Graylyn

Last updated
Graylyn
Graylyn.jpg
USA North Carolina location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
LocationReynolda Rd., Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Coordinates 36°07′07″N80°17′00″W / 36.1185°N 80.2833°W / 36.1185; -80.2833
Area87 acres (35 ha)
Built1927-32
ArchitectLashmit, Luther; et al.
Architectural style Norman Revival
NRHP reference No. 78001949 [1]
Added to NRHPAugust 3, 1978

Graylyn Estate, or Graylin, is a historic estate located in Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, North Carolina. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. [1] The construction of the Norman Revival style mansion began in 1928. Associated with the house are a number of contributing outbuildings including a garage-guest house and "farm" complex. [2] Today, Graylyn estate is used as a conference center and hotel. [3] It is currently a member of Historic Hotels of America, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. [4]

Contents

It is on a 55-acre (22 ha) estate.

History

Construction

Graylyn Estate circa 1932 Graylyn exterior ca1932.jpg
Graylyn Estate circa 1932

In 1925, spouses Nathalie Lyons Gray and Bowman Gray Sr., chairman of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, purchased the 87-acre estate from R. J. Reynolds with the plan of building “the home of their dreams.” [5] The land had formerly been corn fields and pasture for the Reynolda Estate, which is now referred to as the Reynolda Historic District. [6] The Grays then employed artisans and craftsmen from all over the United States to build what was one of the largest private homes in North Carolina.

The groundbreaking for the mansion took place on January 15, 1928, and as many as 136 people worked on the construction of the estate at one time. [6] The mansion was built in the style of Norman architecture and contained approximately 60 rooms. [6] At the time, it was second to George Vanderbilt's Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina, as the largest private home in the state. [6]

The ironwork throughout the property was designed by Joseph Barton Benson, an ironsmith from Philadelphia. [7] Nathalie Gray personally decorated the rooms of Graylyn, and the grounds and gardens were designed by Thomas Warren Sears. [6] The amenities of the house were considered very lavish at the time, and its original telephone system and floodlight system "were at the cutting end of technology for the 1930s." [5]

Later Uses

Nathalie Gray and her sons gifted the estate to the Bowman Gray School of Medicine in 1946. [5] The estate was used as a psychiatric hospital from 1947 to 1959. [8] Gordon Gray, the son of Nathalie and Bowman Gray, bought the estate back in 1972 and donated it to Wake Forest University. [9] In the following years, the estate was used for multiple purposes including university programs and community service. [5] From 1977 to 1980, Graylyn was used as a dormitory and housed approximately 40 students a year. [10]

Fire and reconstruction

On June 20, 1980, a fire started in the house during a performance on the lawn by the Winston-Salem Symphony. [5] Nearly 7,000 people watched as the fire extensively damaged the interior of the house. [7] The following day, James R. Scales, the president of Wake Forest University at the time, announced that Graylyn would be rebuilt and restored to its 1932 appearance. [5] The restoration of the mansion and Bernard Cottage was completed in 1984 at a cost of $6,000,000. [7]

Current usage

Graylyn is currently used as a conference center and contains 85 guest rooms and fifteen meeting rooms. [6] Graylyn has five separate buildings for guest accommodations: the Manor House, the Mews, Bernard Cottage, Gardener's Cottage and the Bungalows. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winston-Salem, North Carolina</span> City in North Carolina, United States

Winston-Salem is a city in and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the fifth-most populous city in North Carolina, the third-largest urban area in North Carolina, and the 90th-most populous city in the United States. With a metropolitan population of 675,966, it is the fourth-largest metropolitan area in North Carolina. Winston-Salem is home to the tallest office building in the region, 100 North Main Street, formerly known as the Wachovia Building and now known locally as the Wells Fargo Center.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wake Forest University</span> Private university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S.

Wake Forest University (WFU) is a private-research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, has been located north of downtown Winston-Salem since the university moved there in 1956. The Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist medical campus has two locations, the older one located near the Ardmore neighborhood in central Winston-Salem, and the newer campus at Wake Forest Innovation Quarter downtown. The university also occupies laboratory space at Biotech Plaza at Innovation Quarter, and at the Center for Nanotechnology and Molecular Materials. The university's Graduate School of Management maintains a presence on the main campus in Winston-Salem and in Charlotte, North Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piedmont Triad</span> Region in North Carolina

The Piedmont Triad is a metropolitan region in the north-central part of the U.S. state of North Carolina anchored by three cities: Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and High Point. This close group of cities lies in the Piedmont geographical region of the United States and forms the basis of the Greensboro–Winston-Salem–High Point, NC Combined Statistical Area. As of 2012, the Piedmont Triad has an estimated population of 1,611,243 making it the 33rd largest combined statistical area in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gordon Gray (politician)</span> American politician

Gordon Gray was an American attorney and government official during the administrations of Harry Truman (1945–53) and Dwight Eisenhower (1953–61) associated with defense and national security.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Neal Reynolds</span>

William Neal Reynolds was a U.S. sportsman and businessman with R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, which was founded by his brother R. J. Reynolds.

Pfafftown is an unincorporated community in North Carolina, United States which has been partially annexed into the cities of Winston-Salem in Forsyth County and Lewisville, also in Forsyth County. As of the 2000 census, the ZCTA of Pfafftown had a population of 2,043. It is a Piedmont Triad community.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reynolda Village</span> Shopping mall in North Carolina, U.S.

Reynolda Village is a shopping and business complex in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, created from the servant and agricultural buildings of Reynolda, the former R. J. Reynolds estate. The village, which covers around 13.5 acres (5.5 ha), was planned as a working model farm, designed by Charles Barton Keen and Willard C. Northup in the early 20th century. It is now part of Reynolda Historic District, with twenty-two of its buildings, and one other contributing structure, now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">R. J. Reynolds</span> American businessman

Richard JoshuaReynolds was an American businessman and founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company.

Bowman Gray Sr. was president and chairman of R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and a major benefactor of the medical school of Wake Forest College which now bears his name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reynolda Gardens</span>

Reynolda Gardens are located in Reynolda Village, adjacent to the Reynolda campus of Wake Forest University and the Reynolda House, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The gardens are open daily with free admission.

Thomas Warren Sears was a noted American landscape architect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reynolda House Museum of American Art</span>

The Reynolda House Museum of American Art displays a premiere collection of American art ranging from the colonial period to the present. Built in 1917 by Katharine Smith Reynolds and her husband R. J. Reynolds, founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, the house originally occupied the center of a 1,067-acre (4.32 km2) estate. It opened to the public as an institution dedicated to the arts and education in 1965, and as an art museum in 1967. The house holds one of the country's finest collections of American paintings. It is located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zachary Smith Reynolds</span> American aviator (1911–1932)

Zachary Smith Reynolds was an American amateur aviator and youngest son of American businessman and millionaire R. J. Reynolds. The son of one of the richest men in the United States at the time, Reynolds was to fully inherit $20 million dollars, valued at over $300 million today, when he turned 28, as established in his father's will.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reynolds Building</span> United States historic place

The Reynolds Building is a 314-foot (96 m) Art Deco skyscraper at 51 E. 4th Street in Winston-Salem, Forsyth County, North Carolina with 313,996 square feet (29,171.2 m2) of space. It was completed in 1929 and has 21 floors. For much of its history the building served as headquarters for R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. After a sale to PMC Property Group in 2014, the building went through an estimated $60 million in renovations. In March 2016, The Residences @ the R.J. Reynolds Building, apartments located on the top 11 floors, opened. The first six floors opened as the Kimpton Cardinal Hotel in April. Katharine Brasserie & Bar, a restaurant named for Katharine Smith Reynolds, followed in May.

James Alexander Gray Jr. was a president and chairman of R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He was the brother of fellow R.J. Reynolds president Bowman Gray Sr. He also served as a North Carolina state senator for two terms and as a philanthropist, donated to a variety of educational causes in North Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reynolda Historic District</span> Historic district in North Carolina, United States

Reynolda Historic District is a 178 acres (72 ha) national historic district located on Reynolda Road in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It includes work by Charles Barton Keen and by landscape architect Thomas Warren Sears. The listing includes twenty-two contributing buildings and one other contributing structure. It includes Reynolda House, Reynolda Gardens, Reynolda Village, and Reynolda Presbyterian Church. The district was once part of a larger, self-sufficient country estate conceived and developed by R. J. Reynolds, founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. The district is adjacent to the Wake Forest University campus and its area. The namesake road goes through the Reynolda Historic District, with Silas Creek Parkway bypassing it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katharine Smith Reynolds</span> American tobacco heiress and philanthropist (1880–1924)

Katharine Smith Reynolds, later Katharine Smith Johnston, was the wife of tobacco tycoon R. J. Reynolds and a philanthropist who designed the Reynolda House estate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary Reynolds Babcock</span> American philanthropist

Mary Reynolds Babcock was an American philanthropist. As the daughter of R.J Reynolds and Katharine Smith Reynolds, she therefore inherited considerable wealth from her father's company, the nationally prominent R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. She was a founder for both the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation and the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation. She and her husband Charles Babcock gifted Wake Forest University 350 acres, and the university moved to Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

Claude Nash Herndon Jr. was an American human geneticist who taught and conducted research at the Bowman Gray School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, NC. He was the school's senior associate dean for research and development for many years.

Silas Creek Parkway is a route in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The road is designed as a partial loop around several neighborhoods, from northwestern Winston-Salem, to the southeast area of the city. The route is an expressway as it has grade-separated interchanges and is a popular connector to Interstate 40 and US 421 to other locations in the city such as Wake Forest University, Hanes Mall, and the LJVM Coliseum. The route also has several at-grade intersections with major arterial thoroughfares especially in the southeast section which in which that stretch of the route uses a boulevard grade, giving more direct accesses to several commercial districts.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. H. McKelden Smith (n.d.). "Graylyn" (PDF). National Register of Historic Places - Nomination and Inventory. North Carolina State Historic Preservation Office. Retrieved 2014-11-01.
  3. "Overview". Graylyn. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  4. "Hotel History - The Graylyn Estate". Historic Hotels of America. Retrieved 2022-12-14.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "The Graylyn Estate". Historic Hotels of America. Retrieved 2019-04-09.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "The Story of Graylyn". Graylyn. Retrieved 2019-04-09.
  7. 1 2 3 "Local Historic Landmark Program" (PDF). Forsyth County Historic Resources Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-04-17.
  8. Benefield, Kevin (2017-04-12). "Embark on a history-filled weekend retreat in Winston-Salem, North Carolina". Atlanta Magazine. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  9. Gross, Ginelle. "Savoring the Past at Graylyn". Winston-Salem Journal. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  10. King, Kerry M. (2015-06-01). "Remember When: Graylyn Dormitory". Wake Forest Magazine. Retrieved 2019-04-17.
  11. "Overview". Graylyn. Retrieved 2019-04-23.

Official website