Historic Wake Forest, North Carolina

After two days of cold rain, the sun finally came out this morning.  I was itching to get outside and see some beautiful spring flowers.  The bad part about an early spring is that sometimes the flowers bloom when it is too cold to be outside and enjoy the beauty.  Today I decided we would visit some of the loveliest yards in town.  I packed Kasey in the car for the short ride to North Main Street, the historic section of Wake Forest. 

Most southern towns have a few grand mansions, perhaps owned at one time by the local kings of industry.  Wake Forest has a virtual parade of stately mansions, once owned mostly by professors at Wake Forest College.  Actually, the college was lured by Reynolds money to move to Winston-Salem, NC, back in the fifties.  The campus is now the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.

We started at the Wake Forest College Birthplace Museum.  The house, known as the Calvin Jones house, has been moved from its original location on campus to a lovely location on North Main.

On the grounds are gardens, benches, and areas for outdoor concerts.  The old well has also been relocated here.

Here is a nice fountain in the herb garden.

This is a very nice herb garden..

Here is the Calvin Jones House from the side.

From there, we headed south toward the campus.  North Main Street has sidewalks and a central median that serves as a garden space.

Here is a peek at the magnificent houses on parade along the street.

The pink tree is a redbud.  Isn't it pretty against the blue sky?

I love this house with the "gingerbread" on the front porch and the white picket fence.

Local legend has it that on Sunday afternoons, the students would visit the professors at their homes and hold spirited debates on their front porches.

This veranda would certainly accommodate quite a few students!

This is one of the most familiar buildings near the college.  For years, it was an ice cream shop known as The Corner.  I heard that it went out of business a few years ago.

If you peek in the window, you will see settings for a tea party.

I enjoyed all the gardens, statuary, artwork, and whimsy along our way.

Candy tuft and dianthus

The iconic Southern camellia

This lovey-dovey young couple in the garden shed made me look twice.

Kasey truly enjoys going for walks in different locations.  I think she prefers the woods and creeks, but she was very well-behaved on the sidewalks.  With all the recent rain, she even had a romp through a lovely big puddle.

I hope you enjoyed taking a walk along Main Street with me!  We will definitely be going back and visiting some side streets in the historic district.