Greensboro Daily Photo

Stepping into the Weekend

Last night was a very busy one in downtown Greensboro. You would have thought it was already the weekend. There was a Greensboro Grasshoppers baseball game last night. Plus there are extra people in town for the World Championships in Irish dancing, which is currently happening in Greensboro. That event alone has brought as many as 5,000 dancers and 20,000 spectators into town. 

 

Those public school families who did not leave town, for their long-awaited spring break, seemed eager to get out and spend time with friends and family. Temperatures accommodated, being close to 70 degrees and with clear skies. In the above photo, several young adults, possibly here with the Irish dancers, are heading south on Elm Street, about to wait for the train to pass.Their clothing is as colorful as a bag of Brach's jellybeans! For those who celebrate Easter, we hope the holidays over the next few days are filled with spirituality, tradition, prayer, music, and maybe even a little Easter candy.

Sue Chen Playing the Chinese Dulcimer

Sue Chen, originally from Taiwan, is a graduate of the Beijing Language and Culture University in China. For several years, she has been a Mandarin language instructor in Greensboro. Ms. Chen is also very committed to teaching people about traditional Chinese culture, music and the history of the instruments used to play traditional Chinese music.  In the above photo, she is playing the Chinese dulcimer 扬琴 (Yang Qin) at the Global Education Conference, hosted this past Saturday by Guilford County Schools at Ragsdale High School.

From Ms. Chen, we learned that the modern yangqin usually has 144 strings, and four to five bridges. It can take up to four hours just to tune the instrument. As demonstrated above, the sticks are held, one in each hand, hitting the strings alternately. In the orchestra, the yangqin often adds to the harmony by playing chords or arpeggios. As the yangqin is softer than other Chinese instruments, it is usually positioned at the front of the orchestra, just in front of the conductor. Fortunately, the instrument folds up rather compactly to be transported as Ms. Chen is always giving concerts and demonstrations, so that the Chinese dulcimer and other traditional instruments will gain a wider audience. She is very generous with her knowledge of music, language, and culture. The beautiful sound of the yangqin is very relaxing and was enjoyed by conference participants.

 

Lincoln Financial Group

The Lincoln Financial Group building has changed owners and names more than once, but it continues to be the iconic skyscraper of downtown Greensboro. The gothic revival style architecture of the taller building, built in 1990. fits in with the older, Jefferson Standard building that dates to 1922. It is hard to believe that they have a 68-year age difference. This mighty fortress at the corner of Elm and Market Streets is built from marble, terra cotta, and marble. Julian Price, president of Jefferson Standard Life Insurance, paid in full for his company's headquarters, because he didn't believe in carrying debt. Do you know of any business executives today who espouse the same philosophy?

The orientation of this photo is from the parking lot behind the Grasshopper's baseball stadium. You can tell from the trees that it is early spring. 

Spring Is On Its Way...

 

Signs of spring are here, in Greensboro. Today is a beautiful Saturday. The sun is shining, the early flowers are pushing their way through mulch, pine straw, and leaves from deciduous trees. The above crocus plants are volunteers, staking their space under a sweet gum tree. At long last, Greensboro has a reprieve from rain, with nice weather predicted for the week. By about mid-July, we'll probably be begging for rain.

In the meantime, today is the 238 Anniversary of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. If you are up for it, head over to see one of the most historic events in Greensboro, the Reenactment of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. Today and tomorrow, there will be events to bring Revolutionary War history alive.

The NC A&T Four Monument

On any given day, especially in February, it is common to see people stopping by this iconic statue on the campus of North Carolina A & T University. Dedicated in 2002, it features Jibreel Khazan (Ezell Blair, Jr.), Franklin McCain, Joseph McNeil, and David Richmond. Sculptor James Barnhill decided to sculpt the four men marching as they left the February 1, 1960 sit in, as opposed to their sitting. He said he felt like this position had a stronger visual impact.*

Dressed for church, it was with great pride and joy that this family posed in front of  the statue on a quiet Sunday morning on campus. What a wonderful way to help children remember history and learn about a monumental event that impacted our country. 

* reference and more information, here.

Buffalo Presybterian Church

Buffalo Presbyterian Church has been a Greensboro institution since 1756, over 50 years before Greensboro became a city. That is a lot of history, a lot of congregations, and a lot of change. It was settled by Scotch-Irish who came from Scotland to Ireland to Pennsylvania and then settling here. The church has so much rich history in the community and they have maintained documentation of this history.

The church has expanded over the years, yet they have maintained as much character of the original site as possible. When the sanctuary expanded, they went to great lengths to see that the new brick matched the original brick. The acoustics in the sanctuary are reported to be very good. Let's all attend a service and see for ourself. This church is so significant to the Greensboro community. See a very different photo of the church (here), taken by GDP a decade ago.

A Decade of Greensboro Daily Photo

Today, Greensboro Daily Photo celebrates ten years of posting a photo a day of Greensboro. That is 3,650 photos and double the paragraphs about this city without missing a single day. Just when we question our commitment to this community service venture, we receive positive comments from grateful readers. Positive feedback and words of encouragement have a way of sustaining this labor of love for our great community. A big spark of motivation in 2018 came from Maria Johnson's article about GDP, featured in the February 2018 edition of the O. Henry Magazine.*

Greensboro has changed considerably since we started posting in 2009. In 2011, the 78,323-square-foot indoor Greensboro Aquatic Center opened and it is so popular it is already slated for expansion. Downtown Greensboro has really become a destination, especially with the addition of LeBauer Park, opening in 2016.  Housing options downtown have burgeoned. The whole brewpub industry has flourished. Access to live entertainment is growing. Greensboro hosted the National Folk Festival from 2015-2017,  and is now the permanent home of North Carolina's Folk Festival. Once the Tanger Performing Arts Center is completed, even more entertainment will come to town. Midtown has branded itself as a destination. Greensboro has gone from hardly any murals to a city with a great many murals. The highway system continues to expand. These are only a few of the differences we've documented over the last decade.

In the above photo, we are actually about an hour south of Greensboro in Candor (known for its great peaches). We were out exploring, and discovered a great little Mexican grocery store in Candor, "La Tienda Yurirense". Shopping under a ceiling draped with piñatas is so absolutely festive and joyful, we decided this would be our "Mr. and Mrs. GDP" photo for the year. We hope we can sustain Greensboro Daily Photo a little longer. If you will keep reading, we will keep sharing the people and places of Greensboro, and just a little bit beyond.

Read yesterday's post, here, if you want to see some GDP highlights from 2018.

* Click here to read about the O. Henry Magazine article about GDP and here to find the whole article on p. 33.

Brown-Gardiner in the Snow

Brown-Gardiner bills itself as "The Place to Be", an old-fashioned pharmacy and soda fountain that has served Greensboro for over 59 years. Part pharmacy, part restaurant, part social gathering place, indeed, Brown-Gardiner is an Irving Park institution. When you enter, depending on the time of day, you either smell bacon frying or that subtle medicinal scent of the pharmacies of yesteryear.

Congressman Howard Coble was known to eat here.  When in his Greensboro office, all he had to do was cross the street for lunch. It is highly likely that a lot of community input came his way over the lunch counter. While, unfortunately, Congressman Coble is no longer living, there is every indication that Brown-Gardiner will be around for a very long time. The building at 2101 North Elm Street, with its Carolina blue brick and awning, is even more prominent after a snowstorm. 

 

Luminaries & Reading Day

At UNC Greensboro, Reading Day is a protected day; students cannot have any tests or assignments due. The University provides fun activities to help relieve the stress students feel as they enter the exam period. On UNCGs campus, since 1969, student groups have been lining walkways with luminaries, and since 2014, they have maintained the tradition of lighting the Vacc Bell Tower.

Last night was magical as students stood at the base of the bell tower on Spring Garden Street, listening to holiday music played on the bells, surrounded by luminaries and decorated trees, and drinking hot chocolate. A few staff members brought their children by to enjoy the event. For those students who got out and walked around campus, Reading Day had to have felt a little special.

The Greensboro of Yesteryear

This photo of the Greensboro Farmers Market on Yanceyville looks like it could have been taken in 1874 when the market first opened. Shoppers are crossing the footbridge as the market (on the left) was closing. The farmers market is a place, not only to purchase great produce, but also to meet and interact with other people interested in supporting local businesses and eating nutritious food.

With the monochrome finish of the photo, the woman in the beautiful, long, white coat looks like she could be straight out of a Russian novel. Let's pretend she is the smart, cheerful, funloving Natalya Rostova in Tolstoy's novel, "War and Peace."  Natalya may well be the only Russian heroine who is still smiling after a thousand pages!*

Cone Mills was founded in 1895, about 21 years after the above farmers market. Can't you just imagine a wealthy woman out ƒor a stroll on an overcast morning in November, in that very part of town? While the new structures in Greensboro are lovely, it is always fun to seek out views that haven't changed much over the last century.

See you tomorrow, or as they say in Russian, "До завтра."

*reference and more examples of famous heroines in Russian novels, here.

Southeast Bottle Club's 2018 Greensboro Bottle Show

Yesterday, the Southeast Bottle Club held their 17th Annual Greensboro Antique Bottle & Collectibles Show at the Yanceyville Farmers Curb Market. There were 160 dealer tables with a selection of everything from antique bottles, jugs, insulators, advertising signs, and other collectibles related to bottles. They not only sold, but gave free appraisals. Appraisals always bring people out, even those who don't collect. The show started at 9am on Sunday and from nine until noon, it was packed. By 2:00 pm, when today's photo was taken, people had left and many dealers had packed up, too.

The upside of crowds dispersing is that dealers have all the time in the world to talk while they are painstakingly wrapping every single bottle by hand. Soda/pop bottles was the largest category offered at the show. Also popular were poison bottles, on average, ranging from $40- $100. Poison bottles were textured, so that people fumbling around in the dark or those whose vision was failing them, could tell by the feel that the bottle contained poison. Old bottles with labels intact are especially valuable. Some vendors had bottles of medicine made right here in Greensboro. If you are a bottle collector, you probably know that Vicks salve was created by Lunsford Richardson, a Greensboro pharmacist in the late 1800s. While he had a total of 21 home remedies, Vicks was the best-selling product. Got bottles? Check you attic and closets. You just may have great-great grannie's medicine bottles filled with a product made in Greensboro. Hold on to your bottles and take them to the show next year to get an appraisal. The show is held the third Sunday in November.

 

 

 

Southern Railroad in Gibsonville

Southern Railway in Gibsonville can trace its roots to the 1830s. This bright red caboose in the heart of downtown, is open to the public and young children delight in walking through it. In 2016, a plaque was placed in front of the caboose, informing readers that the town is named after plantation owner, Joseph Gibson, who had the area graded, making it possible for trains to travel from Charlotte to Morehead City. Once the railroad came through, Gibsonville industrialized, with textile mills being a key industry. 

It is hard to remember how much North Carolina used to depend on rail transport, how much North Carolina depended on cotton mills, on how much things have changed with cars, cell phones, computers, iWatches, Uber, virtual office headquarters, and all. Fortunately, in Guilford County, we have cozy little communities like Gibsonville, with artifacts like this little red caboose to keep history alive. If you want to see more, head to Gibsonville's "Lighting of the Greens" next Friday from 6-8pm. For now, celebrate Friday, the start of a weekend, and the beauty of our part of the country- then, and now!

The Barn at Coble Farm

The barn at Coble Farm looks so majestic up on the hill above West Friendly Avenue and near Guilford College. Those who follow local news know that it will be torn down as the nearby Quaker-affiliated retirement community, Friends Homes, expands. The possibility exists that someone can move the barn, although to do so would be quite expensive. This barn on a farm, once known as Sunnyhill Dairy, has already been moved once. In the 1940s, German prisoners of war were paid 80 cents a day to move it across the street to its present location.*

Word has it the barn is not in the best of shape; however, with that beautiful roofline, character, and the local history behind the structure, it would be fabulous if the architect for the retirement community could somehow build it into his plans. After all, they could hold barn dances there and invite the local community. Maybe the barn will be lucky enough to find a new home.

* reference and more information, here.

Gibsonville Garden Railroad

On the first Saturday of the month from 9am until noon, from April to December, the Gibsonville Garden Railroad comes alive. This little community that straddles Guilford and Alamance Counties has train aficionados who set up tracks and guide model trains through the park, while small children and adults alike watch with great joy.

According to their community website, the railroad garden on Main Street was founded in 1996 by Bobby Summers, a retired Freight Conductor on the Southern Railroad.* The 2,200 feet of covers a lot of North Carolina including Blowing Rock, Pilot Mountain, and the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse.

On November 16th, from 5:30 to 8:30, Gibsonville will host their annual "Lighting of the Green" and weather permitting, the trains should be moving around the track. The antique store across the street will serve free pintos and cornbread and many groups will be singing. If you want to experience a great community event, take the 15 mile drive east of Greensboro and let the festivities begin.

*reference and more information, here.

New Garden Friends Halloween Graveyard Tour

Every Halloween, retired Guilford College Professor of Quaker  and Religious Studies, Max L. Carter, leads a tour of the cemetery behind the New Garden Friends Meeting on Guilford College Road. Last night, approximately 100 people gathered as Max wove Quaker lore and American history in with personal facts about people buried in the cemetery.* Given the recent killings, last night's tour had a special emphasis on social justice. Quakers are pacifists, helped lead slaves to freedom through the Underground Railroad,  and have done so much to help advance the cause of social justice throughout the world. While being Quaker is not a requirement for being buried in the cemetery, most people at least have ties to the community. As an example, poet and UNCG professor, Randall Jarrell, was not a Quaker but loved taking walks through the cemetery.

Above, Max is featured holding his father's lantern that was used on their family farm in Indiana when he was growing up. Behind him are some of the interpreters who appeared "in character" at the graves to tell you about the people who are buried there. Max, who retired from Guilford College three years ago, knows the graveyard so well that he could effortlessly run through it on a moonless night, explaining who is where from memory. His pace was brisk, because he wanted to fit in as much information as possible. After the walk, everyone was invited in to the fellowship hall for coffee, hot chocolate, and tea. Everything was perfect about the evening- even the weather.

The November City Daily Photo theme is FRIEND and this photo is a natural, as Quakers are also known as Friends. See other friends from around the world, here.

*learn more about the event, here.

 

(Formerly) Southside Hardware on South Elm Street

Yesterday's post about the alley off of Lewis Street resulted in a wonderfully informative comment from Nollie W. Neill, Jr. whose family had a business in that alley. His family's foundry was Glascock which moved to West Lee Street (Glascock Stove & Manufacturing Co.). He also wrote that a tornado on April 2, 1936 damaged and destroyed many of the buildings in the Lewis Street/South Elm area. 

We'll try our luck today and post a photo of the Southside Hardware Company buildings from the back, the MLK, Jr. Drive side. The other side of the buildings faces South Elm Street, a block up from yesterday's post. For now, we can only show the signage as Google searches aren't resulting in any information. There is a Southside Hardware in High Point. Does anyone know if they are related?

Cascade Saloon

The Cascade Saloon on South Elm Street is almost back in business. Built in 1895, The Cascade was a place for people to socialize, dine, and have a drink, whether just making a visit to town or about to embark on a train ride at the nearby depot. The architecture of the facade is so typical of  storefronts during the late 19th/early 20th century.

While the building has sat empty since 1960 and was at the brink of collapse, thanks to Preservation Greensboro and the Christman Company, it is being renovated. Christman, a construction company will be headquartered there. So, while you won't be able to go in for a meal, all who drive by will be able to see a very lovely building restored to its original splendor, and then some. Have a look at where the building was photographed for Greensboro Daily Photo last year and learn more about the Christman Company, here.

General Nathanel Greene by Night

The statue of General Nathanael Greene is the main feature of the traffic circle on South Greene and McGee Streets. The monument appears to have gotten some new lighting and greenery. When the sun sets behind the statue, the display can be dramatic and colorful. However, at night, when the sky fades to black and lighting illuminates the scene, the effect is equally beautiful. It is as if the greenery at the base makes the marble pedestal and the patina of the statue even more prominent.

The 22-foot statue, sculpted by James Barnhill, was dedicated ten years ago, in 2008. During the American Revolutionary War, General Greene led troops in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. While the results of the battle were not favorable for Green and his men, it weakened the British and helped result in America winning the war. Indeed, Greensboro's namesake looks majestic on the 10 ft pedestal standing guard at the south end of the city.*

*if you like learning about commemorative landscapes of North Carolina, explore this site, hosted by UNC. See, here, for a very different view of the statue, not long after it was installed.

Collins Grove United Methodist Church

The original Collins Grove United Methodist Church was built just after the Civil War. It is located in a community that is also known as Collins Grove. It was settled primarily by African Americans and, in the 1960's, boasted 60 families. With all of the construction of highways and businesses over the decades, the community has declined significantly. According to Jim Schlosser, who wrote an article about the community for the News & Record, in 2005, only about 20 families remained at that time and the number was predicted to decrease significantly.*

It is hard to know what has happened to the neighborhood these past thirteen years; however, to be sure the church and the historic cemetery behind it have been beautifully maintained. Often, in these small rural communities, the church is the pulse of the neighborhood; and, at the corner of Lewiston and Fleming Roads, just beside a Dollar Store, Collins Grove UMC is just that place.

 

*reference and more information, here.

Printworks Bistro

Printworks Bistro is a place with a lot of interesting meanings behind it. First, it is named for the Proximity Printworks Mill, a 100-year-old, now-abandoned mill located near Revolution Mill in northeast Greensboro on Fairview Street. The Printworks Bistro is located in the Proximity Hotel, just off Green Valley Road. As you can see from the above photo, the restaurant is flooded with light as it is meant to replicate the cutting room floor in the Printworks Mill. You would need a lot of light to be able to cut and sew accurately. 

The word "bistro" is believed to have derived from Russian meaning "fast". Russians in Paris would shout "bistro, bistro" wanting to get their food quickly. A place that is known to serve up food quickly has become known as a bistro. So Printworks Bistro is a place with good lighting that serves up good food, as quickly as you need it to be served. It name pays respect to Greensboro's mill history and, as feasible, they use locally sourced food. Perhaps, best of all, it is Greensboro's first restaurant to achieve LEED platinum status for its sustainable practices.

Mural at Lucky 32

Sixteen years ago, in 2002, Chip Holton painted the mural at the entrance to Lucky 32 at Westover Terrace. The above photo features an iconic scene of the Greensboro Sit-Ins, a non-violent protest at the Woolworth on Elm Street. In the mural, David Richmond, Franklin McCain, Ezell Blair, Jr. and Joseph McNeil are seated waiting to be served a cup of coffee at a lunch counter where the wait staff was refusing to serve them. The floor to ceiling 14' mural, along a curved wall, is full of scenes from Greensboro's history. Some of the scenes in the mural have playful twists like the square hamburger bun next to a railroad underpass, an obvious nod to Greensboro's Hamburger Square. All of the imagery features scenes from Greensboro's history.* 

The artist, Chip Holton, is from down the road in Lexington, North Carolina; however, his Greensboro influence is far-reaching. Chip produced all of the artwork in the O. Henry Hotel and the Proximity Hotel. **  His artwork can also be found in places like the North Carolina Zoo, the North Carolina Natural History Museum in Raleigh, and Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh. 

 * Reference and more information can be found in this 2002 article by Jim Schlosser, back when Jim worked at the News & Record.

** Read more about Chip Holton at his website, here.

 

St. Benedict's Catholic Church

St. Benedict's Catholic Church, located at the corner of North Elm and Smith Streets, is Greensboro's first Catholic Church. The original congregation first held meetings around 1870.  In 1898, the current church was built with funds provided by Saint Katherine Drexel, who funded the project under the stipulation that Saint Benedict would reserve pews for Greensboro's black Catholics. This aspect of integration was important to Drexel who worked so hard for rights for Native Americans and African Americans.

The above photo features St. Benedict's sanctuary, today. It has not always looked so elegant. In 2017, church members raised nearly a quarter of a million dollars and undertook the renovation of the sanctuary, doing much of the work themselves. It is such a close knit, yet welcoming congregation. Ask any member about the renovation and you will likely get a personal tour. And Saint Katherine Drexel would be pleased to know that there are parish families from all over the world: Togo, Philippines, Croatia, and Nigeria, to name a few places. Pastor James Duc Duong is from Vietnam. Read more about the grand transformation in the December issue of Greensboro's own O. Henry Magazine (here).

 

Cone Denim and Greensboro's Textile Industry

Going through our photo archives at GDP, we came across this photo taken late this past summer. There was an event at Revolution Mill and Cone Denim had a table set up, telling about their history and these unidentified women were selling t-shirts, left over from White Oak Mill's anniversary celebration a few years ago. Little did the community know that the mill was about to close its doors forever. 

We're hoping somebody is doing a photo shoot inside the White Oak Mill before it gets dismantled, or changed into whatever it is going to become. If they are looking for photographers to take photos inside the White Oak Plant, please encourage them to contact Greensboro Daily Photo. We've had requests to share this giant piece of Greensboro's history with the community. 

When we started Greensboro Daily Photo nine years ago, it wasn't our initial plan to photograph the changes in the community, but those changes have been coming fast and furiously. As for White Oak, it is hard to believe that memories, and silenced equipment are all we have left of an industry that was an integral part of Greensboro for over 100 years.

Fordham Drug Store... circa 2018

Fordham Drug Store, located at 514 South Elm Street, opened in 1898. The history of Fordham is a roadmap to the way life used to be in the previous two centuries. Drug stores were social places where people stopped after school to enjoy one of the soda fountain concoctions, the kind that sometimes led to trademark beverages like Coke, Pepsi, and Dr. Pepper. Fordham was known for its lavender malted milkshakes. Drugstores were often a teenager's first job. Christopher Columbus Fordham III, who worked as a soda jerk, went on to serve as chancellor of UNC Chapel Hill.* Fordham had doctors who conveniently worked upstairs, so that a patient could be seen and receive medicine and a soothing soda, all in the same building. 

Sadly, after 104 years, Fordham closed in 2002. The above photo was taken this past weekend. It seems the store is taking on a very different look. There is so much history in the building, it would be nice to see it restored. We'd love to get inside and see that Mexican marble counter and those wooden floors, and purchase just one more cold drink from that soda fountain. If you know about the painting and what will become of the building, please let us know.

* reference and more information from Our State magazine, here.

Mitchell's Clothing & Accessories

John Mitchell has been selling clothing in the same spot, 311 East Market Street, since 1937. Mr. Mitchell (front and center) began helping his dad in the store when he was eleven  years old. Today, at 90, he still comes to work six days a week with the same work ethic and love of life. The store is virtually the same as it was eighty years ago. The other thing that hasn't changed is the Mitchell family's commitment to seeing that customers find the perfect suit, tie, dress shirt, and Stacy Adams shoes for their formal occasion. The store is also known for its quality, brand-name hats. People come from throughout the east coast to purchase Stetson and Kangol caps.

Joe Mitchell stands in the background, always ready to help his dad as needed. Joe, a professional drummer who has lived on the west coast for decades and whose band has toured in Europe, likes to come to the store in Greensboro to help his family. John Mitchell graduated from Greensboro Senior High School in 1945, and Joe graduated from Grimeley High in 1976. 

Brick and mortar businesses with a proprietor on site, especially one who loves seeing that the customer leaves satisfied, is getting harder and harder to come by. Mr. Mitchell has mostly repeat customers these days. His clients trust him as their go-to person for something nice to wear. The Mitchell family has seen Greensboro grow and change over the last eight decades. We don't know if statistics are kept, but Mr. Mitchell could well have the longest running retail career in all of North Carolina- six days a week since 1937!

Here is a 2012 story on Mitchell's Clothing and Accessories from the News and Record. Rumor has it that an article will be published in Our State Magazine after the first of the year. We can't wait!

Cugino Forno

Pizzeria Cugino Forno opened in Revolution Mill last spring. The pizza is authentic Neapolitan style made in wood fired ovens imported from Italy. The above photo shows the pizza baker checking on a pizza he is baking. You see the 800-degree ovens and the wood below them. The process involves using a lot of hardwood.  "Cugino Forno" means "cousin oven" in Italian, a reference to the fact that cousins own the restaurant together.

The pizzeria is actually located just outside Revolution Mill, in a free-standing building that was once a machine shop. The pizza making technique used at Cugino Forno dated back to Naples, Italy in 1889, maintaining the same commitment to fresh ingredients and preparation of dough. Revolution Mill, known for flannel fabric, opened in 1899. So, it seems that the mill and the pizza are a perfect marriage. The oven-baking process used dates back 2,000 years. The process, the ingredients, the equipment, and the skill of the bakers, all come together and the result is a sort of alchemy that transforms dough, tomato sauce, and cheese into a little slice of heaven. The pizza really does taste like it was made in Italy. The attention to detail would please the Cone Brothers who worked equally diligently to see that every bolt of flannel at the mill was perfect. Hopefully, the attention to detail and commitment to quality will keep Cugino Forno around for a very long time!

Evening Downtown Walking Tour

Last night, under the waxing gibbous moon, approximately fifty people were treated to a tour of downtown architecture. The host was Anderson, who works for Preservation Greensboro (based out of Blandwood Masion). The tour lasted almost an hour and a half. It began in front of the Green Bean in the South 300 block, progressed along Elm Street to West Washington Street, to North Elm and ended at the Jefferson Standard Building. The weather was perfect and the tour gave a good overview  of materials used in construction of the buildings, what style they represented, and how Greensboro evolved to meet the consumer needs of the day. One of the biggest surprises was that fact that many very accomplished architects have been involved in designing our downtown buildings.

We'll share more photos over the next couple of weeks and provide more details on some of these architectural points of interest. Especially interesting was the Brutalist movement from the 1960s and 1970s, giving us a whole new lens through which to view those solid-cement structures downtown. To be sure, Greensboro has many interesting buildings compressed into a small space. Additionally, there is a tendency to remove facades from later renovations and to return building to their original state. Thank you, Preservation Greensboro. Thank you, Anderson. 

Westie of Westerwood

This West Highland White Terrier was a big hit on the walking tour of the Westerwood neighborhood this past weekend. He lives behind the First Baptist Church in a part of Westerwood that was known as St. Paul's neighborhood. He guarded the street, especially on the lookout for human visitors and one of the many felines often seen exploring his neighborhood. He is quite proud of his neighborhood. In spite of his role as sentry, Mr. Westie did not bark at us.

In the early 1900s African American families lived on this end of Woodlawn Avenue, an example of early integration, given Westerwood is located on the west side of town and many African-American communities were found in eastern Greensboro. Plumber, cash register repairman, and preacher, were a few of the careers of the men, well-respected community members, on this street. The above house is one of the oldest in the neighborhood, and hopefully, it will be around for a very long time. It looks cozy, is nicely landscaped, and in a fabulous location.

Remember Double Oaks in Westerwood receives community members to stop by for a drink or two on Wednesday evenings and Preservation Greensboro offers a free tour (see yesterday's post).

 

Double Oaks

The Double Oaks Bed and Breakfast is located at 203 North Mendenhall Street on the edge of Westerwood, just north of Friendly Avenue. It was the gathering point for the Westerwood Tour that was offered by Preservation Greensboro. Unbeknown to anyone, including the Preservation Greensboro tour guide, Ben, we were given the opportunity to go inside and tour the bed and breakfast. The owner was on site and event planners were preparing for a wedding shower and it worked out perfectly for us to tour and move on before guests started arriving. 

The Colonial Revival mansion was completed in 1909 and owned by Harden Thomas Martin who moved to Greensboro from Rockingham County after a successful career owning and operating retail stores. Over the years, it has been a bed and breakfast previously and was owned at one time by Charles R. Forrester, Chairman of the Greensboro Historic District Commission. Double Oaks is one of those houses with great provenance. Presently, it is owned by James and Amanda Keith who welcome their guests, and even the public, with open arms. James told us on the Saturday tour that he envisions it being used in the manner it would have been when built; that people would come and stay a while, not just for a quick visit. To that end, on Wednesday evenings from 5:30- 8:00, you can stop by for something to drink. Wine and beer are on tap for $5 a pour. They have built a lovely stage in the corner of the lot for concerts. If you come out this week, you could stop by Double Oaks and then head to the Green Bean at 341 South Elm Street for Preservation Greensboro's free walking tour of Center City North.

Thanks to people like the Keiths, organizations like Preservation Greensboro, and GDP readers like YOU, our city just keeps getting better and better!

Tobacco Field

In North Carolina, tobacco has been a successful cash crop and central to our state's agricultural history. In North Carolina, tobacco growing dates back to the mid 1600s, as it was one of the few crops that grew well in the dry, sandy soil. The above field is an example of soil quality the Sandhills and even here, in the Piedmont. The above tobacco is planted out West Market Street, near the Guilford/Forsyth County line. 

Over the past decades, North Carolina has been moving away from its agricultural industry, with more emphasis on the industrial and service oriented sectors. There was a day when virtually every community in Greensboro, and the surrounding areas, had parcels of land planted in tobacco. Now, the crop is not nearly as easy to find and employment in tobacco. Between 1992 and 2012, employment in the tobacco industry has declined by almost 50%*

As you can see from the above photo and the insert below, tobacco ripens from the bottom up. The bottom leaves have already turned yellow. If you want the leaves to grow larger and thicker, you need to cut off the flowers before they open. Trimming directs the energy to other parts of the plant. Most North Carolina children who live on tobacco farms have had the chore of working the fields and helping in the process. The tobacco in the photo has a lot of flower buds.

This weekend would be a good one to take a drive around the rural parts of Greensboro to look for tobacco fields, old tobacco barns, and other traces of our agricultural history.

 

*reference, here.

Happy 70th Birthday, Wrangler

The Kress Building on South Elm Street is filled with a Wrangler timeline and some memorabilia, detailing the seventy years of Wrangler. According to the timeline, in 1947, Greensboro's Blue Bell Corporation hired a Philadelphia taylor, "Rodeo Bill" Lichtenstein to design a jean that would be functional to cowboys, but would have a fit that was flattering. Mr. Lichtenstein was smart and got input from rodeo champions, and one, Jim Shoulders, was signed on to endorse the brand, an endorsement that lasted 59 years. Throughout the years, Wrangler has adapted to the changes of the times and, in some cases, helping to set trends. In the above photo, the multicolor jean in the middle of the photo was launched in 1970 with a partnership between pop-art artist Peter Max and Wrangler.

If you get a chance, head downtown to see this exhibit which reflects a tremendous part of Greensboro's denim & jeans history. After all, one of our city's nicknames is now Jeansboro. Thank you, Kress Building for showcasing this great piece of Greensboro's history.

Cascade Saloon

Renovation of the long neglected Cascade Saloon is well underway and great progress is being made. The inside has been gutted and will look fabulous when completed. After nearly fifty years of being boarded up and rotting, the building is filled with scaffolding inside and on the outside. Thanks to Preservation Greensboro and taxpayers' money, the building will be restored to its former glory on the outside while being completely modern on the inside.* Twenty dumpsters of trash was removed from inside the building. The saloon has so much history, including having been owned by an African American husband and wife team in the early 20th century. (Read Susan Ladd's article if you want to know more).

The building that dates to the late 1800's is being renovated by The Christman Construction Company. They will have offices in the building. Christman has been a company since the late 1800's- almost as old as the Cascade Saloon. The Christman Company got its start in Indiana and worked most of the 20th century there and in Michigan. In the early 2000's they expanded east, merged with Retenbach, and found their ties to Greensboro. When the building is completed, we hope Preservation Greensboro will oversee an open house. The people of Greensboro are anxious to get inside. It would be fun, and a great nod to the past, if they would have a little coffee house that was open to the public. See a couple more photos of the work in progress below (click on the photos to make them bigger).

 

*reference and more information, here.

Old Tobacco Barn

This old tobacco barn is located in Guilford County out near Kernersville, off Highway 150. Under the tin roof, you can see the original finish to the building. The wood and chinking is less evident where the building is painted red. To the right, below, you can see the old wood-fired oven, used to process tobacco the old-fashioned way. In this barn, tobacco is flue-cured, dried in the inverted U-shaped furnace on the right. It would have been fed pine logs to generate smoke. Through an elaborate drying system, the temperature of the tobacco filled barn is controlled. According to Our State Magazine, an acre of hanging tobacco can shed almost 5 tons of water.*

Although tobacco growing and processing has declined in North Carolina, tobacco is still a dominant crop in the State. If you get a chance this weekend, and you are local, drive into the rural areas surrounding Greensboro and you will see plenty of tobacco barns, most in some state of decay. Don't wait too long. In 1950, there were half a million tobacco barns in North Carolina. Today, there are around 50,000. The charm of the above building is enhanced by the tin roof.

*See Our State Magazine article for reference and to read more, here.

N is for Neighborhood

Greensboro neighborhoods have very distinct personalities. Sunset Hills is known for their location, convenient to Friendly Center and to downtown, and their lighted chicken wire decorations at Christmas. The above photo features the oldest house in Sunset Hills, located at 2702 West Market Street. This two-story home, in the Colonial Revival style, was built in 1895 and was relocated to the present lot in the early 1930s.

According to their National Register of Historic Homes application, the Sunset Hills neighborhood comprises 280 acres west of downtown Greensboro. It was developed in the 1920s, so having a house from the 19th century is unusual. The giant magnolia trees on either side of the lot hide the home from the street on this heavily-traveled section of West Market Street. The owners, who are only second owners since 1977, probably like the protection from road noise; however, it would be nice to be able to see more of their historic home. You can actually get a better look of the 3,000+ sq. ft. structure from the Elam Street side.

Today is ABC Wednesday, and for Round 20, "N" is for "Neighborhood, " specifically, the Sunset Hills neighborhood which, in addition to the Christmas ball decorations, is known for having neighborly neighbors who are frequently out walking along the tree-lined sidewalks.

M is for McGee Street

The above photo was taken on McGee Street, just off Hamburger Square, in downtown Greensboro. The statue is of General Nathanael Greene, the Revolutionary War General for whom Greensboro is named. (The statue itself  is actually located in the center of the round-about at Keith Holliday Circle). On days with beautiful sunsets, this view from West McGee Street is most spectacular. General Greene eternally stands guard over our fair city, as if protecting us. The bronze statue on a granite base was made by sculptor James Barnhill and dedicated in 2008. It was sponsored by the Bryan Foundation. Read more about the statue on this thorough page. 

While the General Greene is stealing the show, today's focus is McGee Street, a street that ribbons through Greensboro from just past Natty Greene's Restaurant on the east side to Edgar Street in College Hill in the west. It is a street full of life, evident from the patio of Natty Greene's or at the outside seating of M'Coul's Public House at 110 W. McGee.

Today is ABC Wednesday and M is for McGee Street. See our ABC Wednesday, Round 20 A-L entries here. In the meantime, consider walking the length of McGee Street!

 

Gate City Redux

This billboard is located behind Thousands O'Prints, Chakras, and Schiffman's at the corner of Davie and East Washington Streets. The "Go. Reconnect." is a reference to travel by train. It is the closest billboard to the train depot a half a block away. Greensboro has a tremendous rail history. The nickname "Gate City" dates to the late 1800s when as many as 60 trains a day moved through Greensboro. Today, people are still able to travel to and from Greensboro by train, hence the above sign.

If you are interested in train travel, head down to J. Douglas Gaylon Depot at 236 East Washington Street and learn about your options. Sure, you could look online (www.ncbytrain.org); however, the building is beautiful, the interior is historic, and seeing people coming and going is an experience that can't be replicated virtually.

Home Style Cooking

Everyone loves a little "Throwback Thursday" once in a while. The above photo features a building in nearby Stokesdale that formerly housed a "Country Cooking" restaurant. It offered homestyle cooking; good, fresh, mom-and-pop style food. Currently, the building is for sale and, this past Sunday afternoon,  had no signs of life. Next door is a used car lot and across the street is a school. On a school or work day, you would think the restaurant would have the potential to be super busy.

Imagine people considering buying a used car and talking about finances over a slice of homemade pie and a cup of coffee. Or, moms meeting for breakfast after they dropped their child off at school. You would think home cooked food would never go out of style. Then again, the restaurant industry is a lot of hard word and it is not always easy to make a profit. While the nostalgia factor is high for the old-time restaurants, time can trump nostalgia, with customers wanting instant food and drive-through convenience.

At the end of the day, remember to vote with your wallet, and, vote often!

B is for Barns

The Greensboro area still has many structures from the last century, reminding us of our rural roots. The above photo of a tobacco barn was taken on Highway 220 North, north of Greensboro and near Stokesdale. It is a fairly typical tobacco barn, about 20' x 20' square, with a tin roof and built of hewn logs and mortar. In the 1950's, there were half a million in this area, which was part of  the tobacco belt. Growing tobacco was one of North Carolina's primary crops. You may remember names like Winston, Salem, Lucky Strike, and Kool. Those were some of our local tobacco products. They all got there start in a barn similar to the one in the above photo.

Today, tobacco growing has decreased and only an estimated 50,000 tobacco barns remain in North Carolina.* The exterior view of the above tobacco barn appears to be in pretty good shape. It will be interesting to see if it gets restored or if it falls in the hands of crafters who will dismantle it for the wood. It is doubtful that it is still used for tobacco. It sure evokes nostalgia for yesteryear. Do you have any memories of curing tobacco or working in the barns?

Today is ABC Wednesday and for ABC Round 20, their final round, B is for Barn, specifically Tobacco Barns.

* reference and more information.

Greensboro's Christmas Tree Lots

The tree lots were busy this weekend. If you like a live tree, these lots are great fun and many people build annual, family traditions around selecting the tree. You can put on clothes that are good for photos, stop for a hot chocolate, and then heading out to select a tree. Greensboro has many organizations selling trees as a fundraiser. The above photo is the Wagoner lot at the Harris Teeter parking lot at New Garden Road, across from the entrance to Bryan Boulevard west.

The Wagoners have been selling Christmas trees in Greensboro since the 1940's. The above lot is owned by Bryan Wagoner whose father is John and his uncle, his father's twin brother, was Fred. Almost the whole family, including Bryan's brother Bruce, is involved in the business, from manning their lots to caring for the trees the eight years it takes them to mature. Bryan and Bruce's sister Lynn is a cardiologist in Ohio, specializing in heart transplants.* It is so nice to see these Greensboro families carrying the tradition of their parents. Making memories is such an important part of childhood.

*Reference and more information, here.

Got GRITS?

Founded in 1767, the Old Mill of Guilford has been grinding grain since before Greensboro founded. The old mill has thrived for nearly 250 years by serving good products and by having dedicated owners, employees and volunteers. Looking closely, you will notice that the above features the corn meal shelf, not the grits that are on the other side of the shelf. Since 2007, the mill has been owned by Alice and Darrell Klug. It was previously owned by the Parnells who died in 2007, the same year that the bright red water wheel was repaired. The mill is in good hands now and the Klugs are gearing up for the holiday season. They were quite busy when we visited this past Monday.*

If you are driving up Highway 68 from Greensboro, you will first notice the historic Ai Church that has been restored. At the bottom of the hill, also on the east side of the highway, you will see the Old Mill of Guilford. The giant water pipe and red wheel mark the way to the entrance. If you are inclined to "buy local" for the holidays, the Old Mill will provide you with many options- including a 1,000 piece puzzle, made from a William Magnum painting.

 

* read more of the mill's history, here.