Open Venues & Time
Open Months
Old Salem Museums and Gardens is open year-round except for January each year.
Regular operations and the administration office are closed for following holidays: New Year’s Day (January 1), Martin Luther King Day (third Monday in January), Memorial Day (last Monday in May), Junteenth (June 19), Independence Day (July 4), Labor Day (first Monday in September), Thanksgiving (fourth Thursday in November), Christmas Eve (December 24th), and Christmas Day (December 25).
Open Days and Hours
Wednesday to Saturday every week
10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Open Venues
Old Salem Visitor Center
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Home Moravian Church’s 1800 Tannenburg Organ is displayed in the James A. Gray Auditorium, accompanied by a video of its restoration and concerts. Visit the Old Salem Research & Archaeology Lab. Explore exhibits about travel, music, and the 1950s model of the town of Salem. Purchase an Annual Pass to visit multiple times a year to experience all the seasonal programs!
Galleries in the Frank L. Horton Museum Center (including The Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts)
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., also open for research and collection studies by appointment.
Tickets required for entry.
Before visiting our talented craftspeople, come visit our three self-guided galleries. The collection includes Salem-made artifacts and decorative arts from across eight Southern states. For an added fee, visitors can request a 1-hour, or 2-hour connoisseur tour of additional Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts galleries built around your interest. Ask for more details at the rotunda desk. Further explore southern objects and local history in the Anne P. and Thomas A. Gray Library and MESDA Research Center.
St. Philips African Moravian Church (Open starting February 15, 2023)
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Tickets required for entry.
Learn about the history of North Carolina’s longest running Black church and explore our ongoing research into the lives of the free and enslaved people of African descent in the town of Salem.
Blum House Joinery
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Tickets required for entry.
Immerse yourself in the traditional craftsmanship of 18th century woodworking with our tradespeople. Learn about Salem’s commercial trades that established the town as a provisioning hub in early Wachovia’s landscape.
Potter’s Workshop at T. Bagge
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Tickets required for entry.
Consumers sought Moravian Redware pottery for its functional and decorative qualities. The potters will demonstrate 17th and 18th century pottery making, including use of their foot driven potters’ wheel and animal shaped molds.
Moravian Book & Gift Shop
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Shop for a variety of merchandise ~ handcrafted birdhouses, Moravian Stars, unique jewelry, gardening books, items for kids, and stationary. Have a cup of coffee and a special treat at E.A. Vogler Coffee & Confections in the store.
Single Brothers’ House
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Tickets required for entry.
Explore Salem’s trades in a tour on the first floor. This iconic residence building is a mixture of medieval half-timbered construction and later English style brick addition. This building historically housed single young men aged 14 to 21 to apprentice in a multitude of trades instructed by Master craftsmen. The Single Brothers signed an “Apprentice Contract” to commit themselves to seven years of intense trade training. The Brothers lived, worked, slept, ate, and worshipped here.
Boys’ School
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Tickets required for entry.
School is open! Don’t be late! Explore the wonder of 18th and 19th century Moravian education for young boys ages 6-14 through a journey of see, feel, touch, and smell with hands-on activities. This is the oldest school still standing that was dedicated to the education of boys in America.
Miksch House & Garden
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Tickets required for entry.
The first family house in Salem was built in Salem for Henrietta, Matthew, and their baby Martha Elizabeth. Join us inside as we cook, handcraft, do the daily choirs, bake, and work just as the Miksch family in 1771. This garden requires a ticket for entry.
Doctor’s House
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Tickets required for entry.
Dr. Samuel Benjamin Vierling constructed his house for his family and flourishing medical practice. Explore his Apothecary Shop and the exhibit “The Moravian Way of Health and Healing.” This unique exhibition shows the Moravians’ holistic approach physical, spiritual, and psychological health that developed over time. Some consider this building as the birthplace of the town of Winston, NC. The deed selling land that would become “Winston” was signed in the Apothecary space.
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
A must stop destination at one of the oldest continuously operated bakeries in America! Prepare yourself for a mouthwatering opportunity to purchase our famous Moravian Sugar Cake and Lovefeast buns, fresh baked bread, cookies, sweet treats, and amazing gifts crafted right here in Salem. We mix a little history into the bake too! Baked items are not gluten free and may contain allergens.
Seed Saving Lab
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Tickets required for entry.
Plants have history too! Come learn how the gardens and landscape communicate the connection between the plants and people of Salem. Continue your education with a tour through the Salt Street and Single Brothers’ Gardens.
Open Wednesday to Saturday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., Thursday 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. (Open Mic).
Located in the lower level of T. Bagge Potter’s Workshop, Muddy Creek Café & Music Hall at Old Salem is a perfect lunch spot with delicious sandwiches, salads, and soups. It is known for hosting incredible folk and traditional musicians. View the Menu.