Wilson North Carolina Whirligig Park and Eastern Barbecue

Why visit Wilson

Wilson grew in the late 1800s as a tobacco auction center, with huge warehouses where farmers sold their bright-leaf tobacco. The city's historic districts preserve grand homes built by tobacco merchants.

Its downtown revival is built around the Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park, where about 30 of the late artist's massive kinetic sculptures spin in the wind. Wilson also has a lively arts scene and some of the best barbecue in the state.

Downtown and the whirligigs

Wilson's downtown has been revived around its famous folk art.

Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park

Vollis Simpson, a farmer and machinist, built enormous whirligigs from salvaged metal on his land in nearby Lucama. After his death, about 30 were restored and moved to this downtown park, where they spin and glitter in the wind, especially beautiful when lit at night.

Historic downtown Wilson

Downtown has restored buildings, murals, galleries and restaurants, many in former tobacco warehouses.

Imagination Station Science and History Museum

Housed in the old 1920s federal courthouse, this hands-on museum has science exhibits and a planetarium for children.

Arts Council of Wilson

The Arts Council's Edna Boykin Cultural Center, a restored 1919 theater, hosts plays and concerts, and its gallery shows local art.

History and gardens

Wilson's historic neighborhoods and gardens reflect its tobacco wealth.

West Nash Street Historic District

This tree-lined street has some of the city's grandest homes, built by tobacco merchants in Queen Anne, Colonial Revival and other styles.

Wilson Botanical Gardens

This free garden has themed displays, a children's garden and native plants.

Barton College

This small college near downtown has a pleasant historic campus.

Toisnot Park

This park has a lake, walking trails and the Wilson Rose Garden.

More to see in Wilson

Beyond the whirligigs, Wilson has a handful of smaller sights that show its character as a tobacco town and a center of eastern North Carolina life.

Oliver Nestus Freeman Round House and Museum

This small round house was built in the 1940s by Oliver Nestus Freeman, a local stonemason, using concrete and stone. Today it is a museum of African American history in Wilson, with exhibits on the people and families who shaped the city.

Fleming Stadium and the Wilson Tobs

Fleming Stadium, which opened in 1939, is one of the oldest ballparks in the state. In summer it is home to the Wilson Tobs, a college summer team in the Coastal Plain League, and a night game is a cheap, relaxed outing.

The tobacco warehouse district

A few of the huge brick warehouses where tobacco auctions once filled the fall season still stand near downtown, some now reused for shops and events. Walking past them gives a sense of how big the trade once was.

Day trips from Wilson

Tobacco Farm Life Museum

About 25 minutes away in Kenly, this museum shows how farm families lived and worked in the tobacco era, with a restored farmhouse, barns and tools.

Rocky Mount

About 20 minutes north, Rocky Mount has the Imperial Centre for the Arts and Sciences, set in restored tobacco buildings.

Raleigh

The state capital, about an hour west, has free state museums of history, art and natural sciences.

Festivals and events

Wilson's calendar is busiest in spring and fall, when the weather is best for being outdoors.

Whirligig Festival

Each November the city celebrates its famous sculptures with a downtown street festival featuring arts and crafts vendors, live music, food trucks, a children's area and barbecue. It is the liveliest weekend of the year downtown, so arrive early for parking.

Eyes on Main Street

This outdoor photography festival turns downtown into a gallery, with large prints by photographers from around the world hung in shop windows and along the streets. It is free, and the photos can be seen on a self-guided walk at any time of day.

Summer evenings

On summer evenings, Tobs games at Fleming Stadium and concerts downtown are the easiest way to join local life.

Food and local flavors

Wilson is famous for eastern North Carolina barbecue: whole hog cooked slowly and chopped with a sharp vinegar and pepper sauce, served with coleslaw, boiled potatoes and cornbread. Several long-running barbecue restaurants draw visitors from across the state.

Downtown has a growing number of cafés and restaurants, and Southern fried chicken and hushpuppies are everywhere.

Where to stay

Near Interstate 95 has most of the chain hotels.

Downtown Wilson puts you close to the whirligig park and restaurants.

Raleigh, about an hour west, has many more hotel options.

Best time to visit

Spring is mild and blooming.

Summer is hot and humid.

Fall is pleasant, and the Whirligig Festival takes place in November.

Winter is mild, with holiday lights downtown.

Getting there and getting around

By air: Raleigh-Durham International Airport is about an hour west.

By train: Amtrak's Carolinian, Palmetto and Silver Star trains stop at the Wilson station.

By car: Interstate 95 and US 264 pass the city.

Getting around: A car is the easiest way to get around.

A suggested itinerary

First day

Start at the Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park, then explore downtown and the Imagination Station. Have a barbecue lunch, walk the West Nash Street historic district, and return to the whirligig park at dusk to see the sculptures lit up.

Practical tips

• Visit the whirligig park on a windy day to see the sculptures spinning.
• The Whirligig Festival is held each November.
• Some classic barbecue restaurants close early or on Sundays.
• Wilson is a convenient stop on Interstate 95.

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