Source: Winston Monument
Winston Monument, Guilford Courthouse
A statue of Joseph Winston stands defiantly on top of a granite base. Winston, clad in Revolutionary garb, grips his sword in his right hand while pointing forward with his left. The base of the monument holds bronze tablets on its four sides which bear the inscriptions below. The monument measures 15' in height and 5'6' in width at the base. The statue is made of composition metal, "so nearly resembling pure bronze that no one but an expert can distinguish it." Contemporary newspapers praised the statue and claimed that it was the "handsomest piece of statuary in North Carolina' and "as a work of art it has no equal in beauty in the South."
West face: IN MEMORY /
OF THE /
NORTH CAROLINA TROOPS /
UNDER /
MAJOR JOSEPH WINSTON /
WHO WERE FIGHTING THE /
HESSIANS /
AND TARLETON’S CAVALRY /
NEAR THIS SPOT/
AFTER THE CONTINENTAL LINE /
HAD RETREATED /
FROM THE FIELD OF BATTLE /
MARCH 15TH, 1781
North face: ERECTED BY /
GOVERNOR THOMAS M. HOLT /
1893
East face: MAJOR JOSEPH WINSTON /
CAPTAIN JESSE FRANKLIN /
RICHARD TALIAFERRO /
PALAM QUI MERUIT FERAT
Guilford Battleground Company
Base dedication: July 4, 1893. Statue dedication: July 4, 1895
36.130290 , -79.839640
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"At the Guilford Battle Ground," The News and Observer (Raleigh, NC), July 6, 1893, 1-3 Link
"Invitations and Programs for Fourth of July Celebrations at the Site of the Battle of Guilford Court House," (1888), (accessed February 6, 2012) Link
"Major Joseph Winston," The News and Observer (Raleigh, NC), December 12, 1894, 2 Link
"The Holt Monument," The News and Observer (Raleigh, NC), April 20, 1893 Link
"Winston Monument," The Historical Marker Database, HMdb.org, (accessed February 7, 2018) Link
A Memorial volume of the Guilford Battle Ground Company, (Greensboro, NC: Guilford Battleground Company, 1893), 15-93, (accessed February 8, 2012) Link
Banks, Howard O. "Report of Howard O. Banks to the 'Charlotte Observer' of the Celebration at Guilford Battle Ground, July 4th, 1893," (accessed May 16, 2012) Link
Folder 21 in Joseph M. Morehead Papers, #523, Southern Historical Collection, The Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, see scans 82-84 Link
Hendricks, J. Edwin. 1996. "Joseph Winston," NCPedia.org, (accessed December 14, 2017) Link
National Park Service. U.S. Department of the Interior. North Carolina National Register of Historic Places. "Inventory Form - Guilford Courthouse National Military Park," (accessed November 6, 2019) Link
“Guilford Battle Ground,” The North Carolinian (Raleigh, NC), July 7, 1893
“To a Revolution Hero,” The North Carolinian (Raleigh, NC), July 11, 1895
Yes
Mt. Airy granite, bronze plaques and the statue of composition metal (either sheet copper or sheet bronze)
Governor Holt gave a contribution of $400 for this monument
Base unveiling 1893: An audience of 10-15,000, including many prominent individuals, was present at the unveiling. The ceremony began at 11am with a parade starting at David Schenck's park headquarters and ending at a podium on the southeastern side of the park. Colonel Joseph Morehead was the Master of Ceremonies and Governor Holt gave an address at the unveiling.
Statue unveiling 1895: 5,000 in attendance. The Salem Coronet Band provided music for the dedication ceremony held at the newly constructed pavilion. Joseph Morehead (link to #135) was again master of ceremonies and University of North Carolina President George T. Winston presented an oration on the “Life and Times of Colonel Joseph Winston.”
Holt Monument, North Carolina Militia Monument
Winston (1746 - 1815) was a Colonel in the North Carolina Militia and fought at the battle of Guilford Courthouse while serving as a Major for the Continental Army. He later served three terms in the United States House of Representatives. The town of Winston-Salem is named in part after this Revolutionary War hero.
In 1893, only the base of the sculpture was dedicated. At that time, it was called the Holt Monument after North Carolina Governor Thomas Holt who was responsible for raising the monument to the memory of North Carolina troops under the command of Joseph Winston at Guilford Courthouse. The statue of Winston was added in 1895 after additional funds were raised and the monument is now most commonly called by that name.
The body of Winston was re-intered nearby in 1906.
[Additional information from NCpedia editors at the State Library of North Carolina: This person enslaved and owned other people. Many Black and African people, their descendants, and some others were enslaved in the United States until the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery in 1865. It was common for wealthy landowners, entrepreneurs, politicians, institutions, and others to enslave people and use enslaved labor during this period. To read more about the enslavement and transportation of African people to North Carolina, visit https://aahc.nc.gov/programs/africa-carolina-0. To read more about slavery and its history in North Carolina, visit https://www.ncpedia.org/slavery. - Government and Heritage Library, 2023.]
The monument is located in Guilford Courthouse National Military Park in Greensboro, NC. It faces east, in the direction Winston's enemy stood. It was placed where the North Carolina militia under Winston's command was believed to have fought.
The monument is near tour stop #4 on of the tour road. To get to the monument, one must walk a small foot trail.
After the Battle Ground Company was unable to acquire money from the state, the company president personally asked Governor Holt for the funds to erect a monument. Holt agreed with the conditions that he would be in charge of its design and he would deliver the address at the dedication.
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