Old Salem Museums & Gardens is one of America's most comprehensive living history attractions, sharing the rich, authentic, and diverse cultural history of the early South — with special emphasis on the Moravians in North Carolina, enslaved and free people of African descent, and Indigenous peoples of the Southern Woodland. The site preserves and interprets material culture, architecture, and cultural landscapes within a federally designated National Historic Landmark District. Old Salem’s historic district spans nearly 100 acres and includes nearly 100 restored buildings—many more than two centuries old. Your ticket unlocks more than a dozen interpreted spaces, with guided tours by docents in 18th century attire.


A few highlights include:


Single Brothers' House -National Historic Landmark. Home to live joinery, gunsmithing, and pottery demonstrations.


Salem Tavern - National Historic Landmark exploring Colonial American, Moravian, and African heritage at this crossroads of early Salem.


Doctor's House - Dr. Vierling's apothecary & "The Moravian Way of Health and Healing" exhibit.


St. Philips Moravian Church - Historic African Moravian congregation — a unique window into the lives of Black Moravians in early Salem.


Miksch House & Garden - Salem's first family house (1771).


John Vogler House - Insight into the upscale Vogler family lifestyle and the lives of enslaved residents, with intricate metalwork on display.


Spaces include crafts and trades people in 18th Century attire showcasing blacksmithing, gunsmithing, pottery, joinery and woodworking, tinsmithing, baking, period cooking, and cobbling.


A separate ticket can be purchased for The Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts (MESDA). The museum contains the finest collection of its kind in the nation, featuring architecture, furniture, ceramics, metalwork, needlework, paintings, prints and other decorative arts made and used in the early American South.