R.J. Reynolds
Encyclopedia
Richard Joshua "R. J." Reynolds (July 20, 1850 - July 29, 1918) was an American
businessman and founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company.
The son of a tobacco
farmer, he worked for his father and attended Emory and Henry College
from 1868 to 1870, eventually graduating from Bryant and Stratton Business College in Baltimore
. He sold his share of the family business in 1874 and moved south to Winston-Salem, North Carolina
to start his own tobacco company. Reynolds was a savvy businessman and a hard worker, and he quickly became one of the wealthiest citizens of Winston-Salem; eventually, he was the wealthiest person in the state of North Carolina
.
He died in 1918 of pancreatic cancer
.
near Critz, Patrick County, Virginia
, to Nancy Jane Cox Reynolds and Hardin Reynolds, a tobacco farmer and slaveowner.
to chewing tobacco. By the 1890s, production had increased to millions of pounds annually.
Reynolds' younger brother, William Neal, was attending Trinity College (now Duke University
) and worked part-time for him. Mr. Will, as he was known, began as a leaf-hanger and quickly mastered all facets of the operation. After leaving Trinity College, he managed tobacco purchasing. In 1888, Reynolds formed a formal partnership with Mr. Will and the company bookkeeper, Henry Roan. Reynolds served as President with 75% ownership, and Mr. Will and Henry Roan divided the remainder. The R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company was chartered as a corporation by the state of North Carolina on February 11, 1890. In 1892, Reynolds' net worth had grown to $200,000.
In 1913, Reynolds developed a great innovation: the packaged cigarette. Most tobacco users who smoked cigarettes preferred to roll their own, and there was thought to be no national market for pre-packaged cigarettes. Reynolds worked to develop a flavor he thought would be more appealing than past products, creating the Camel cigarette
, so named because it used Turkish paper. Reynolds undercut competitors on the cost of the cigarettes, and within a year, he had sold 425 million packs of Camels.
By the time of his death, Reynolds had become the wealthiest man in North Carolina by far; his $66,000 paid annually in taxes was double the next-highest taxpayer. R.J. Reynolds had grown to encompass 121 buildings in Winston-Salem. After his death in 1918, his brother assumed control of the company; board members would wait 41 years before hanging another portrait beside Reynolds' in the R.J. Reynolds board room.
. She was the daughter of Zachary Taylor Smith (February 19, 1847 - June 13, 1938) and Mary Susan Jackson (January 21, 1855 - April 17, 1926). She was born in Stokes County, North Carolina
and died in New York City
.
Reynolds and Katherine's father Zachary were cousins, and Reynolds had known Katherine since she was a young girl. She earned a degree in English literature
and went to work as a Reynolds secretary
, at one point winning $1,000 in a company-sponsored contest. Reynolds joked that he married Katherine to get his money back. Their marriage was very happy, and Reynolds wrote to Katherine saying he was very glad he waited so long to marry. Katherine Reynolds urged her husband to shorten employees' work hours and provide a lunchroom, schools and nursery services for them.
The Reynolds' children were:
Reynolds lived above the factory floor for many years. When he married, he lived with his family alongside other R.J. Reynolds executives on Fifth Street in Winston-Salem until 1917, when they moved to Reynolda House, a 1000 acres (4 km²) estate on the outskirts of town that also housed a village where Reynolds workers could live. The grounds featured a post office
, schools, a chapel, a blacksmith shop and a greenhouse
. At Reynolda House, Katherine brought farmers together to learn the latest scientific advances in farming. Katherine offered evening literacy classes to workers. She also commissioned construction of a nine-hole golf course. The Reynolds also owned an estate on Blackbeard Island.
Reynolds died in 1918, and his wife, although 30 years younger, died six years later. Their children were then raised by their uncle, Reynolds' brother William Neal Reynolds
, and his wife Kate Bitting Reynolds. Dick Reynolds became a Democratic politician, mayor of Winston-Salem, and treasurer of the Democratic National Committee
.
Reynolds's grandson Patrick became an anti-smoking activist following several family deaths from smoking and began the Foundation for a Smoke-Free America.
to pay for public schools and voted to approve an income tax
.
, the Oxford Orphan Asylum, and the Baptist Orphanage, in addition to many other charities and churches in the Winston-Salem community. He became the first southern man to establish a hospital serving African-Americans in the South, the Slater Hospital. He started a savings and loan, served on the town board of Winston-Salem, and began a YMCA
and an opera house
.
Reynolds donated money to the establishment of the Slater Industrial School, which would later become Winston-Salem State University
.
When Reynolds died, North Carolina's governor Thomas Walter Bickett
said: "Therefore, the greatest eulogy
that can be offered would be to refer to his life of rugged honesty, his wide usefulness and his kindly dealings with his fellowmen, which he himself deemed his first duty."
activities. She contributed land and funds to establish The Richard J. Reynolds High School
and the R. J. Reynolds Memorial Auditorium
(both listed in the National Register of Historic Places
). Construction of the school and auditorium began in 1919 under the direction of architect Charles Barton Keen, and finished in 1924. Another memorial to Reynolds, an equine statue, sits on Winston-Salem City Hall Grounds in downtown Winston-Salem. A memorial to Katharine Reynolds, a 20-foot-tall obelisk
, now sits on the grounds of the Richard J. Reynolds High School and R.J. Reynolds Memorial Auditorium (it was originally placed on a site in Reynolda Village, around the Reynolds House, but was rescued from demolition and moved to the site on the school grounds).
in honor of her uncle. Her will gave $525,000 for a dormitory at Salem College
in Winston-Salem.
The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation was formed by Mary Reynolds Babcock and her siblings to honor their brother, Reynolds' son Zachary
, who was murdered at the age of 20 at Reynolda. The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation
to this day gives away millions annually in the Piedmont Triad
region. Babcock and her husband Charles also donated land and funds to start a country club from the grounds of Reynolda in 1939, allowing members to sign up for $1 a year while she was alive.
An area of 300 acres (1.2 km²) of the grounds of the Reynolda estate was donated to Wake Forest University
, which then relocated from Wake Forest, North Carolina
to Winston-Salem in 1956 and was given $350,000 annually from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation in exchange for the move. The Reynolds family is honored through many names on the Wake Forest campus, including Reynolda Hall, the university's library, the Z. Smith Reynolds Library, William Neal Reynolds Gymnasium, along with a dormitory named for Mary Reynolds Babcock. Her husband, Charles Babcock, is honored by Wake Forest through the Charles Babcock School of Business Administration. The school was begun through $500,000 each in gifts from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation and Nancy Susan Reynolds. Winston-Salem's airport, the Smith Reynolds Airport
, is named for Zachary Smith Reynolds.
Reynolds' older son Dick also donated acres of land and funds to the county for the establishment of a golf course and public park in 1939, called Reynolds Park. Its opening in 1940 marked the first time that the Winston-Salem public had access to swimming pools, tennis courts, and a golf course—previously, one had to be a member of a private club to use these types of facilities.
Almost a century after her father founded the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, Nancy Susan Reynolds Bagley Verney, his youngest daughter and last surviving child, decided to give back to the region of her father's boyhood. In 1969, she deeded Virginia Tech 710 acres (2.9 km²) of Rock Spring Plantation. In 1980, she deeded them another 7 acres (28,328 m²), where Reynolds' childhood home and a continuing education center stand. She created an endowment of $1.7 million to provide cultural programming to the surrounding community, to run a forestry research center on the site, and to fund a scholarship program for Patrick County high school students. She financed this in part by selling her Quarry Farm in Greenwich, Connecticut
, to Diana Ross
formerly of the Supremes. Now called the Reynolds Homestead
, it is a State and National Historic Landmark
listed in the National Register of Historic Places
. As a Continuing Education Center of Virginia Tech, it offers a variety of programs and classes for all ages, all open to the public and many for free. It is open for tours, April through October, Monday through Saturday.
The house was restored in 1970. Descendents of Hardin and Nancy Reynolds brought together many original heirlooms, including the bed their 16 children were born in. Only eight of their children lived to adulthood. The Homestead includes the historic house, grounds, two cemeteries, and as was the custom of that time a separate three-story brick kitchen, a brick milk house, a spring house
, and a log granary.
In 1919, his nephew, Richard S. Reynolds, Sr.
, founded the U.S. Foil Company in Louisville, Kentucky
, supplying tin-lead wrappers to cigarette and candy companies. In 1924, he bought the maker of Eskimo Pie
s (which were foil-wrapped) and four years later he purchased Robertshaw Thermostat, Fulton Sylphon, and part of Beechnut Foil, adding the companies to U.S. Foil to form Reynolds Metals. After realizing the limitations of the tin and lead used in his company's products, in 1926 he added aluminum to the line. The company began using aluminum foil as a packaging material in 1926, and in 1947 they introduced Reynolds Wrap. Sold worldwide, it transformed food storage. Reynolds Metals
was the second-largest aluminum company in the United States
and the third-largest in the world. The Richmond, Virginia
-based company was acquired by ALCOA
in 2000.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
businessman and founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company.
The son of a tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
farmer, he worked for his father and attended Emory and Henry College
Emory and Henry College
Emory & Henry College, known as E&H, Emory, or the College, is a private liberal arts college located in Emory, Virginia, United States. The campus comprises of Washington County, Virginia, which is part of the mountain region of Southwest Virginia...
from 1868 to 1870, eventually graduating from Bryant and Stratton Business College in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
. He sold his share of the family business in 1874 and moved south to Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Winston-Salem is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina, with a 2010 population of 229,617. Winston-Salem is the county seat and largest city of Forsyth County and the fourth-largest city in the state. Winston-Salem is the second largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region and is home to...
to start his own tobacco company. Reynolds was a savvy businessman and a hard worker, and he quickly became one of the wealthiest citizens of Winston-Salem; eventually, he was the wealthiest person in the state of North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
.
He died in 1918 of pancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer refers to a malignant neoplasm of the pancreas. The most common type of pancreatic cancer, accounting for 95% of these tumors is adenocarcinoma, which arises within the exocrine component of the pancreas. A minority arises from the islet cells and is classified as a...
.
Early life
Reynolds was born on July 20, 1850, at Rock Spring PlantationReynolds Homestead
The Reynolds Homestead, also known as Rock Spring Plantation, was home of R. J. Reynolds, founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company.It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1977....
near Critz, Patrick County, Virginia
Patrick County, Virginia
Patrick County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 18,490. Its county seat is Stuart. It is located within both the rolling hills and valleys of the Piedmont Region of Virginia and mountainous Southwest Virginia....
, to Nancy Jane Cox Reynolds and Hardin Reynolds, a tobacco farmer and slaveowner.
R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company
In 1874, Reynolds sold his interest in the family tobacco business to his father and left Patrick County to start his own tobacco company. He needed a railroad hub for his business, and since there wasn't one in Patrick County, he went to the nearest one, Winston, NC. Winston and Salem were separate towns at that time. The story goes that he came riding into town on a horse, reading The New York Times, and dreaming of building a golf course somewhere in the rural part of the town. By 1875, Reynolds had established his tobacco manufacturing operation, and in the first year, it produced 150,000 pounds of tobacco. Although Winston-Salem alone had 15 other tobacco companies, Reynolds was able to distinguish himself through his business acumen and innovative techniques, including adding saccharinSaccharin
Saccharin is an artificial sweetener. The basic substance, benzoic sulfilimine, has effectively no food energy and is much sweeter than sucrose, but has a bitter or metallic aftertaste, especially at high concentrations...
to chewing tobacco. By the 1890s, production had increased to millions of pounds annually.
Reynolds' younger brother, William Neal, was attending Trinity College (now Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
) and worked part-time for him. Mr. Will, as he was known, began as a leaf-hanger and quickly mastered all facets of the operation. After leaving Trinity College, he managed tobacco purchasing. In 1888, Reynolds formed a formal partnership with Mr. Will and the company bookkeeper, Henry Roan. Reynolds served as President with 75% ownership, and Mr. Will and Henry Roan divided the remainder. The R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company was chartered as a corporation by the state of North Carolina on February 11, 1890. In 1892, Reynolds' net worth had grown to $200,000.
In 1913, Reynolds developed a great innovation: the packaged cigarette. Most tobacco users who smoked cigarettes preferred to roll their own, and there was thought to be no national market for pre-packaged cigarettes. Reynolds worked to develop a flavor he thought would be more appealing than past products, creating the Camel cigarette
Camel (cigarette)
Camel is a brand of cigarettes that was introduced by American company R.J. Reynolds Tobacco in the summer of 1913. Most current Camel cigarettes contain a blend of Turkish tobacco and Virginia tobacco. Early in 2008 the blend was changed as was the package design.-History:In 1913, R.J...
, so named because it used Turkish paper. Reynolds undercut competitors on the cost of the cigarettes, and within a year, he had sold 425 million packs of Camels.
By the time of his death, Reynolds had become the wealthiest man in North Carolina by far; his $66,000 paid annually in taxes was double the next-highest taxpayer. R.J. Reynolds had grown to encompass 121 buildings in Winston-Salem. After his death in 1918, his brother assumed control of the company; board members would wait 41 years before hanging another portrait beside Reynolds' in the R.J. Reynolds board room.
Family and personal life
Reynolds was the most eligible bachelor for many years in Winston-Salem and married Mary Katherine Smith (November 17, 1880 - May 23, 1923), who was 30 years his junior, on February 27, 1905 in Mount Airy, North CarolinaMount Airy, North Carolina
Mount Airy is a city in Surry County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 10,388.-History:Mount Airy was settled in the 1750s as a stagecoach stop on the road between Winston-Salem and Galax, Virginia. It was named for a nearby plantation...
. She was the daughter of Zachary Taylor Smith (February 19, 1847 - June 13, 1938) and Mary Susan Jackson (January 21, 1855 - April 17, 1926). She was born in Stokes County, North Carolina
Stokes County, North Carolina
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 44,711 people, 17,579 households, and 13,043 families residing in the county. The population density was 99 people per square mile . There were 19,262 housing units at an average density of 43 per square mile...
and died in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
Reynolds and Katherine's father Zachary were cousins, and Reynolds had known Katherine since she was a young girl. She earned a degree in English literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
and went to work as a Reynolds secretary
Secretary
A secretary, or administrative assistant, is a person whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, communication & organizational skills. These functions may be entirely carried out to assist one other employee or may be for the benefit...
, at one point winning $1,000 in a company-sponsored contest. Reynolds joked that he married Katherine to get his money back. Their marriage was very happy, and Reynolds wrote to Katherine saying he was very glad he waited so long to marry. Katherine Reynolds urged her husband to shorten employees' work hours and provide a lunchroom, schools and nursery services for them.
The Reynolds' children were:
- Richard Joshua Reynolds, Jr. (April 4, 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 8, 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, GeorgiaAtlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
- April 19, 1983) and Gilbert Verney. Nancy and Henry had three daughters, Jane Bagley Lehman,Susan Bagley Bloom, and Anne Bagley Grant, and one son, Smith Bagley, cell phone business executive and social activist. - Zachary Smith ReynoldsZachary Smith ReynoldsZachary Smith Reynolds was an American amateur aviator and younger son of R. J. Reynolds.The Zachary Smith Reynolds story was the basis for two movies, Reckless, starring Jean Harlow, and the popular 1950s classic, Written on the Wind. The latter was loosely based on a novel by Robert Wilder...
(November 5, 1911 - July 6, 1932) who married Anne Ludlow Cannon (August 31, 1901 - June 21, 1961) in York, South CarolinaYork, South CarolinaYork is a small city in York County, South Carolina, United States. The city of York is also the county seat of York County. The population was approximately 6,985 at the 2000 census and the 2009 population estimate for the city...
November 16, 1929 and Libby HolmanLibby HolmanLibby Holman was an American torch singer and stage actress who also achieved notoriety for her complex and unconventional personal life.-Early life:...
in Monroe, MichiganMonroe, MichiganMonroe is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 20,733 at the 2010 census. It is the largest city and county seat of Monroe County. The city is bordered on the south by Monroe Charter Township, but both are politically independent. The city is located approximately 14 miles ...
on Sunday November 29, 1931.
Reynolds lived above the factory floor for many years. When he married, he lived with his family alongside other R.J. Reynolds executives on Fifth Street in Winston-Salem until 1917, when they moved to Reynolda House, a 1000 acres (4 km²) estate on the outskirts of town that also housed a village where Reynolds workers could live. The grounds featured a post office
Post office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
, schools, a chapel, a blacksmith shop and a greenhouse
Greenhouse
A greenhouse is a building in which plants are grown. These structures range in size from small sheds to very large buildings...
. At Reynolda House, Katherine brought farmers together to learn the latest scientific advances in farming. Katherine offered evening literacy classes to workers. She also commissioned construction of a nine-hole golf course. The Reynolds also owned an estate on Blackbeard Island.
Reynolds died in 1918, and his wife, although 30 years younger, died six years later. Their children were then raised by their uncle, Reynolds' brother William Neal Reynolds
William Neal Reynolds
William Neal Reynolds was a U.S. sportsman and businessman with R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, which was founded by his brother R. J. Reynolds.-Early life:...
, and his wife Kate Bitting Reynolds. Dick Reynolds became a Democratic politician, mayor of Winston-Salem, and treasurer of the Democratic National Committee
Democratic National Committee
The Democratic National Committee is the principal organization governing the United States Democratic Party on a day to day basis. While it is responsible for overseeing the process of writing a platform every four years, the DNC's central focus is on campaign and political activity in support...
.
Reynolds's grandson Patrick became an anti-smoking activist following several family deaths from smoking and began the Foundation for a Smoke-Free America.
Political views
In 1884, Reynolds served as a city commissioner in Winston-Salem. Reynolds established progressive working conditions in his factory, with shorter hours and higher pay. He also signed a petition for a property taxProperty tax
A property tax is an ad valorem levy on the value of property that the owner is required to pay. The tax is levied by the governing authority of the jurisdiction in which the property is located; it may be paid to a national government, a federated state or a municipality...
to pay for public schools and voted to approve an income tax
Income tax
An income tax is a tax levied on the income of individuals or businesses . Various income tax systems exist, with varying degrees of tax incidence. Income taxation can be progressive, proportional, or regressive. When the tax is levied on the income of companies, it is often called a corporate...
.
Lasting influence of Reynolds and his family
Reynolds was generous with his workers, building schools and houses for them on his property. He also granted endowments to Guilford CollegeGuilford College
Guilford College, founded in 1837 by members of the Religious Society of Friends , is an independent college whose stated mission is to: provide a transformative, practical and excellent liberal arts education that produces critical thinkers in an inclusive, diverse environment, guided by Quaker...
, the Oxford Orphan Asylum, and the Baptist Orphanage, in addition to many other charities and churches in the Winston-Salem community. He became the first southern man to establish a hospital serving African-Americans in the South, the Slater Hospital. He started a savings and loan, served on the town board of Winston-Salem, and began a YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
and an opera house
Opera house
An opera house is a theatre building used for opera performances that consists of a stage, an orchestra pit, audience seating, and backstage facilities for costumes and set building...
.
Reynolds donated money to the establishment of the Slater Industrial School, which would later become Winston-Salem State University
Winston-Salem State University
Winston-Salem State University , a constituent institution of the University of North Carolina, is a historically black public research university located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. It is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund.Winston-Salem State has been...
.
When Reynolds died, North Carolina's governor Thomas Walter Bickett
Thomas Walter Bickett
Thomas Walter Bickett was the 54th Governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina from 1917 to 1921.Bickett was a graduate of Wake Forest College...
said: "Therefore, the greatest eulogy
Eulogy
A eulogy is a speech or writing in praise of a person or thing, especially one recently deceased or retired. Eulogies may be given as part of funeral services. However, some denominations either discourage or do not permit eulogies at services to maintain respect for traditions...
that can be offered would be to refer to his life of rugged honesty, his wide usefulness and his kindly dealings with his fellowmen, which he himself deemed his first duty."
Katharine Reynolds' philanthropy
R. J. Reynolds and his family played a large part in the public life and history of the city of Winston-Salem. After his death, his widow Katharine Smith Reynolds continued his philanthropicPhilanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
activities. She contributed land and funds to establish The Richard J. Reynolds High School
Richard J. Reynolds High School
Richard J. Reynolds High School now the Richard J. Reynolds Magnet School for the Visual and Performing Arts is a high school in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Named for R. J. Reynolds, the founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, the...
and the R. J. Reynolds Memorial Auditorium
R. J. Reynolds Memorial Auditorium
The R. J. Reynolds Memorial Auditorium, located in Winston-Salem, NC, was built 1919–1924 under the direction of architect Charles Barton Keen . Keen also designed the adjacent Richard J. Reynolds High School...
(both listed in the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
). Construction of the school and auditorium began in 1919 under the direction of architect Charles Barton Keen, and finished in 1924. Another memorial to Reynolds, an equine statue, sits on Winston-Salem City Hall Grounds in downtown Winston-Salem. A memorial to Katharine Reynolds, a 20-foot-tall obelisk
Obelisk
An obelisk is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape at the top, and is said to resemble a petrified ray of the sun-disk. A pair of obelisks usually stood in front of a pylon...
, now sits on the grounds of the Richard J. Reynolds High School and R.J. Reynolds Memorial Auditorium (it was originally placed on a site in Reynolda Village, around the Reynolds House, but was rescued from demolition and moved to the site on the school grounds).
Children's philanthropy
The Reynolds' estate, Reynolda House, was completed just prior to Reynolds' death in 1918 and was later donated by his daughter, Mary Reynolds Babcock, for use as an art museum. At the age of 28, Mary inherited $30 million and became one of the world's richest women. She contributed to the William Neal Reynolds Coliseum in Raleigh, North CarolinaRaleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
in honor of her uncle. Her will gave $525,000 for a dormitory at Salem College
Salem College
Salem College is a liberal arts women's college in Winston-Salem, North Carolina founded in 1772. Originally established as a primary school, it later became an academy and finally a college. It is the oldest female educational establishment that is still a women's college...
in Winston-Salem.
The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation was formed by Mary Reynolds Babcock and her siblings to honor their brother, Reynolds' son Zachary
Zachary Smith Reynolds
Zachary Smith Reynolds was an American amateur aviator and younger son of R. J. Reynolds.The Zachary Smith Reynolds story was the basis for two movies, Reckless, starring Jean Harlow, and the popular 1950s classic, Written on the Wind. The latter was loosely based on a novel by Robert Wilder...
, who was murdered at the age of 20 at Reynolda. The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation
Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation
The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation was formed by R.J. Reynolds' daughter, Mary Reynolds Babcock, and her siblings to honor their brother, Zachary Smith Reynolds, who was murdered at the age of 20 at the Reynolds family home, Reynolda House. The foundation to this day gives away millions of dollars...
to this day gives away millions annually in the Piedmont Triad
Piedmont Triad
The Piedmont Triad, or Triad, is a north-central region of the U.S. state of North Carolina that consists of the area within and surrounding the three major cities of Greensboro, Winston-Salem, and High Point. This close group or "triad" of cities lies in the Piedmont geographical region of the...
region. Babcock and her husband Charles also donated land and funds to start a country club from the grounds of Reynolda in 1939, allowing members to sign up for $1 a year while she was alive.
An area of 300 acres (1.2 km²) of the grounds of the Reynolda estate was donated to Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University
Wake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is...
, which then relocated from Wake Forest, North Carolina
Wake Forest, North Carolina
Wake Forest is a town and suburb of Raleigh, North Carolina in Wake County in the U.S. state of North Carolina and is located just north of the state capital, Raleigh. The population was 12,588 at the 2000 census. In 2009, the estimated population was 27,915...
to Winston-Salem in 1956 and was given $350,000 annually from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation in exchange for the move. The Reynolds family is honored through many names on the Wake Forest campus, including Reynolda Hall, the university's library, the Z. Smith Reynolds Library, William Neal Reynolds Gymnasium, along with a dormitory named for Mary Reynolds Babcock. Her husband, Charles Babcock, is honored by Wake Forest through the Charles Babcock School of Business Administration. The school was begun through $500,000 each in gifts from the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation and Nancy Susan Reynolds. Winston-Salem's airport, the Smith Reynolds Airport
Smith Reynolds Airport
Smith Reynolds Airport is a public airport located 3 miles northeast of the city of Winston-Salem in Forsyth County, North Carolina, USA. The airport has two runways, and is used primarily for general aviation and flight training, although some passenger operations take place there...
, is named for Zachary Smith Reynolds.
Reynolds' older son Dick also donated acres of land and funds to the county for the establishment of a golf course and public park in 1939, called Reynolds Park. Its opening in 1940 marked the first time that the Winston-Salem public had access to swimming pools, tennis courts, and a golf course—previously, one had to be a member of a private club to use these types of facilities.
Almost a century after her father founded the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, Nancy Susan Reynolds Bagley Verney, his youngest daughter and last surviving child, decided to give back to the region of her father's boyhood. In 1969, she deeded Virginia Tech 710 acres (2.9 km²) of Rock Spring Plantation. In 1980, she deeded them another 7 acres (28,328 m²), where Reynolds' childhood home and a continuing education center stand. She created an endowment of $1.7 million to provide cultural programming to the surrounding community, to run a forestry research center on the site, and to fund a scholarship program for Patrick County high school students. She financed this in part by selling her Quarry Farm in Greenwich, Connecticut
Greenwich, Connecticut
Greenwich is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a total population of 61,171. It is home to many hedge funds and other financial service companies. Greenwich is the southernmost and westernmost municipality in Connecticut and is 38+ minutes ...
, to Diana Ross
Diana Ross
Diana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...
formerly of the Supremes. Now called the Reynolds Homestead
Reynolds Homestead
The Reynolds Homestead, also known as Rock Spring Plantation, was home of R. J. Reynolds, founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company.It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1977....
, it is a State and National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
listed in the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
. As a Continuing Education Center of Virginia Tech, it offers a variety of programs and classes for all ages, all open to the public and many for free. It is open for tours, April through October, Monday through Saturday.
The house was restored in 1970. Descendents of Hardin and Nancy Reynolds brought together many original heirlooms, including the bed their 16 children were born in. Only eight of their children lived to adulthood. The Homestead includes the historic house, grounds, two cemeteries, and as was the custom of that time a separate three-story brick kitchen, a brick milk house, a spring house
Spring house
A spring house, or springhouse, is a small building used for refrigeration once commonly found in rural areas before the advent of electric refrigeration. It is usually a one-room building constructed over the source of a spring. The water of the spring maintains a constant cool temperature...
, and a log granary.
Family's companies
Descendents of Hardin William Reynolds have influenced the economic and cultural growth of the U.S., particularly in the South, through their business successes and philanthropy.In 1919, his nephew, Richard S. Reynolds, Sr.
Richard S. Reynolds, Sr.
Richard Samuel Reynolds, Sr. was the founder of the U.S. Foil Company.Reynolds was born on August 15, 1881 in Madison County, NC. He was the nephew of leading tobacco producer R.J. Reynolds and the son of Major Abraham David Reynolds . He married Julia Louise Parham on December 21, 1904. Reynolds...
, founded the U.S. Foil Company in Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, supplying tin-lead wrappers to cigarette and candy companies. In 1924, he bought the maker of Eskimo Pie
Eskimo Pie
Eskimo Pie is a brand name for a chocolate-covered vanilla ice cream bar wrapped in foil, the first such dessert sold in the United States. It is now marketed by Nestlé, owners of Dreyer's of the Western United States, and Edy's of the Eastern United States...
s (which were foil-wrapped) and four years later he purchased Robertshaw Thermostat, Fulton Sylphon, and part of Beechnut Foil, adding the companies to U.S. Foil to form Reynolds Metals. After realizing the limitations of the tin and lead used in his company's products, in 1926 he added aluminum to the line. The company began using aluminum foil as a packaging material in 1926, and in 1947 they introduced Reynolds Wrap. Sold worldwide, it transformed food storage. Reynolds Metals
Reynolds Metals
Reynolds Group Holdings is an American packaging company with its roots in the Reynolds Metals Company, was the second largest aluminum company in the United States, and the third largest in the world...
was the second-largest aluminum company in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and the third-largest in the world. The Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
-based company was acquired by ALCOA
Alcoa
Alcoa Inc. is the world's third largest producer of aluminum, behind Rio Tinto Alcan and Rusal. From its operational headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Alcoa conducts operations in 31 countries...
in 2000.
Sources
- Mayer, Barbara. Reynolda: A History of an American Country House 1997. Reynolda Museum of American Art. U.S.A
- Tilley, Nannie M. The R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company (2009)