The Homes That Big Tobacco Built

In 1874, a young man named RJ Reynolds moved to Winston Salem, NC. His father was a tobacco farmer in Virginia. RJ moved south from his home in Virginia and set about owning his own tobacco business. He died in 1890 of pancreatic cancer but the homes below are what grew from the RJ Reynolds tobacco empire in Winston Salem, NC.

RJ’s father was a merchant, banker, and tobacco manufacturer. RJ learned from an early age that hard work was the driving force to success.He traveled throughout the state as a salesman for the family business. RJ decided to branch out on his own and sold his share of the company back to his father. 

 He moved to the area of Winston and Salem North Carolina with $5,000 in his pocket. It was the only area with a railroad in 1874. Winston and Salem were separate towns at that time. Salem was mostly occupied by Moravians who had settled the are in the 1750’s.

He was a dyslexia and stammering kind of person but liked by all. Even so, he had an appetite for work, women, gambling, and drink. During the Civil War, he hid horses from the Cavalry.

RJ spent $388.50 for a 100ft piece of land right by the railroad. He needed to build a plant that produced chewing tobacco.

This paragraph is sited here. 

 He married Mary Katherine Smith in 1905 and produced four children: Richard, Mary, Nancy and Zachary. When he died of cancer on July 29, 1918, his company had 121 buildings, ten thousand workers, made ten million dollars a year profit. He left an hundred million dollar estate including Reynolda House and Tanglewood. Virginia Tech operates his birthplace and seven hundred acres as the Reynolds Homestead.

 

    Richard Joshua Reynolds is buried in the cemetery near Old Salem within site of the giant Wachovia building and the statue of himself as a young man coming from Patrick County to change the world.

RJ’s brother, William Neal, was attending Trinity College( Duke University) and working for the business part-time. Mr. Will as he was known at that time was employed in the leaf hanging department. William quickly learned every aspect of the business and moved up in rank eventually being involved in the buying of tobacco for the company.

 

Copied from Wiki are the names of the Children born to RJ and Mary Katherine Reynolds. They were married in 1905.

Richard Joshua Reynolds, Jr. (April 04, 1906 – December 14, 1964) who married Elizabeth McCaw “Blitz” Dillard (1909 – Dec. 1961), Marrianne O’Brien (? – 1985), Muriel Maud Marston Laurence Greenough (December 28, 1915 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada – 1980), Annemarie Schmitt

Mary Katherine Reynolds (August 08, 1908 – July 17, 1953) who married Charles Henry Babcock (September 22, 1899 – December 13, 1967)

Nancy Susan Reynolds (February 5, 1910 – January 1985) who married Henry Walker Bagley (August 6, 1900 in Atlanta, Georgia – April 19, 1983) and Gilbert Verney. Nancy and Henry were the parents of Smith Bagley.

Zachary Smith Reynolds (November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1932) who married Anne Ludlow Cannon (August 31, 1901 – June 21, 1961) in York, South Carolina November 16, 1929 and Libby Holman in Monroe, Michigan on Sunday November 29, 1931.

I found it a bit odd that young RJ had so many wives. I think he was wild.

The homes you see in this post are largely built as the direct wealth that sprung up due to the RJ Reynolds Tobacco company. Nancy, RJ’s youngest child, carried on devoting much of her inheritance to schools and agencies that would educate and further good will to all. In 1969, she deeded 710 acres from the original family plantation in Virginia to Virginia Tech.Richard S. Reynolds a nephew of RJ started the US Foil company( 1919) which later would become Reynolds Wrap( 1947). In 1924, he purchased Eskimo Pies.

 

During RJ’s life, he gave much to the community and treated his workers as equals. He was the first to shorten the work day and pay higher wages. He improved their working conditions. RJ believed in education and started the RJ Reynolds High School and the RJ Reynolds Memorial Auditorium. Both are on the register of historic places.

Z.Smith Reynolds was the youngest son of RJ and Mary Katherine. Smith as he was called first, married Anne Ludlow Cannon when he was 18. Anne was the daughter of Joseph Franklin Cannon of the famous Cannon Mills a textile industry. Smith divorced Anne and married a broadway theatre actress named Libby Holman. 

 

Smith died a mysterious death and it is told that his wife was pregnant at the time. Smith’s best friend found him dead with a single bullet hole to the head. But Smith lives on and his name and fortune is attached to many non profit organizations in all 100 counties of NC. You can read about their great work here. Smith’s brother and sisters established the Z. Smith Reynolds foundation. Anne and the best friend were indicted for first degree murder.

Smith was an aviator and the local airport is named after him. The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation played a key role in moving Wake Forest University to it’s current location. It was located in Wake Forest county, NC. The library located at Wake Forest University is named after him.  

 William Reynolds, brother to RJ, and his wife Kate G Biting purchased the land that is now Tanglewood Park and Gardens that are right next to the neighborhood where I live. After their death, the couple donated the home and land to Forsyth County, NC and gave 20 shares of RJ Reynolds Tobacco company for the upkeep of the estate. Also, a Kate B Reynolds Foundation  was set forth to care for the health of those who could not afford it themselves. Our hospice centre is named after Kate B Reynolds.

 

The list goes on and on covering every aspect of their generosity to the community and to the world.

We all know the ill affects of tobacco products. But on the horizon is research on the proteins in tobacco. These proteins are easily manipulated for use in pharmaceuticals and food sources. Tobacco farmers in NC were being paid not to grow tobacco and some turned to growing grapes, soy beans, and other crops. But tobacco was always the biggest cash crop. See here for research being done on the benefits of tobacco. 

 

We have the RJ Reynolds family to thank for many advances in medicine. Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center and Brenners Hospital wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for the Reynolds family. It created jobs and growth post WW2.

 

Today there are many people from a varied background living in these homes. But these homes will always be tied to big tobacco, two cutting edge hospitals, and many textile and furniture industries that make this area what it is today.

Just this week, two major hospitals in the area are battling it out for more bed space and room to expand for the newest and best. The Reynolds name is brought up in just about every conversation. They own the land one of the hospitals would like to build on. You most likely can not find a single family in the state of NC who hasn’t been touched by the RJ Reynolds empire. We are thankful.