# Timeline of Winston-Salem, North Carolina

"none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see [[WP:SDNONE]]
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA.

## Prior to 20th century

* 1769 – Single Brothers' House built in Salem.
* 1771 – Moravian cemetery ("God's Acre") in use in Salem.
* 1784 – Salem Tavern rebuilt.
* 1802 – Salem Academy for girls founded.
* 1840 – Arista Cotton Mill and Fries Woolen Mills in business in Salem.
* 1843 – Salem Vigilant Fire Company established.
* 1849 – Salem becomes part of the newly formed Forsyth County.
* 1851 – New town "Winston" created as seat of Forsyth County.
* 1852 – Western Plank Road (Wilmington-Salem) built.
* 1856
** Salem incorporated.
** Charles Brietz becomes first mayor of Salem.
** Western Sentinel newspaper begins publication in Salem.
* 1859
** Winston incorporated.
** William Barrow becomes first mayor of Winston.
* 1861
** St. Philips Moravian Church built in Salem.
** May 20: State of North Carolina secedes from the Union.
* 1866 – First National Bank of Salem established.
* 1871 – First tobacco factory in Winston begins operating.
* 1872 – P.H. Hanes & Co. tobacco in business in Winston.
* 1875 – R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company in business in Winston.
* 1879 – Wachovia National Bank established in Winston.
* 1890 – Twin-City Daily Sentinel newspaper in publication.
* 1891 – First Catholic Mass held at St. Leo's original church site in the West End.
* 1896 – Population: 5,500 in Salem; 13,500 in Winston.
* 1897 – The Journal newspaper begins publication.
* 1899 – Winston-Salem post office established in Winston.

## 20th century

* 1905 – Baseball comes to Winston-Salem
* 1912 – Winston-Salem Hebrew Congregation formed.
* 1913 – Towns of Salem and Winston merge to form Winston-Salem municipality.
* 1918 – November: Racial unrest.
* 1923 – North Carolina Baptist Hospital opens.
* 1927 –
** Nissen Building completed - would later be the first building in the Southeastern US to install air conditioning.
** Miller Municipal Airport established.
* 1929 – Reynolds Building (hi-rise) constructed.
* 1930
** WSJS radio begins broadcasting.
** Shell-shaped Shell Service Station built.
* 1935 – State Theatre active.
* 1937
** WAIR radio begins broadcasting.
** Krispy Kreme donuts in business.
* 1948 – Piedmont Airlines headquartered in city.
* 1951 – Flamingo Drive-In cinema opens.
* 1952 – Temple Emanuel synagogue built.
* 1953 – WSJS-TV begins broadcasting.
* 1956 – Wake Forest College relocates to Winston-Salem.
* 1960 – Winston-Salem exceeds 100,000 for the first time.
* 1965
** Hanes Corporation headquartered in city.
** Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts established.
** Parkway Theatre opens.
* 1966 – Wachovia Building (hi-rise) constructed.
* 1967 – November: Racial unrest.
* 1971 – Black Panther Party, Winston-Salem, North Carolina Chapter established.
* 1975 – Hanes Mall opens.
* 1979 – WGNN-TV begins broadcasting.
* 1981 – Wake Forest University's Layton Field baseball park opens.
* 1982
** Second Harvest Food Bank begins operating.
** Southern Garden History Society headquartered in Winston-Salem.
** RJR Plaza Building constructed.
* 1989
** Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum opens.
** Tornadoes hit the Winston-Salem area and Forsyth County on May 5. These tornadoes were part of the May 1989 tornado outbreak across Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia.
* 1993 – Mel Watt becomes U.S. representative for North Carolina's 12th congressional district.
* 1995 – Wachovia Center (hi-rise) built.
* 1997
** City website online (approximate date).
** Winston Net (computer training nonprofit) established.
** Jack Cavanagh becomes mayor.
* 2000
** Population exceeds 200,000 for the first time.
** Sister city relationship established with Ungheni, Moldova.

## 21st century

* 2001
** Allen Joines becomes mayor.
** Sister city relationship established with Kumasi, Ghana.
* 2005 – Winston Cup Museum opened by Will Spencer.
* 2006 – Sister city relationship established with Nassau, Bahamas and Shanghai, China.
* 2008 – Wachovia Bank is acquired by Wells Fargo.
* 2010 – Population: 229,617.
* 2011
** Sister city relationship established with Buchanan, Liberia.
** Tennis tournament Winston-Salem Open moves here from New Haven, Connecticut
* 2014 – Alma Adams becomes U.S. representative for North Carolina's 12th congressional district.
* 2019
** Confederate soldier statue on the former grounds of the Forsyth County Courthouse removed after protests and legal challenges.
** BB&T acquires SunTrust Banks, forming Truist Financial headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina
* 2022
** A fire at the Weaver Fertilizer Plant on North Cherry Street forces an evacuation within one mile of the plant out of concern for a large-scale explosion