goes to waste. “The observation that inspires our horticulture staff the most are children’s reactions to the gardens. Many of our visiting students have never seen a garden before,” he said. “If you remove them from electronic devices, they quickly become equally enthralled with the ability to touch, taste, and smell the wonder of Old Salem’s gardens. Introducing gardening and food preservation techniques to new generations is one of the most rewarding parts of our jobs.” Old Salem’s gardens are consistently listed as one of the programs visitors most enjoy. But the gardens don’t end at the borders of the historic village. A number of robust community outreach programs take place, including speaking engagements, horticulture workshops, and demonstrations, an extensive website and facebook presence, as well as a farmer’s market that opens to the entire community each spring.
“I consider the gardens of Old Salem as a ‘public park’ for our community,” King added with reflection. “Salem’s gardens are an oasis in the middle of WinstonSalem. They’re really our city’s version of Central Park.”
Staff Favorites “Salsify. Eric has introduced this long overlooked vegetable, which is witnessing a comeback in finer restaurants, including the Tavern in Old Salem…a root vegetable with claims to an oyster-like flavor, Salsify is a favorite of Eric’s not only for the fun of eating right out of the ground, but also for a special show of blooms.” Eric Jackson, Heritage Gardens and Outreach “Wild Bleeding Heart. This is a favorite of Ellen’s being a robust shade plant. With finely cut foliage, a burst of pink show in spring, a continuation of blooms throughout the growing season, and a self spreader that reseeds every year. This thriver is showcased in the Levering Garden, one of the family gardens that is interpreted to c. 1820.” Ellen McCullough, Flowers and Herbs Gardener
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mesda transforms metals
and chowan galleries New Lighting, Wall Colors Enhance Visitors’ Experience
by tyler cox
Never underestimate what a new paint color, different flooring, and dramatic lighting can do to enhance a space. The staff at the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA) continues to update and transform galleries to improve the visitors’ experience. New lighting systems, wall colors, and other enhancements have given rise to dramatic transformations, all with careful thought around using green practices. Some of the latest work has been in the Metals and Chowan galleries. One of the first changes visitors likely will notice in the Metals Gallery is the “Hale orange” paint on walls (from a new Benjamin Moore line), cork flooring, and blue burlap on exhibit cases. As Associate Curator Daniel Ackermann explains, “We have tried really hard to bring a sophisticated, but period palette to our galleries. The paint is fun and interesting, and it plays on the objects in a really effective way.” New, low voltage halogen lights, installed on a track, greatly improve the way that objects—such as the iron stove plates and firebacks in the Metals Gallery—are spotlighted. The tracks hang below the ceiling, which has been painted black to draw visitors’ eyes down to objects. “We’re really trying to ensure that we are working with one really good, flexible (lighting) system,” Ackermann said. “So, the combination of color, the lighting, the fact that all of that exhibition equipment just fades away—it really lets you focus on the objects.” Clear cases that display longrifles in the Metals Gallery allow visitors to see more than one side of the rifles, giving a 3-D appreciation. And rifles can be easily rotated in and out of view. Other objects in the Metals Gallery include important swords; powder horns; mapping/survey equipment; the New Market Infantry banner; and a gold medal that the people of Baltimore presented to Lafayette in 1826 during his tour of America. “These objects all really speak to the themes of western migration and exploration and settlement,” Ackermann said.
In the Chowan Gallery, the fourth room on the public MESDA tour, visitors will receive their first exposure to the Lowcountry and South Carolina and Georgia up until ca. 1750. “Chowan is the first of three rooms that tell the Lowcountry story from the very beginning through the Colonial Period, and then into the Neoclassical Period,” Ackermann noted. In the Chowan Gallery, a blue/gray paint on the paneling and doors around the fireplace has been added. For many years, visitors to the gallery saw the southern yellow pine paneling, stripped of its original paint. However, paint analysis by Susan Buck revealed that in the 18th century, the paneling had been painted gray. “There was no easy way to get a good linseed coat on the paneling, because it was so weathered by the elements,” explained Ackermann, “so we worked with our colleagues at Colonial Williamsburg to locate some modern (paint) products to achieve a good, 18th-century appearance without using handmade linseed oil paint.” And like the Metals Gallery, Chowan has new track lighting with halogen bulbs, suspended from a painted-black ceiling. What’s more, the windows in Chowan have received new window treatments, made of green wool, hand woven in England, and very much in the style for a ca. 1730–40s house. The reclaimed wood floor has been stripped of old finish, using a soy gel, another green product. “(MESDA founder) Frank L. Horton was one of the earliest people to use reclaimed wood for his floors,” Ackermann said. “He was buying old wood and having it sawed into floor boards—and they are beautiful.” These updates now enhance the important objects in Chowan, including a ca. 1715 stretcher-base table from Charleston, S.C. This table, important because it shows the earliest use of mahogany in the early South, holds two volumes of English naturalist Mark Catesby’s illustrations of the flora and fauna of Virginia, North and South Carolina and what would become Georgia. The Chowan Gallery also displays an important sampler, stitched by Elizabeth Hext. It is the second earliest sampler from Charleston, S.C. top left and bottom: metals gallery top right: chowan gallery
“The combination of color, the lighting, the fact that all of that exhibition equipment just fades away—it really lets you focus on the objects.” old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14 | 13
meet the people behind old salem
cindy kepley
Best Part of the Day Is When a Child Makes a Connection by tyler cox
Cindy Kepley, an interpreter in the 1771 Miksch House at Old Salem Museums & Gardens, says she often thinks that she was born in the wrong century. “And my parents would have told you that when I was seven years old,” she said in a recent interview, standing in the Miksch hearth kitchen. “I was the little girl that went out and played in the woods. I started cooking when I was five or six. “My grandmother had an outdoor stone fireplace, and that was where I made mud pies,” she continued. “I would take those little stringy things (catkins) off and I would sprinkle them on my mud pies as decorations.”
and supper would be cold leftovers. If you still had leftovers from supper, that might be breakfast the next day, so you’d better hope you like what your mom had fixed.”
Kepley, who grew up in Davidson County, is a soft-spoken woman who wears glasses and uses her hands to stress points in her conversation. She said that she was working as a cashier at a barbecue restaurant in Lexington when she read an ad in the Winston-Salem Journal in 1996 about an opening for Experience Tour guides at Old Salem. The annoyance of a griping coworker at the restaurant, she said, prompted her to apply for the part-time job at Old Salem.
On this chilly March morning, Kepley was cooking gumbis, a German, layered casserole with sausage, squash, and sweet potatoes. The gumbis would simmer in a stoneware crock, close to the fire. “I’m going to add some herbs and spices to give it some flavor,” she said. “Otherwise, it will be quite bland.”
“The job sounded interesting,” she recalls, “but I really had no idea of what I was getting into. I’d always loved history and I had come to Candle Tea and Old Salem in the fourth grade.” She got the job and completed two weeks of basic interpreter training, followed by rotations working at Winkler Bakery and in the Trades shops. After leading Christmas tours, she completed Experience Tours training and did her first Experience Tour in March of the next year. Because she had experience demonstrating cooking and baking for visitors, she accepted a job in 2011 working for the Trades department at the Miksch House, the first house in Salem to be occupied by a single family. As a small group of fourth graders and their teacher entered the back door of Miksch, Kepley paused from the interview to greet the students.
She also told the students that she was preparing an onion salad, made with boiled onions in olive oil and apple-cider vinegar—and a dash of salt and pepper. The pungent smell of the boiled onions filled the room. For dessert: rice pudding. The Moravians in Salem would have used Carolina Gold rice brought in from South Carolina. “It would not have been quite as pretty as the rice we buy today,” she said. Kepley then opened the nearby cellar door and reached for a large squash that was harvested from the Miksch garden last September. “I cut pieces of this squash off, as I need it,” she explained. “I’ve just left the squash sitting on the cellar shelf. The Moravians in Salem didn’t have plastic wrap, or plastic containers to put vegetables in, so the food you have stored in your cellar is what would feed you through the winter. You certainly had to prepare ahead, because you’re not going to be able to go and buy that food at a store as we would today.”
“Wow!” shouted one of the boys.
The students, now warm from standing next to the crackling hearth fire, were invited to go into the adjoining Stove Room, so named because it was heated by fires in a cast-iron stove. “Matthew and Henrietta Miksch would have kept the doors to that room closed,” explained Kepley, “and that room was their dining room, indoor work space, and bedroom.”
“And back then, every morning, a woman would have been in the kitchen cooking dinner for her family,” Kepley continued. “Dinner was the noon-time meal, the biggest meal of the day. It was usually a hot meal,
Working in an 18th-century kitchen, Kepley cannot use modern cookbooks written by Bobby Flay or Ina Garten of The Barefoot Contessa TV show. Instead, she uses German cookbooks that predate the 1770s.
“I represent the woman who lived in this house over 240 years ago,” she told them after all had gathered around her work table.
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“Whether you were (a Moravian) sweeping the floor or making furniture, it was a way to glorify God. Do the best job you can to glorify God. That’s something I try to keep in mind.” “We do not in any way do first person (interpretation),” she continued. “We certainly try to honor the Miksches. We’ve read about them. We don’t really know a lot of personal information about them. We certainly want to represent them as good Moravians, and try to present the Moravians respectfully, and try to honor these people of the past who built Salem.” According to Kepley, the most satisfying part of her job is when she sees “that light go on” with a child, when they make a connection. “Hopefully, it will be a child who started sewing or knitting, or started working in the garden with a grandparent or someone.” When she’s not cooking, visitors might see Kepley doing other domestic work such as dipping candles (only on the coldest days), sewing, washing dishes, or sweeping the dirt yard with a broom that she made out of broom corn from the garden. “Henrietta (Miksch) grew up in Germany and would have been cooking prior to that time,” said Kepley. “My favorite cookbook was published in 1715 and has, luckily, been translated into English, so that’s where most of the food I cook at the Miksch comes from.” Over the years, Kepley said she has experimented cooking some of the early German receipts (recipes) and enlisted her three children—when they still lived at home—and sometimes her coworkers to sample her dishes. “Sometimes, we have very pleasant surprises in the kitchen; some days, though, it’s so awful, I go hide it in the bottom of the compost pile!” (An example of the latter was spicy Bohemian peas, based on a receipt from a 15th-century cookbook. All tasters agreed that the green peas tasted like soap!) One of the pleasant surprises, she says, was a receipt for a chicken roll from the 1715 cookbook. The ingredients are simple: chopped chicken meat, bread crumbs, and some egg for binding. “It tasted like chicken nuggets,” she said. “They had chicken nuggets in 1715!” Asked if she sometimes thinks of herself as Henrietta Miksch while on the job, she said no. “I have to wonder what it would have been like to live here, though,” she said.
During the past 18 years, Kepley said she has learned a great deal about the Moravians who lived in Salem, especially how they provided opportunities for women. In her words, “I think the opportunities for women were really amazing for that time period. Women were educated and had some say in what was going on, although not to the degree that we have today. That really fascinates me. Salem women could read about the outside world, write, and keep account books. Some traveled. “Whether you were (a Moravian) sweeping the floor or making furniture, it was a way to glorify God. Do the best job you can to glorify God. That’s something I try to keep in mind.” In her free time, Kepley said her favorite things to do are not cooking beets and kale, but spending time outdoors: camping, backpacking, and kayaking on lakes and flat rivers. Another priority is spending time with her three grandchildren. “I have an 11-year-old grandson who loves (Old Salem’s) Five Yesterdays,” she said. “The year he learned how to sew a marbles bag at 5Y, he came up here and sewed all of my scraps. He’s made a connection; he wants to make things with his hands.” old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14 | 15
meet the people behind old salem
leo rucker
“I’m Not Just a Tour Guide, I’m a Storyteller” by tyler cox
“A lot of the visitors who come through here have never heard of the Moravians,” said Rucker. “They also want to know how the African Americans got involved with the Moravians. There are a lot of links that I have to give to visitors to help them fill in the blanks. I’m not just a tour guide, I’m a storyteller.” When he gives tours, Rucker said one of his main goals is to help visitors better understand the black experience in Salem and ultimately, black contributions to the broader, Winston-Salem community. “(African Americans) were part of the groundwork, the foundation of building what eventually came about,” he said. “I can expound on the importance of many of the people who have passed by here, and then take it to another level. “I still think there’s a missing element that has not been told,” he continued. “We need to get more African American people to come out and to realize that there’s an important part of history here that they may or may not be connected to. Winston-Salem’s Centennial celebration (in May, 2013) gave us good exposure.” Rucker said he gets excited when he gives tours, and he enjoys meeting and interacting with people from all over the world. “This is another angle to my creative skills,” he said.
When Cheryl Harry, Director of African American Programming at Old Salem Museums & Gardens, offered local artist Leo Rucker a job to be an interpreter at the St. Philips Moravian Church complex, he did not have to think very long about the answer. “I have flexible hours as an artist so I knew it would be an easy transition for me,” said Rucker. Born in Lynchburg, Virginia, Rucker said he grew up in Lexington and Mocksville. He became involved with the work at St. Philips when Mel White was directing St. Philips (mid-1990s to 2005). Rucker attended Old Salem events, and one of his original prints was used as an illustration for fundraising. In a recent interview in the Sunday School room in the Brick Church, Rucker said he studied for about two months to become an interpreter. He read a lot of materials, some provided by the St. Philips staff and other information that he found online. One of his actor friends who does monologues helped him learn how to project his voice—a useful skill for giving tours to large school groups. 16 | old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14
Some singers and musicians have commented that they can feel the Holy Spirit in the old wood in the sanctuary of the St. Philips Brick Church. Asked if he has ever felt that spirit, he said no. “But I get a lot of people who come through and just want to sit in the sanctuary, and they just want to see if they can feel the spirit. Some people do. “I can feel the past, especially inside the sanctuary,” he added. “If you sit down and give people the essence of sitting in the sanctuary, and imagine the capacity of the people that were there, especially during the announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation, you can’t help but wonder what was going through their minds? What’s their next move? They think, ‘I’ve been through this (slavery) all these years. Now, I hear a new change is about to come. What am I supposed to do now? Where do I go, what do I do?’ It’s exciting, but maybe (also) confusing. It’s like being out in the wilderness. Now you have to survive.” Rucker, who wears a Moravian costume on some days, said he especially enjoys the days at St. Philips when his job as an interpreter overlaps with his work as an artist. An example of that occurred this past February, when he led a workshop for the Old Salem staff on Joshua Johnson, an African American artist (ca. 1763 – ca. 1824) from the Baltimore area. (Johnson is often viewed as the first person of color to make a living as a painter in the U.S.) The event was part of the Black History Month celebration.
“I get a lot of people who come through (St. Philips Brick Church) and just want to sit in the sanctuary, and they just want to see if they can feel the (Holy) Spirit. Some people do.” This tall interpreter can trace his interest in art back to age five, when a neighbor saw him doodling on the porch. She commissioned him to render a pencil drawing of her late husband, who fought in World War I. “It was good, too,” he remembered. “I think I got dinner for it.” In third grade, Rucker drew illustrations and lettered poster boards for his school. In ninth grade, his art teacher gave him a lot of encouragement. It wasn’t until after high school that he started doing portraits. He also studied commercial art at Rutledge College. “I did art just to develop my skills and to enter contests,” he said. “I also wanted to build up my portfolio. I just used my imagination to see what I could come up with.” Recently, Rucker had an opportunity to use his imagination when he agreed to paint a four-foot-tall fiberglass “doughnut” as part of a fundraiser for 12 local nonprofits (including Old Salem) sponsored by Krispy Kreme. His original creation, displayed for several weeks in the Old Salem Visitor Center, went on the auction block in late March and raised $2,550, more than any of the other 11 doughnuts realized in the auction. “It definitely was a challenge,” Rucker said, reflecting on the doughnut project. “My assignment was to be able to tell something about Old Salem from the beginning of Winston and Salem coming together, until the present day—and something about Krispy Kreme. Of course, I wanted to make it a mouth-watering doughnut, but I really couldn’t do that. So, I decided to convey the most realistic thing about early Salem pottery and Krispy Kreme’s first store here in Salem. “The graveyard and the lovefeast were incorporated into the design, too,” he said. “The doughnuts raised money for Old Salem and other nonprofits, and the designs will be published in a calendar, so it becomes a win-win for everybody. I love doughnuts—and now you’re making me want to go get one!”
After working a day at St. Philips, Rucker said he then goes to his studio in the Arts District and paints mostly commissioned portraits and murals. Last year, the Sawtooth Center for Visual Arts in downtown Winston-Salem hosted a one-man exhibition of his work. And in the past 25 years, he has painted about 250 portraits. His favorite media are oils and acrylics. Wherever he goes, Rucker takes his camera with him to record ideas for future paintings. “I’m always thinking,” he said. “I’m always imagining something, wondering what the next thing is that I can create. I always keep paper around to draw on. If it’s not paper, it’s a napkin.” Asked, with three jobs, how he ever has time to sleep, he replied, “I probably get six hours of sleep. Sometimes I think I have a demon that won’t let me stop doing art!” old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14 | 17
meet the people behind old salem
stewart butler
MESDA’s Newest Tour Guide Learns More with Every Tour by tyler cox
Many opportunities and decisions in life are all about timing, and Stewart Butler, the newest Guide at the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA), can vouch for that. In the late 1970s, when she was studying studio art and journalism at Salem College, she took a January program taught by author Doris Betts. “A part of that program was to take—I guess you’d call it a workshop—with Frank Horton,” she recalled. (Horton and his mother, Theo Taliaferro, now both deceased, co-founded MESDA, and the building that houses MESDA today bears his name.) “And I remember Frank lying on the floor, showing me the undersides of furniture. “Two (student) friends and I took the MESDA component of the program,” she continued. “We came down (to MESDA) every morning, stayed all day. We were pre-Field Repesentatives, because we were encouraged to do research and learn what pieces maybe we had that could lead to other pieces. The research was so interesting, but when I look back, I was interested in everything; I was 21 years old.”
“I feel like my job is to make more people in Winston-Salem aware of this fine collection.” 18 | old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14
In a recent interview, Butler said her late husband, David, and Thomas A. (Tom) Gray were cousins—and Frank Horton and Tom Gray were cousins. Last year, the Library and Research Center at MESDA were named in honor of Tom Gray and in memory of his late mother, Anne P. Gray, both long-time supporters of Old Salem Museums & Gardens and MESDA. In the late 1970s, after Butler was married, Tom Gray asked her to come to work at Old Salem or MESDA. “I did not accept his kind offer,” Butler said. “The timing was just not right. And it was a mistake, because if I had accepted the offer, I could have been a MESDA Guide for 35 or 40 years by now!” Butler said that she and her husband, David (he passed away three years ago), were always Friends of Old Salem, and his parents made a donation to fund the Cherry Grove Galleries at MESDA. She spent the next several decades with David and rearing their children. She also went to graduate school at Wake Forest University and volunteered at Reynolda House Museum of American Art and SECCA in Winston-Salem.
Fast forward to March of 2013. On a cold, rainy, March day, Butler said she thought it was time to get out of the house and do something interesting that would be educational and challenging: “something that’s just mine.” “I have very good friends who are involved with Old Salem, and I called one of them, Bill Wilson—he’s on the MESDA Advisory Board—and I asked him what he thought if I went down to MESDA to see if there’s any educational program that I could take, or anything that I could do to get back involved and that would give me the learning I need and be with people.” As it turned out, there was an opening that suited Butler well. Last May, she started MESDA Guide training—in a training class of one person. Working with Associate Curator Daniel Ackermann, Butler followed a study template for several months last summer. It included study time in the collection; learning on-the-job with other staff members; and lots of reading. After “test” tours with Ackermann, she led her first tour last September. As all MESDA Guides will tell you, they never forget giving their first tour. “I had nine people on my tour,” she said. “I had a diverse group of people. Two were a couple who were Friends of MESDA, and they had been here before. I spent way too much time explaining the Chesapeake, the Lowcountry, and the Backcountry (the three geographic regions of the early South on which MESDA focuses).” Butler said she looks forward to talking about some of her favorite objects on every tour. “There are a lot of objects that I like,” she said. “I like the court cupboard (in the Criss Cross Gallery), or any piece with raised panels. I really like the John Shearer desk and bookcase in the Backcountry Gallery, because it’s slightly schizophrenic, slightly neurotic! It has the mixed woods, the mixed styles: the Baroque, the Rococo, the Neoclassical, the Chinese Chippendale. It has a personality, and Shearer had great wit. “But I love the Charleston galleries, too,” she added. “They appeal to me—I hate to say the most—but there are so many interesting components to the Charleston rooms.” Butler makes no apologies for also loving architectural elements in the MESDA collection. As she put it, “I’m a frustrated architect, and I’ve taken a lot of architecture courses. My son is an architect. I guess there are not many MESDA Guides that look at the furniture and the Tudorback doors and the way the leaded casement windows evolved from one period to the next. There’s so much connection between the architecture and the furniture. The pilasters, the turnings!” Reflecting on her first year working at MESDA, Butler says she feels a responsibility to help even more people learn about this unique museum and material culture in the early South. “I feel like my job is to make more people in Winston-Salem aware of this fine collection,” she said. “I want my friends in Charleston and New York to know about MESDA. I really believe that MESDA is not just a jewel in the crown, but it is the crown here. It’s art, architecture, fine arts, and history. Decorative arts combines it all, and then it gives you the added background of history. MESDA is another example of Winston-Salem’s strength in the arts.”
In her free time, you might find Butler outdoors, playing golf or tennis. “I’m a tennis player,” she said. “I played tennis for 35 years, then I switched to golf. I love interesting golf courses.” She also likes to spend time with her two married sons, daughters-in-law, and one granddaughter. “She’s 14 months old,” she said, smiling, as most proud grandmothers do. “She’s a bird!” Butler says she still has a lot more reading to do to continue learning about the MESDA collection. “I have a lot to learn,” she said. “I did not think my brain would work at this age. I have been so surprised, but I am still intimidated about all that I don’t know. And the minute that I learn one gallery, there’s another gallery that I haven’t learned anything about.” This community organizer and former volunteer grant writer for the Junior League says she has no regrets reconnecting with the decorative arts later in life. “It has given me so much more than I will ever give to it,” she commented. “Every time I give a tour, I learn something new. I hope I have 30 more years to be here, as many of the other MESDA Guides (have had).”
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A Treasure Trove of Historical Resources
the mesda
research by kim may
center Armed with a handful of photos, a visitor from Wilmington, North Carolina, journeyed to the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA) Research Center hoping to learn more about her family heirlooms. She had a vague memory of her parents saying that field researchers from MESDA had visited their home in 1972. She was delighted to discover that MESDA had indeed recorded several items from her parents’ home, two portraits and a sideboard, all of which had descended in her family for generations. Tucked in the MESDA files for the portraits was a copy of an ancestor’s will, which detailed the portraits’ descent in the family. Although MESDA had not yet identified the artist, the researcher was thrilled to find such an important connection between the objects and her family.
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in images of a chest of drawers he had acquired locally. Knowing the piece had a North Carolina history, he began his search in the North Carolina Piedmont furniture files. Based on similarities in design and construction, he was able to place his chest of drawers in an already existing group documented in the files. Now he had others he could compare with his piece. The Craftsman Database contains information gleaned from primary documents, such as wills, estate records, newspapers, etc., and records the lives and activities of artisans working in the South prior to 1860. The Craftsman Database can now be accessed online from any computer at mesda.org. Researchers are able to perform a variety of search inquiries, based on craftsman name, trade, geographic location, and/or date. For example, a collector recently emailed the MESDA Research Center with a question about a piece of marked pottery he owns. The stoneware pitcher was found in Virginia and marked “J. Miller.” He wondered if MESDA had any information on this craftsman who worked in the Wheeling, Virginia (now West Virginia) area. The MESDA Research Center staff directed him to the online database, and after a quick search he had his answer. The researcher had been trying to track down possible leads for three years, and in less than a minute on the Craftsman Database, he found his man—John Miller of Wheeling, Virginia, potter. Miller advertised in The Nashville Whig that he carried on the business of “manufacturing STONEWARE” and kept on hand an assortment of pitchers, among other items.
kim may searches online database
Assisting over 400 patrons per year, whether by telephone, email, or in person, the MESDA Research Center staff is committed to connecting researchers to the past through objects and primary source records. Located in the Frank L. Horton Museum Center, the MESDA Research Center maintains the most comprehensive collection of information regarding southern decorative arts and artisans in the world. The Research Center is home to both the Craftsman Database, an online resource with records of over 84,000 craftsmen working in the South in 127 different trades, and the Object Database, an onsite collection of images for approximately 20,000 southern decorative arts objects, including furniture, paintings, ceramics, silver, and textiles, among others. Patrons are encouraged to visit the MESDA Research Center in its spacious new facility in order to maximize their use of available resources. Those interested in learning about southern decorative arts in general or perhaps looking into their own family heirlooms can take advantage of the Object Database. When a visitor is researching a particular piece, bringing along a few photographs is essential. Objects are filed according to medium and region, which includes the states of Maryland, Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Files contain images of the object along with pertinent data such as place made, approximate date, and maker, if known. A recent visitor brought
The MESDA Research Center is also home to the Subject Card File, an archival treasure trove of primary source information on a variety of topics ranging from “crime and punishment” to “medicine and medical history” to “social customs.” Social historians and the general public alike will delight in the quirky curiosities and general historical facts the MESDA Research Associates have encountered over the years while combing historical documents. For instance, the Society for the Regulation of Manners (who knew there was one?) advertised in the November 1753 issue of the South Carolina Gazette that, “after the 10th Instant November, no Lady do presume to walk the Streets in a Mask, unless when either the Sun or Wind is in her Face: such as are very Ugly or have sore eyes always excepted.” A comprehensive index to this file is accessible online at mesda.org, but the Subject Card File is currently available only onsite. In addition to these resources, the MESDA Research Center holds an extensive collection of primary source documents on microfilm, consisting of newspapers, court records, city directories, and more, available for patron use on state-of-the-art microfilm reader/scanners. If a person is interested in southern decorative arts, the lives of early southern artisans, or early southern social history, he can drop by the MESDA Research Center to spend time exploring the Object Database or Subject Card File. Or, from the comfort of his own home, he can search the online Craftsman Database. Whether one is an avid collector, someone looking for answers about a family heirloom, or simply a curious history enthusiast, great finds are waiting to be discovered in the MESDA Research Center. The MESDA Research Center is open to the public from 9:30 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. Appointments are suggested. Call 336-721-7379. Kim May is the Manager of the MESDA Research Center. old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14 | 21
New to the Collections Figure 1
ring bottle
Shop of Rudolph Christ 1790 – 1810 Salem, North Carolina Lead glazed earthenware Anne P. and Thomas A. Gray Moravian Decorative Arts Purchase Fund
Figure 2
bottle Albright-Loy School 1790 – 1820 Alamance County, North Carolina Slip decorated earthenware MESDA Purchase Fund
Figure3
drawing of mount jolly plantation and garden Richard Wright Simpson 1850 – 1860 Pendleton County, South Carolina Graphite on paper MESDA Purchase Fund
In 2013, the MESDA and Old Salem collections grew and expanded even deeper into the southern Backcountry. Highlights include pottery from Piedmont North Carolina, such as one of only two known surviving ring bottles made in Salem by the master potter Rudolph Christ. Also, a fraktur and two rare watercolor portraits of early German settlers in Guilford County, NC; two masterpieces of early carved and painted case furniture from the lower Shenandoah Valley of Virginia; a sketch of Zachariah Taliaferro’s Mt. Jolly plantation house and garden in Upcountry South Carolina; and an alkaline-glazed jug in pristine condition made and signed by the Washington County, Georgia, potter Lucius Jordan. 22 | old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14
Figure 4
fraktur of jacob sommers 1792 Guilford County, North Carolina Ink on paper MESDA Purchase Fund
Figure 5
chest of drawers Peter Eddleman
1800 – 1825 Lincoln County, North Carolina Walnut, tulip poplar Gift of John Eddleman and Edith Robinson Eddleman, great great grandchildren of Peter Eddleman in honor of their parents, John Holland Eddleman and Virginia Murphy Eddleman
We are especially grateful to the Eddleman and Frackelton families for their generous gifts honoring close relatives and ancestors. Thanks to their generosity, MESDA now owns a chest of drawers that descended in the family and came out of the house built by cabinetmaker Peter Eddleman as well as family photographs and documents, including an extremely rare apprenticeship indenture dated 1821. MESDA is equally honored to own and exhibit the terra cotta bust of family matriarch, Rebecca Elizabeth Tucker Coles, who lived at Enniscorthy Plantation in Albemarle County, Virginia, a close friend and neighbor of Thomas Jefferson. These objects will inspire museum visitors for many generations to come. old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14 | 23
Figure 6
portriats of mary and jacob foust Guilford Limner 1827 Guilford County, North Carolina Watercolor on paper MESDA Purchase Fund
Figure 7
blanket chest 1780 – 1800 Augusta County, Virginia Poplar with original red, blue and black paint Gift of Wilson Douglas by exchange
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Figure 8
high chest of drawers 1765 – 1800 Augusta County, Virginia Walnut, yellow pine Anne P. and Thomas A. Gray MESDA Purchase Fund; Partial Gift of Dr. and Mrs. David Witmer
Figure 9
jug
Lucius Jordan 1850 – 1860 Washington County, Georgia Alkaline glazed stoneware MESDA Purchase Fund
Figure 10
rebecca elizabeth tucker coles William John Coffee 1818 – 1819 Albemarle County, Virginia Terra cotta Gift of the children of Decca G. Frackelton
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On
Common Ground
the salem boys’ school A Re-interpretation
“At the appointed time all boys must be prepared for school, Having their books, slates, paper & pen ready for use.…” —Rules to be Observed by the Boys in the Male Academy at Salem, 1826 by paula locklair
There are new plans for the 1794 Salem Boys’ School that will enhance the visit for all visitors to Old Salem: the general public, visiting families, school groups, and teachers. There will be a careful re-restoration of the building itself, a reconstruction of the original outbuildings in the yard, known in the 18th century as the “Piazza,” and new interactive and stimulating programs and activities. Since the first class of students entered the new Boys’ School on Salem Square in December 1794, it has been a place of education, either as a school or as a museum. It functioned as a school until 1895, just over 100 years, when a new and larger school was built at the Corner of Church and Bank Streets. For the next 100+ years it was operated as a museum, first by the Wachovia Historical Society and then by Old Salem. It is now recognized as the oldest standing Moravian building that was constructed specifically as a school in either the United States or Europe. Its significance also is emphasized by the fact that this school, built in a prime location on the Square, pre-dated the Salem Moravian Church, now known as Home Moravian Church, by six years. 26 | old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14
The Boys’ School is currently closed for examination and study in preparation for the re-restoration, and, concurrent with the restoration planning, new programs and activities are also being planned. When it reopens, the school will be presented as an exhibit building in which all that happens there is based on the curriculum of an early Moravian school. It is very encouraging that many of the attributes that are currently considered necessary for students to be “future-ready” were also important to the Moravians in the 18th century and they include: self-directed responsible worker, multi-lingual, critical thinker, knowledgeable global citizen, effective problem solver, and proficient reader. Our goal is to provide new and interactive ways for students to learn these concepts outside of the traditional modern classroom. Visitors of all ages will engage one-on-one with interpreters, some of whom will be in the roles of early teachers. Visitors also can participate in hands-on activities that not only reflect the curriculum of the early 19th century but dovetail with and support the current Common Core State and North Carolina Essential Standards curriculum. The Moravian’s teaching philosophy in the 18th and 19th centuries can be traced directly back to a very important Czech Moravian Bishop, John Amos Comenius (1592 – 1670). Comenius was a well known education reformer who was adamant that boys and girls should receive equal education. He wrote extensively about his innovative teaching methods, which were published widely and adopted by educators around the world. Ultimately, he became known as the Father of Modern Education. Following in the tradition of Moravian communities around the world, the children in Salem at first were educated in school rooms located in various buildings. As the populations of the six Moravian towns in Wachovia increased and there was a need for a larger and permanent school building, the Boys’ School was built in 1794. The Girls’ Boarding School was constructed in 1805. The period of interpretation will focus on the years 1814 – 1817, because a very interesting young man, Peter Wolle (1792 – 1871), became head of the school in 1814 when he was only 22 years old. Wolle
was born at New Herrnhut on St. Thomas in the West Indies, where his parents were missionaries. When he was three, his parents brought him back to the United States and left him with a family in Nazareth, Pennsylvania because they thought that it would be better for him to grow up there than in the West Indies. He started school at Nazareth Hall, the boys’ boarding school in Nazareth, when he was eight, and at age 15 he entered the new Theological Seminary of the American Province of the Unity of Brethren in Nazareth. He completed the threeyear course of study and was then named as a teacher at his former school, Nazareth Hall. After four years of teaching experience, he was appointed as the head teacher for the Boys’ School in Salem. He came to Salem with an excellent education, sound experience as a teacher, and poignant memories of the years as a young child when he was separated from his parents. These were all traits that helped him to be the knowledgeable, thoughtful, and empathetic teacher that he was to both the day students and the boarding students. He remained at the school until 1817 when he was named as the leader of the Single Brothers in Salem. He went on to become a well-known Moravian pastor, musician, and composer as well as a bishop in the Moravian Church. While at the school, however, he kept an extensive diary in which he described the lessons he taught, the daily activities of the boys, health issues, social outings with his friends, the weather, outdoor explorations with the students, holiday events, church services, science experiments, music, and more. This diary will be the basis for the “school lessons,” activities, interpretation, and programs for the Boys’ School and will provide a clear insight into the education of children between the ages of about seven and 14 in Salem. Two floors of the building will be used daily for visitors. The street level will be specifically for walk-in visitors. There will be an introductory activity, a restored classroom with an interactive lesson by the teacher, Br. (Brother) Wolle, and there will be explorations of objects that would have been used in the school lessons. The second level will be for school groups of all ages. These programs will take place in three identical restored classrooms in which the lessons and activities will coordinate with and support current curriculum by grade level. We anticipate that this new experience and format will be a favorite stop for all visitors. Ultimately, we hope that while in “school” in the Salem Boys’ School that “…every scholar shall behave quietly & orderly, mind his book & pay attention to the instructions of his teachers” [Rules, 1826] and take a step back in history to be intrigued by the lessons of the past and see the connections to—and intersections with—the present. Paula Locklair is Vice President of Education at Old Salem Museums & Gardens. If you would like to make a gift to support the On Common Ground Capital Campaign, please contact Frances Beasley, Capital Campaign Manager, at 336-721-7331 or visit oldsalem.org/oncommonground.
Residents Exceed Fund-Raising Goal in Campaign Residents in the Old Salem historic district have raised nearly $210,000 to date in the On Common Ground Capital Campaign, exceeding their goal of $200,000. The amount raised is $100,000 more than residents raised in the last campaign. According to Frances Beasley, Vice President of Development for Old Salem Museums & Gardens and Campaign Manager for On Common Ground, the funds will be used to support construction of The Boys’ School Piazza, the Old Salem Annual Fund, and special projects. “The amount raised for the Piazza ensures that there will be a plaque in the Piazza thanking the residents for making its construction possible,” said Bob Mayville, Chair of the Residents’ Campaign. The residents who made a donation to the Residents’ Campaign are: Anonymous (2) Augustus T. Zevely Inn Mary Audrey and Jim Apple Carmen and Albert Bambach Kaky and Larry Berry Ellen and Lou Blancato Cynthia Briggs Wayne Cardwell Cheryl and Kurt Carlson Martha and Ray Chamberlain Lisa and Mark Chandler Dan Coughlin Rosemary and Mason Epperly Sheila and Alex Ewing Dianne and Tony Furr Sally Gant Penny and Adrian Griffin Mark Haake Carol and John Hauser Kimberly Herring Ann and Ed Hill Linda Hobbs Barbara and Lindsay Holcomb Kathy and Bill Hoyt
Lori and Rick Keiper Kathleen and Jerry Keyser John Larson Eleanor Levy Molly Leight Curtis Leonard Marilyn and Bob Little Audrey and Bob Mayville Gail O’Day and Thomas Frank Barbara Millhouse Betsy and Larry Overton Maria and Shields Overton Susan Pauly and Stephen Dew Ellen Perryman Kathleen Pond Sally and John Reed Nancy and Ted Rossi Sara and Tom Sears Kelly and Jeff Sowers Betsy and Bob Whaling Leah and Keith Wheeler John Whipple Dana Wrights
The Residents’ Campaign Committee was chaired by Bob Mayville. The committee members were Tony Furr, John Hauser, Linda Hobbs, Kathleen Keyser, and Kelly Green Sowers. It is not too late to support the Residents’ Campaign. For more information, contact Frances Beasley at 336-721-7331 or email at fbeasley@oldsalem.org. old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14 | 27
Pillars of Our Community Bonding Together As Business Friends of Old Salem
Old Salem’s corporate membership program, Pillars of Our Community, raised more than $120,000 in 2013. Contributors were celebrated at the Pillars of Our Community dinner on November 21. The program is continuing in 2014, with strong results to date! In addition to joining other companies to sustain and enhance the preservation efforts at Old Salem, members can reward their employees with membership benefits. Organizations interested in joining should contact Mary Beth Cross, Manager of Corporate Membership, at 336-499-7978 or mbcross@oldsalem.org.
Current Members Include
preservationist level $1o,ooo – above
historian level $5,ooo – $9,999
conservationist level $2,5oo – $4,999
BB&T Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton, LLP Reynolds American Wells Fargo
Caterpillar, Inc. Flow Automotive Companies Hanesbrands Krispy Kreme Doughnut Corporation RockTenn Company Wilson-Covington Construction Company Winston-Salem Journal Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, LLP
Bell, Davis & Pitt, PA Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Carolinas Realty Capital Development Services Capture Public Relations & Marketing First Tennessee Bank Waterworks Plumbing
horticulturalist level $1,ooo – $2,4oo Adele Knits/COR365 Advanced Consumer Electronics Aladdin Travel & Meeting Planners, Inc. Allegacy Federal Credit Union DataChambers Dixon Hughes Goodman Duke Energy First Community Bank Fourway Warehouse & Distribution Frank L. Blum Construction Company Goslen Printing
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Marley Drug Mercedes-Benz of Winston-Salem Mountcastle Insurance NewBridge Bank Piedmont Natural Gas Pike Corporation Quality Oil Salemtowne, Inc Wells Fargo Advisors Weston & Associates
archivist level $5oo – $999 Annese Public Relations Cook & Boardman, Inc. David E. Day Painting Company The Dickson Foundation Excalibur Direct Mail Marketing The Historic Brookstown Inn Robinson & Lawing, LLP S & L Painting Siemens Energy, Inc. Sylvester & Cockrum, Inc. T.W. Garner Foods Wells Jenkins Lucas & Jenkins, PLLC
calendar through august 2o14
may May 15 Garden Workshop: 4 Season Vegetable Gardening Learn how to grow different vegetables in all four of our Piedmont North Carolina seasons. Noon – 1 p.m. (bring lunch). Free. Frank L. Horton Museum Center. To register, email vhannah@oldsalem.org or call 336-721-7357. May 15 P. Allen Smith Lunch and Lecture Lunch and lecture by nationally known garden expert, P. Allen Smith, followed by a Q&A and booksigning. Noon – 3 p.m. $65. Off-site location. Reservations required, 336-201-5177. May 16 An Evening in the Garden with P. Allen Smith Mingle with P. Allen Smith while enjoying live music, cocktails, and heavy hors d’oeuvres. 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. $100. Single Brothers’ Garden. Reservations required, 336-201-5177. May 17 Spring Festival: The Language of Flowers Explore the practical and decorative uses for flowers in Salem in the 18th and 19th centuries through hands-on activities, historic demonstrations, and more. 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Included with All-In-One ticket, Adults/$23; 6 – 16/$11. May 17 Old Salem Cobblestone Farmers Market Runs every Saturday through November 22. 9 a.m. to noon. Located next to Single Brothers’ Garden. May 17 Pottery Fair on the Square 34 North Carolina potters will be selling their handmade stoneware, earthenware, and folk art. 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Free. Salem Square.
May 21, 23, 28, & 30 Puppet Show: Beekeeper and the Bees A bumbling beekeeper, a bad bandit, and buzzing bees star in this entertaining Aesop fable. 10 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 1 p.m. Included with All-In-One ticket or $2 for puppet show only. Frank L. Horton Museum Center. May 21 Historic Preservation Month Lunch & Learn: Property Values in Historic Districts: Greensboro Case Study Bring lunch and enjoy a presentation by Jo Ramsay Leimenstoll, AIA Professor, UNC-G Dept. of Interior Architecture. Noon – 1 p.m. Free. James A. Gray, Jr. Auditorium, Old Salem Visitor Center. May 23 Homeschool Day: Arts Alive in Salem An educational day designed for homeschooled children. Experience the wonderful history and heritage of Salem using hands-on, arts-based activities and demonstrations. 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. $14 Adult/ $9 Student, with advance reservations/prepayment. Reservations required.* May 24 Garden Workshop: Mom’s Herbal Remedies Learn many ways to use herbs throughout the year, fresh or dried. Herbal products will be available for purchase following the workshop. 10 a.m. – 11 a.m. Free. Single Brothers’ Workshop. To register, email vhannah@oldsalem.org or call 336-721-7357. May 28 Historic Preservation Month Lunch & Learn: Historic Preservation Meets Buck Rogers: 3D Laser Scanning of the Single Brothers’ House Bring your lunch and enjoy a special presentation by David Norman, Laser Scanning Services. Noon – 1 p.m. Free. James A. Gray, Jr. Auditorium, Old Salem Visitor Center.
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june June 3 Salem Band Summer Concert Series: Salem Swing Free concerts by one of the nation’s oldest community bands. Featuring the Salem Band and the Salem Swing Band, with guest dancers from the Piedmont Swing Dance Society and soloists Mignon Dobbins, vocals; and Eileen Young, alto saxophone. 7:30 p.m. Salem Square.
June 24 – 26 Three Yesterdays Summer Camp (Grades 1 – 2) One-of-a-kind summer learning experience involving textiles, pottery, fireplace cooking, leatherworking, woodworking. 9 a.m. – noon. $100 or $85 for Friends of Salem. Register at oldsalem.org/summer-camps.
June 13 & 14 Shops at Old Salem Summer Sidewalk Sale Sidewalk sale featuring clearance items, closeout deals, and bargains for everyone! 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Free. Retail shops and stores. June 17 Salem Band Summer Concert Series: Movies & Musicals Free concerts by one of the nation’s oldest community bands. Music from movies and musicals. 7:30 p.m. Salem Square. June 18, 20, 25, & 27 Puppet Show: Sister Maus Travel with Sister Maus and 7 girls as they walk from Bethlehem, Pa. to Salem, NC. NOTE: Due to 3 Yesterdays camp, there will only be a 1 p.m. show on June 25. 10:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 1 p.m. Included with All-In-One ticket or $2 for puppet show only. Frank L. Horton Museum Center. June 19 Juneteenth Luncheon Celebrate Juneteenth, the country’s longest-running observance of the abolition of slavery. Noon – 1:30 p.m. $25/$20 for Students and Friends of Salem. Pre-registration by June 12 required.* James A. Gray, Jr. Auditorium, Old Salem Visitor Center.
June 30 – July 24 Summer Apprenticeship Program (Grades 9 – 11) A two week hands-on experience with the Old Salem Historic Trades staff. Apprentices work with textiles, flax and wool, tinsmithing, blacksmithing, and leatherworking. $250 or $225 for Friends of Old Salem. Apply by May 1 at oldsalem.org/summer-camps.
july July 1 Salem Band Summer Concert Series: Patriotic Concert Free concerts by one of the nation’s oldest community bands. Annual Patriotic Concert with Swing-Era music and sing-along favorites. 7:30 p.m. Salem Square. July 2, 4, 9, 11, 16, 18, 23, 25, & 30 Puppet Show: Sister Maus Travel with Sister Maus and 7 girls as they walk from Bethlehem, Pa. to Salem, NC. 10:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 1 p.m. Included with All-In-One ticket or $2 for puppet show only. Frank L. Horton Museum Center.
June 22 – July 18 MESDA Summer Institute The 2014 Institute emphasizes the material culture of the southern Backcountry, from western Virginia, the Carolinas, and Upcountry Georgia to Kentucky and Tennessee. Tuition: $2,300. MESDA, Frank L. Horton Museum Center. Visit mesda.org for application and info.
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July 2, 9, 16, 23, & 30 Wednesday Noon Tannenberg Organ Recitals Free organ recitals at noon. July 2: Scott Carpenter; July 9: Susan Bates; July 16: Mary Lou Kapp Peeples; July 23: Ray Ebert; July 30: Regina Pozzi. Free. James A Gray, Jr. Auditorium, Old Salem Visitor Center.
July 4 Independence Day Celebration and Naturalization Ceremony Hands-on activities, music, games, food, and fun. Experience a moving naturalization ceremony at 10 a.m. Enjoy a jazz concert at 1:30 & 2:45 p.m. featuring the Freeport Jazz Band. Attend a performance of the historic Psalm of Joy at 2 p.m. at Home Moravian Church. 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Included in All-in-One Ticket, Adults/$23; 6 – 16/$11.
august August 1 – 30 Carolina Summer Music Festival The Carolina Summer Music Festival returns with concerts throughout the month of August, including several at Old Salem. August 1 Puppet Show: Sister Maus Travel with Sister Maus and 7 girls as they walk from Bethlehem, Pa. to Salem, NC. 10:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 1 p.m. Included with All-In-One ticket or $2 for puppet show only. Frank L. Horton Museum Center. August 2 New Benefactors of Old Salem present World Cup Foosball Tournament Two-person teams will compete in a bracket-style tournament. Admission fee includes activities, food, and drink. 6 p.m. – 10 p.m. $25/$30 team (with/without NBOS member on the team), $12/ spectators. James A. Gray, Jr. Auditorium, Old Salem Visitor Center.
July 5 Independence Weekend Celebration Patriotic activities and demonstrations for the whole family! 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Included in All-in-One Ticket, Adults/$23; 6 – 16/$11. July 7 – 11 Five Yesterdays Summer Camp (Grades 6 – 8) One-of-a-kind summer learning experience involving textiles, pottery, fireplace cooking, leatherworking, woodworking. 9 a.m. – noon. $175 or $140 for Friends of Salem. Register at oldsalem.org/summer-camps. July 14 – 18 Five Yesterdays Summer Camp (Grades 3 – 5) One-of-a-kind summer learning experience involving textiles, pottery, fireplace cooking, leatherworking, woodworking. 9 a.m. – noon. $175 or $140 for Friends of Salem. Register at oldsalem.org/summer-camps.
August 5 Salem Band Summer Concert Series: Music from the Old North State Free concerts by one of the nation’s oldest community bands. The Old North State: connecting to our NC community with guests Anita Cirba, trumpet and Charles Murph, conductor. 7:30 p.m. Salem Square.
July 14 – 19 Christmas in July in the Shops at Old Salem Preview new holiday merchandise, get inspired with gift ideas for the family, and enjoy daily discount specials! 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Free. Retail shops and stores.
August 23 War of 1812 Commemoration Commemorate the anniversary with a day of special hands-on activities, demonstrations, music, and more. 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Included in All-in-One Ticket, Adults/$23; 6 – 16/$11.
*To register, reserve a spot or purchase tickets, please call 1-800-441-5305. July 21 – 25 Five Yesterdays Summer Camp (Grades 3 – 5) One-of-a-kind summer learning experience involving textiles, pottery, fireplace cooking, leatherworking, woodworking. 9 a.m. – noon. $175 or $140 for Friends of Salem. Register at oldsalem.org/summer-camps. old salem museums & gardens | spring 2o14 | 31
On
Common Ground A campaign to revitalize and re-imagine the potential of Old Salem Museums & Gardens
Old Salem is facing one of the most critical junctures in its 60-year history. Your generous support is essential to the success of On Common Ground. Please learn more, ask questions and become involved. If you want to help secure the future sustainability of Old Salem Museums & Gardens and your own part of American history, please contact Frances Beasley, Capital Campaign Manager, at 336-721-7331 or visit oldsalem.org/oncommonground.