Guilford Courthouse National Military Park is home to several monuments to local historic figures. Like Major Joseph Winston, who commanded the Surry County militia during the Revolutionary War and is Winston-Salem’s namesake.
But for the last several months, the pedestal that once held his statue has been empty. For this edition of Carolina Curious, WFDD’s Amy Diaz answers a Greensboro listener’s question about the status of the monument.
Clyde Robinette regularly walks his dog through Guilford Courthouse Park. He was used to seeing the bronze Major Winston, with one hand pointed toward the sky and a sword in the other.
“I just kind of enjoy walking past and seeing that he's there overseeing the park for us," Robinette said.
Then one day, earlier this year, he was gone. Robinette says there was a little sign in his place that said the statue had been removed for restoration. But that was months ago. It had Robinette wondering what kind of repairs the statue needed and when it might be back.
“I just miss my old buddy," he said.
According to Aaron LaRocca, the superintendent of the park, Robinette won’t have to wait too much longer. He expects the statue will be reinstalled later this summer.
Right now, though, it’s out of the country. Expert artisans are working to repair it after a vandalism incident in 2021.
“Vandals damaged the statue when they stole the sword, damaging the statue's metal hand," LaRocca said.
LaRocca says the artisans also assessed the statue’s overall condition and identified some other needed fixes. They’re using old photos of the monument to make their repairs.
“And we also did this in consultation with the State Historic Preservation Office, and so it's through that partnership that we're able to rehabilitate and restore the statue to its original historic appearance," he said.
But even though the statue isn’t there right now, Joseph Winston kind of is. His remains were reburied at the Guilford Courthouse National Military Park in the fall of 1906.