Reynolda Gardens of Wake Forest University

The R. J. Reynolds estate that became Reynolda was never meant to be preserved — it was meant to be lived in. That it endured, and that it's open to anyone who shows up before sunset, is the real story.

The roughly 129-acre property now known as Reynolda Gardens of Wake Forest University was once the working core of an early twentieth-century estate belonging to Mr. and Mrs. R. J. Reynolds. It included a lake, a golf course, formal gardens, greenhouses, and woods. Winston-Salem built its identity around Reynolds tobacco money — the city still carries the nicknames to prove it — and Reynolda was where that fortune took physical form on the landscape.

Much of that landscape changed over the past century. Much of it didn't. Original structures and plans remain intact, which means what you're walking through isn't a recreation — it's a continuation. The gardens were donated to Wake Forest University in 1958 and established as a nonprofit in 1964. The university uses the preserve as a learning center for horticulture, environmental sciences, and landscape history, with students and faculty conducting research throughout the grounds.

The conservatory holds three distinct rooms — an Orangery, a Mediterranean room, and an orchid-themed space — each its own small world under glass. Outside, the grounds are open daily from sunrise to sunset, free, year-round.

What keeps this from being merely a nice park is context. You're walking ground that was once private and powerful, now returned to anyone who wants it. The Reynolds fortune shaped this city in ways that are still being reckoned with. The gardens are the part that was simply given back.