Echoes Of The Ancestors: Triad Cultural Arts And The Pulse Of Black Heritage

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Heritage is something that is handed down through generations, encompassing traditions, ideas, memories, songs, recipes, dances, language, honor, pride, courage, and many other important components that define who we are and how we identify ourselves. It is also culturally historical buildings, places, artwork, monuments, and events.

Heritage is an essential part of the present we live in – and the future we will build.^*

Triad Cultural Arts (TCA), founded in 2007 as a nonprofit, community-based, multidisciplinary cultural arts organization in Winston-Salem, preserves, interprets, and commemorates the heritage of Black Americans for all people.

What Is Triad Cultural Arts Purpose?

Triad Cultural Arts is dedicated to bringing recognition to Black American History and culture by presenting programming that encourages a community to understand, communicate with, and interact with people from diverse cultures, thereby fostering social change in our society. They conduct culturally immersive experiences through festivals, such as the Juneteenth Festival, heritage tours, and arts programming.

Triad Cultural Arts has taken the lead in eliminating racism by presenting programs that engage the community – drawing people in to learn, reflect, and gain deeper insight and understanding, so that diversity is genuinely respected and valued.

Triad Cultural Arts Programs

Juneteenth

The Juneteenth Festival, recently held on June 21, 2025, was the 160th Annual Commemoration of Freedom and the 26th year Triad Cultural Arts has sponsored the Festival. The celebration featured rich African American cultural traditions through music, spoken word, dance, food, arts, crafts, and more. It was a great success with a large attendance.

Kwanzaa

Kwanzaa, which means “first fruits of the harvest” in the African language Kiswahili, is a celebration of family, community, and culture. Celebrated from December 26 to January 1, Triad Cultural Arts spearheads a city-wide, 7-day Kwanzaa Celebration, planned and implemented by over 10 organizations and held at various venues. The festivities include African drumming, music, inspirational messages, and youth activities.

Tours of Winston-Salem’s African American Historic & Cultural Sites

Triad Cultural Arts amazing cultural heritage tours were featured in the book “100 Things To Do In Winston-Salem Before You Die.” They explore the depths of culture, art, and history that define the African American narrative in Winston-Salem, providing insights into the struggles, triumphs, and ongoing legacy of a resilient community, while immersing you in their art, music, and stories.

Tours may include:

• Historic Homes and Neighborhoods
• Educational Institutions
• African American Churches
• Art Galleries
• Artistic Scavenger Hunt
• Freedman’s Graveyard
• Historic Markers

Tours are available for all group sizes, including Trolley & Bus Tours, Walking Tour, Step On Tour, Shotgun House Legacy Site, and 360′ Virtual Tour. See this webpage for more information and to request a tour.

Shotgun House Legacy Site

The Shotgun House is a tangible landmark of Black traditions and contributions preserved for future generations. This project by Triad Cultural Arts, after a 15-year restoration, serves as a vivid depiction of the lived experiences of Black/African American individuals during periods such as Jim Crow, the Civil Rights Movement, and other landmark events. The restored home features exhibits that explore the everyday lives of its former residents and the broader story of Happy Hill and Black Winston-Salem.

Shotgun houses are very narrow, one room wide and up to three rooms deep, with one room leading into the other. The homes were inexpensive to build, and the architectural design came from Yorubaland, West Africa. They have a gabled front porch to allow for entertainment and interaction with neighbors, and the name “shotgun” comes from the Yoruba word “to-gun,” which means a gathering place.

Shotgun houses speak of the Black experience in the South and are a symbol of Black American Freedom. The homes built on Happy Hill in Winston-Salem were all shotgun houses and formed the city’s first planned black community. Only two houses remain.

Tours of the Shotgun House are available on Saturdays, July 19 through September 27, from 11am to 3pm. Tours can also be scheduled on Wednesday through Friday by appointment.

Admission: Adults – $10, Youth – $3, Children under 5 years old are admitted free with an accompanying adult. Schedule a Tour here.

Pop Up Museums & Salons

Triad Cultural Arts invites the community to explore its cultural roots through captivating exhibits, presenting a series of curated Black History pop-up salons and museums. The museums feature pull-up banners covering various aspects of local Black history. The salons feature videos, banners, and an assembly with a speaker and music.

The exhibits educate and encourage dialogue and conversations in nontraditional venues and settings.

Online Exhibits

The Green Book Project In NC: Winston-Salem Green Book Storymap

This fascinating online exhibit examines the Winston-Salem section of an annual guidebook for African American travelers founded and published by New York City mailman Victor Hugo Green from 1936 to 1967. It became known as “the bible of black travel” during the era of Jim Crow laws, when open and often legal discrimination against African Americans and other non-whites was widespread. The Green Book identified places such as lodging, businesses, and gas stations that would serve African Americans along the road. Looking through the pages is a vivid reminder of how America was back then, and, thankfully, how very far we have come.

Rooted In Race: A Communities Journey To School Integration

This online exhibition explores Winston-Salem’s history of school desegregation and its impact on the African American community. It features the following sections:

• Timeline – a linear thinking with supporting newspaper clippings and photographs
• Community Voices – audio recordings from those who lived through that time
• Reflections – for viewer input regarding experiences in the journey from desegregation to integration

Recognizing Black American History And Culture

Triad Cultural Arts is dedicated to demonstrating that Black American history and culture are not just about the past, but are living, evolving forces that shape every aspect of American society.

Black American History includes:

• The forced migration of millions of Africans to the Americas and the enslavement that followed
• Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Abolitionists, and The Underground Railway
• The abolition of slavery and the Civil War
• Jim Crow and segregation
• Civil Rights Movement
• The ongoing fight against systemic racism

Black American Culture Includes:

• Art and Literature – storytelling has been a cornerstone of cultural resilience and expression
• Music – rooted in African rhythms and traditions: spirituals, gospel, blues, jazz, hip-hop, R&B, and more
• Cuisine – soul food and regional dishes
• Language and Style – dialects, fashions, hairstyles
• Faith and Spirituality – the Black church as a cultural and political force, as well as diverse spiritual traditions and movements
• Family and Community – deeply rooted values around family, mutual support, resilience, and cultural preservation

Black History and Culture is a story of pain and perseverance, oppression and triumph, creativity and transformation. Triad Cultural Arts knows that recognizing and celebrating it helps create a more truthful, inclusive, and just society.

For more information about Triad Cultural Arts and the programs they provide, visit their website.

History Abounds In Winston-Salem

While the Moravians did not work to dismantle racial inequality, they did believe in the spiritual equality of all souls, a radical thought at that time. While they did keep slaves, Moravians baptized them, taught them to read scripture, and allowed them to worship, many times alongside them. After slavery was abolished, the Moravians founded and preserved St Philip’s Moravian Church in Old Salem, which had been a place of worship for enslaved people and continued as a Black congregation after emancipation. It is the oldest standing African American church structure in North Carolina. You will find the Homowo Harvest Seed Collection in Old Salem’s Heritage Garden, which preserves seeds tied to African American traditions, recipes, and heritage. The Moravian graveyard, “God’s Acre,” reflects the community’s belief in equality and holds uniform gravestones symbolizing that no one soul is more important than another. However, as segregationist beliefs took place in the South, a separate graveyard, “Negro God’s Acre,” was designated for African Americans and featured traditional African burial customs. Learn More about the Moravians in our article about Old Salem.

Have you attended any Triad Cultural Arts events or programs? Tell us about it in the comments.

*Quote Source: Center for Heritage & Society, University of Massachusetts Amherst: “What Is Heritage?”