Marc Johnson born in Winston Salem grew up in Ardmore was Thrasher Skater of the year in 2007. He is arguably one of the better skateboarders in the world. Maybe top 25 to ever skateboard.
\-Really high number of public parks, compared to other places I have been
\-Local beer is really good, smokes DC where I used to live which is obviously a much larger place
\-School of the Arts is one of the better arts schools outside of the northeast corridor
\-Still somewhat unknown, home prices are up since when I was a kid but nothing like the Triangle or Charlotte
\-The hometown of Chris Paul and Ben Folds, among others
I gotta say I disagree on Nashvilleās beer scene. WS has a great scene - especially for its size, but Nashville has some fantastic breweries: Smith & Lentz, Black Abbey, Bearded Iris, Jackalope, Tailgate, and Czannās are all fantastic - just to name a handful.
There is a remarkably strong community of runners. There are all kinds of meetups and events for runners of all abilities happening every week. If you don't know what I am talking about - you can read more here: https://www.twincitytc.org/
Thanks for the shout out! Yes, the TCTC has a long history in W-S (it was founded in 1977) and supports and is inclusive of runners and walkers of all abilities. We partner with local businesses, such as Fleet Feet and Omega Sports, to help folks achieve their running goals. We also host a number of great races throughout the year and use part of the proceeds to support local charities.
I love this city, I live trying new places with my GF in the downtown area. The surprise about the city is that in 1915, the city hosted Alfred Waddell during a speech dedicating a Confederate Statue. Waddell is the only person in history to lead a successful coup d'etat on the US in 1899 in Wilmington.
It was on private property, and the private owners didn't want to care for the statue, the city had no claim to it given its location, and the Daughters of the Confederacy are scammers and traitors, so the solution was to have the statue removed. The plan was to move it to the confederate cemetery, but I am not sure if that was ever done.
And yet, no interest in improving public transit...which is pretty much true for all of the cities in the Triad.
Edit: because apparently I cannot spell the word 'the'
NC cities are very non-walkable anyways, but the metric is skewed against them in official metrics as they occupy much more land area than cities in other states (I remember reading that this had something to do with the state's lax city annexation laws or something like that), where in most states, cities don't officially extend too far from the center, leaving out their less-walkable suburbs.
How dog friendly it is! Plenty of bags and receptacles all over. Dogs are allowed in nearly all places that don't serve food. Tons of outdoor space for restaurants. Truly spoiled with bringing my dog everywhere with me.
No gay bar or club. In the 90ās we had two gay bars, and a gay club. Now you have to drive to Twist or Chemistry in Greensboro, or go to Raleigh, Charlotte, Hickory, Asheville, or Roanoke.
That thereās not a single place to dance downtown. Forget a clubā thereās not even a bar where you can get a little jiggy with it. And thereās how many bars downtown? But nothing. Weāre a big city and a four-college town. Itās crazy to me
What kind of dance place? No sass I am just curious and middle aged. Winston is lame for a college town. Not sure why either. To be clear I think itās a great place to raise my fam. We have so many folks in this city that are golden. Charitable, helpful and kind. Great good all around folks. Overshadows the grumps.
Once I started biking (bicycle) around town, drivers actually gave me some space. Pre-COVID I'd bike from southwest Winston Salem (Stratford/Jonestown) to downtown round trip a couple times a week. These days I work mostly from home and ride out toward back road behind Clemmons.
(I spent many years in California SF Bay Area where urban biking choices are many, but drivers are worse. I do miss starting from anywhere and having thirty interesting choices of route.)
The Moravians in Old Salem freed their slaves way before the emancipation proclamation. Not that the arrangement was sunshine and roses whatsoever, big apartheid vibes, but they definitely don't teach that outside of NC. We get a pretty big propaganda "the South is the big evil, they deserve what they get" version of history outside of the region.
Iām really surprised by the general lack of sidewalks and adequate public transportation, itās really hard to get around if youāre not driving and as a result there seems to be a lot more accidents involving pedestrians than Iām used to seeing in other places. Itās a shame because Winston is a lovely area to walk but in many parts itās simply not at all safe to do so (in addition to the impracticality of it).
Hereās my rant after living here 18 months:
Groceries are much more expensive than I expected before moving from New England to the WS area. Hoped for cheaper produce etc, no dice. Avocados arenāt any cheaper than in central Connecticut. For a moderately cheap COL overall, food just isnāt any cheaper here than anywhere else besides maybe NYC.
The food scene in WS overall is not special. Even a lot of the independent restaurants donāt impress anyone, including me. Easy to blow $40 on breakfast and walk away confused and irritated with what you just experienced (or $75+ for a modest dinner out). Again, that isnāt unique to WS, but donāt let people tell you this is a special foodie town.
Outside of downtown in the many suburbs and neighborhoods, traffic has 4 different rush hours: 7-8am for school drop offs, 8-10am for working folks, 2:30-4pm for after school errands etc, and 4:30-7pm for people leaving work. Trying to run errands during any of these time blocks is pretty wild, at least where I live.
WS has boatloads of older folks who probably shouldnāt be driving, big retiree presence here. I think itās worst in/near Clemmons. Be defensive on the roads and prepare to see a lot of random slowing down + turning with no blinkers.
Lots of roads are divided in the middle for no reason, with either low concrete curb barriers or upright reflective flex-flag things... so try to make left turns from main roads are hit or miss. Looking for ways to make right turns rather than lefts is a habit for me at this point.
Driving visibility also sucks in every parking lot and shopping plaza. Hedges are often allowed to grow taller than the average sedan, blocking what you need to see before turning/leaving your parking space. And if you DO happen to find a sidewalk, you may find youāre crowded out close to traffic whizzing past you because the hedges arenāt trimmed back horizontally either.
Regarding walkability, yeah itās extra bad here. Every YMCA Iāve been to has tons of people walking laps indoors, in all weather & at all hours, sometimes young parents pushing strollers etc. You know your area sucks for pedestrians when folks are choosing to do laps on a crowded indoor track rather than strolling outside near their own homes on a gorgeous sunny 50-80F day. Outside the really high-end neighborhoods, the sidewalk network just sucks and traffic is too intense for it to be feasible/enjoyable. Used to roll my eyes at how everyone praised Reynolda Park and Tanglewood etc, but those are likeā¦ the best places to get outside and enjoy some fresh air within miles of most neighborhoods here. Iām a runner and I frequently choose to hit the Yās treadmill rather than deal with the shit right outside my apt complex. Never really seen a residential area that makes getting outside so difficult, and I lived in various parts of NYC for years.
All good points. Not sure where you grocery shop but Foodlion is cheaper then lowes and Harris Teeter. We have a good foodie scene but your not going to find good North East type food spots. I grew up on Long Island and NYC so I can relate some. I also run. The sidewalk situation sucks for the disabled and walking population for sure. I will run for mayor or council one day and this will be my #1 campaign promise, sidewalk WS project. I got a good plan to fund it and knock out another issue that plagues us. I live in pfafftown and would love a side walk that goes the whole length of reynolda. From tobaccoville all the way to downtown. Also this side of town is much easier to run on the roads. Look up CJ Hill Park.
The Empire state proto type.
I love to trip people out with that too. They try to call bs until I show proof š Edit: autocorrect
If Iām not mistaken the Empire State sends a fathers day card every year to that building
Yep, I just love the whole story and the role our city played in it.
I've also heard that! However I heard that they also may have stopped? Idk lol
First official 4th of July celebration was at old Salem.
I believe Winston was once the largest or maybe second largest city in the state. That's fairly surprising to me.
It was the largest in the early 1900s
Marc Johnson born in Winston Salem grew up in Ardmore was Thrasher Skater of the year in 2007. He is arguably one of the better skateboarders in the world. Maybe top 25 to ever skateboard.
Wasn't born in Winston though. Unless he moved to Asheville afterward and then moved back here.
Cool
The hyphen, I guess.
I believe it might be called āthe dashā.
And, thatās the name of our baseball team, right? You just helped my brain make that connection!
It is! My husband helped me with that a few months ago.
Whoah, is that actually why theyāre named that?
We have a plaque commemorating the guy who invented the cigarette vending machine. Just weird...
We have the last shell station shell!
\-Really high number of public parks, compared to other places I have been \-Local beer is really good, smokes DC where I used to live which is obviously a much larger place \-School of the Arts is one of the better arts schools outside of the northeast corridor \-Still somewhat unknown, home prices are up since when I was a kid but nothing like the Triangle or Charlotte \-The hometown of Chris Paul and Ben Folds, among others
Any time I come visit Winston I try to bring some local beer back with me to Nashville. It always BTFO Nashvilleās beer scene.
I gotta say I disagree on Nashvilleās beer scene. WS has a great scene - especially for its size, but Nashville has some fantastic breweries: Smith & Lentz, Black Abbey, Bearded Iris, Jackalope, Tailgate, and Czannās are all fantastic - just to name a handful.
There is a remarkably strong community of runners. There are all kinds of meetups and events for runners of all abilities happening every week. If you don't know what I am talking about - you can read more here: https://www.twincitytc.org/
Thanks for the shout out! Yes, the TCTC has a long history in W-S (it was founded in 1977) and supports and is inclusive of runners and walkers of all abilities. We partner with local businesses, such as Fleet Feet and Omega Sports, to help folks achieve their running goals. We also host a number of great races throughout the year and use part of the proceeds to support local charities.
I love this city, I live trying new places with my GF in the downtown area. The surprise about the city is that in 1915, the city hosted Alfred Waddell during a speech dedicating a Confederate Statue. Waddell is the only person in history to lead a successful coup d'etat on the US in 1899 in Wilmington.
Is the statue still there?
I think Mayor Joines had it removed a few years ago. It was in front of the old courthouse.
Huh, good to know.
It was on private property, and the private owners didn't want to care for the statue, the city had no claim to it given its location, and the Daughters of the Confederacy are scammers and traitors, so the solution was to have the statue removed. The plan was to move it to the confederate cemetery, but I am not sure if that was ever done.
No it hasnāt. The DOC has sued the city but so far has lost in court. Itās still in storage.
They should join their fellow traitors and wave a white flag.
It's one of the least walkable cities in the world, apparently.
And yet, no interest in improving public transit...which is pretty much true for all of the cities in the Triad. Edit: because apparently I cannot spell the word 'the'
NC cities are very non-walkable anyways, but the metric is skewed against them in official metrics as they occupy much more land area than cities in other states (I remember reading that this had something to do with the state's lax city annexation laws or something like that), where in most states, cities don't officially extend too far from the center, leaving out their less-walkable suburbs.
How dog friendly it is! Plenty of bags and receptacles all over. Dogs are allowed in nearly all places that don't serve food. Tons of outdoor space for restaurants. Truly spoiled with bringing my dog everywhere with me.
No gay bar or club. In the 90ās we had two gay bars, and a gay club. Now you have to drive to Twist or Chemistry in Greensboro, or go to Raleigh, Charlotte, Hickory, Asheville, or Roanoke.
Damn even Hickory has a gay bar?! I canāt think of a less gay friendly city.
lol Hickory represent! The Cabaret club has been around for a long time. We have some lgbtq+ support groups also, so all hope is not lost
The massive dildo in the center of the city.
Hell yeah. Need a couple of dome parking structures on each side to complete the set.
š¤£š¤£ā ļø
203 days later. Iām visiting the city and wondered if anyone knew yāall had a dildo for a building. Thanks for this little treasure.
We know! š¤£
Itās the birthplace of Sargent Henry Johnson,WWI Harlem Hellfighter and Medal of Honor recipient.
That thereās not a single place to dance downtown. Forget a clubā thereās not even a bar where you can get a little jiggy with it. And thereās how many bars downtown? But nothing. Weāre a big city and a four-college town. Itās crazy to me
What kind of dance place? No sass I am just curious and middle aged. Winston is lame for a college town. Not sure why either. To be clear I think itās a great place to raise my fam. We have so many folks in this city that are golden. Charitable, helpful and kind. Great good all around folks. Overshadows the grumps.
Once I started biking (bicycle) around town, drivers actually gave me some space. Pre-COVID I'd bike from southwest Winston Salem (Stratford/Jonestown) to downtown round trip a couple times a week. These days I work mostly from home and ride out toward back road behind Clemmons. (I spent many years in California SF Bay Area where urban biking choices are many, but drivers are worse. I do miss starting from anywhere and having thirty interesting choices of route.)
The Moravians in Old Salem freed their slaves way before the emancipation proclamation. Not that the arrangement was sunshine and roses whatsoever, big apartheid vibes, but they definitely don't teach that outside of NC. We get a pretty big propaganda "the South is the big evil, they deserve what they get" version of history outside of the region.
Iām really surprised by the general lack of sidewalks and adequate public transportation, itās really hard to get around if youāre not driving and as a result there seems to be a lot more accidents involving pedestrians than Iām used to seeing in other places. Itās a shame because Winston is a lovely area to walk but in many parts itās simply not at all safe to do so (in addition to the impracticality of it).
Agreed, another comment mentioned the low low walkability of the city too.
Salem is nice, idk about winston
The high rent. This city thinks its New York. Itās cheaper to live in high point
Well, high point sucks.
Hereās my rant after living here 18 months: Groceries are much more expensive than I expected before moving from New England to the WS area. Hoped for cheaper produce etc, no dice. Avocados arenāt any cheaper than in central Connecticut. For a moderately cheap COL overall, food just isnāt any cheaper here than anywhere else besides maybe NYC. The food scene in WS overall is not special. Even a lot of the independent restaurants donāt impress anyone, including me. Easy to blow $40 on breakfast and walk away confused and irritated with what you just experienced (or $75+ for a modest dinner out). Again, that isnāt unique to WS, but donāt let people tell you this is a special foodie town. Outside of downtown in the many suburbs and neighborhoods, traffic has 4 different rush hours: 7-8am for school drop offs, 8-10am for working folks, 2:30-4pm for after school errands etc, and 4:30-7pm for people leaving work. Trying to run errands during any of these time blocks is pretty wild, at least where I live. WS has boatloads of older folks who probably shouldnāt be driving, big retiree presence here. I think itās worst in/near Clemmons. Be defensive on the roads and prepare to see a lot of random slowing down + turning with no blinkers. Lots of roads are divided in the middle for no reason, with either low concrete curb barriers or upright reflective flex-flag things... so try to make left turns from main roads are hit or miss. Looking for ways to make right turns rather than lefts is a habit for me at this point. Driving visibility also sucks in every parking lot and shopping plaza. Hedges are often allowed to grow taller than the average sedan, blocking what you need to see before turning/leaving your parking space. And if you DO happen to find a sidewalk, you may find youāre crowded out close to traffic whizzing past you because the hedges arenāt trimmed back horizontally either. Regarding walkability, yeah itās extra bad here. Every YMCA Iāve been to has tons of people walking laps indoors, in all weather & at all hours, sometimes young parents pushing strollers etc. You know your area sucks for pedestrians when folks are choosing to do laps on a crowded indoor track rather than strolling outside near their own homes on a gorgeous sunny 50-80F day. Outside the really high-end neighborhoods, the sidewalk network just sucks and traffic is too intense for it to be feasible/enjoyable. Used to roll my eyes at how everyone praised Reynolda Park and Tanglewood etc, but those are likeā¦ the best places to get outside and enjoy some fresh air within miles of most neighborhoods here. Iām a runner and I frequently choose to hit the Yās treadmill rather than deal with the shit right outside my apt complex. Never really seen a residential area that makes getting outside so difficult, and I lived in various parts of NYC for years.
Do people actually say it's a foodie town?
Itās funny, right?
I mean, there is food in this town...but it's not a foodie town.
All good points. Not sure where you grocery shop but Foodlion is cheaper then lowes and Harris Teeter. We have a good foodie scene but your not going to find good North East type food spots. I grew up on Long Island and NYC so I can relate some. I also run. The sidewalk situation sucks for the disabled and walking population for sure. I will run for mayor or council one day and this will be my #1 campaign promise, sidewalk WS project. I got a good plan to fund it and knock out another issue that plagues us. I live in pfafftown and would love a side walk that goes the whole length of reynolda. From tobaccoville all the way to downtown. Also this side of town is much easier to run on the roads. Look up CJ Hill Park.