Greensboro, North Carolina

Greensboro is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the third-largest city by population in North Carolina and the largest city in Guilford County and the surrounding Piedmont Triad metropolitan region. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, Greensboro's population stands at 269,666.

The city is located at the intersection of two major interstate highways (I-85 and I-40) in the Piedmont region of central North Carolina.

In 2003, the previous Greensboro - Winston-Salem - High Point metropolitan statistical area (MSA) was re-defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, resulting in the formation of the Greensboro-High Point MSA and the Winston-Salem MSA. The 2010 population for the Greensboro-High Point MSA was 723,801. The Greensboro - Winston-Salem - High Point combined statistical area (CSA), popularly referred to as the Piedmont Triad, had a population of 1,599,477.

In 1808, Greensborough (as was the spelling prior to 1895) was planned around a central courthouse square to succeed the nearby town of Guilford Court House as the county seat. This act moved the county courts closer to the geographical center of the county, a location more easily reached by the majority of the county's citizens.

Much has changed since then. Greensboro has grown to be part of a thriving metropolitan area called the Triad, which encompasses three major cities (Greensboro, High Point, and Winston-Salem) and more than a million people. Greensboro evolved from a small center of government to an early 1900s textile and transportation hub, and today is emerging as one of the South's up-and-coming centers for relocating businesses. Two centuries later Greensboro is still collecting accolades for its beauty and livability. In 2004 the Department of Energy (DOE) awarded Greensboro with entry into the Clean Cities Hall of Fame.

Early history
The city was named for Major General Nathanael Greene, commander of the American forces at the Battle of Guilford Court House on March 15, 1781. Although the Americans lost the battle, Greene's forces inflicted such heavy casualties on the British Army of Lord Cornwallis that Cornwallis chose to pull his battered army out of North Carolina and into Virginia. This decision allowed a combined force of American and French troops to trap Cornwallis at Yorktown, Virginia, where the British were forced to surrender on October 19, 1781, after a 20-day siege, thus ending the military phase of the American Revolution. As such, Greene's successful efforts at weakening the British Army played a key role in securing America's victory over the British.

Greensboro was established near the geographic center of Guilford County, on land that was "an unbroken forest with thick undergrowth of huckleberry bushes, that bore a finely flavored fruit." Property for the future village was purchased for $98, and three north-south streets (Greene, Elm, Davie) were laid out intersecting with three east-west streets (Gaston, Market, Sycamore). The courthouse stood at the center of the intersection of Elm and Market streets. By 1821, the town was home to 369 residents.

In the early 1840s, Greensboro was selected by the state government at the request of then Governor Morehead (whose estate, Blandwood, is located in Greensboro) for inclusion on a new railroad line. The city grew substantially in size and soon became known as the "Gate City" due to its role as a transportation hub for the state. The railroads transported goods to and from textile mills, which grew up with their own mill villages around the city. Many of these businesses remained in the city until the 21st century, when most of them went bankrupt, reorganized, and/or merged with other companies. Greensboro remains as a major textile headquarters city with the main offices of International Textile Group (Cone, Burlington Industries), Galey & Lord, Unifi, and VF Corporation (Wrangler, Lee, North Face, Nautica). The importance of rail traffic continues for the city, as Greensboro serves as a major regional freight hub, and four Amtrak passenger trains stop in Greensboro daily on the main Norfolk Southern line between Washington and New Orleans by way of Atlanta.

Though the city developed slowly, early wealth generated from cotton trade and merchandising led to the construction of several notable buildings. The earliest building, later named Blandwood Mansion and Gardens, was built in 1795. Additions to this residence in 1846 designed by Alexander Jackson Davis of New York City made the house an influential landmark in the nation as America's earliest Tuscan Villa. Other significant estates followed, including "Dunleith" designed by Samuel Sloan, Bellemeade, and the Bumpass-Troy House (now operating as an inn).

American Civil War and final days of the Confederacy
Although Guilford County did not vote for secession, once North Carolina joined the Confederacy some citizens joined the Confederate cause, forming such infantry units as the Guilford Grays. From 1861 to March 1865 the city was relatively untouched by the American Civil War, with the exception of dealing with shortages of clothing, medicines, and other items caused by the US naval blockade of the South. However, in the final weeks of the war Greensboro played a significant role. In April 1865 General P.G.T. Beauregard was instructed by the commanding officer of the Army of Tennessee, General Joseph E. Johnston, to prepare for a defense of the city. During this time, Confederate President Jefferson Davis and the remaining members of the Confederate cabinet had evacuated the Confederate Capital in Richmond, Virginia, and moved south to Danville, Virginia. When Union cavalry threatened Danville, Davis and his cabinet managed to escape by train and reassembled in Greensboro on April 11, 1865. While in Greensboro, Davis and his cabinet decided to try and escape overseas to avoid capture by the victorious Union forces; they left Greensboro and separated. As such, Greensboro is notable as the last place the entire Confederate government met as a group, and Greensboro is thus the "final" capital city of the Confederacy. At nearly the same time, Governor Zebulon B. Vance fled the capital of North Carolina in anticipation of the arrival of Union General William Tecumseh Sherman. For a brief period beginning April 16, 1865, the capital of North Carolina was maintained in Greensboro. After the negotiations were completed at Bennett Place, now in present day Durham, North Carolina, between General Johnston and General Sherman on April 26, 1865, Confederate soldiers stacked their arms and received their paroles in Greensboro, and then headed for home.

Industrialization and growth
In the 1890s, the city continued to attract attention from northern industrialists, including Moses and Ceasar Cone of Baltimore. The Cone brothers established large-scale textile plants, changing Greensboro from a village to a city within a decade. By 1900, Greensboro was considered a center of the Southern textile industry, with large scale factories producing denim, flannel, and overalls. Prosperity brought to the city through textiles resulted in the construction of notable twentieth century civic architecture, including the Guilford County Courthouse, West Market Street Methodist Church by S. W. Faulk, several buildings designed by Frank A. Weston, and UNCG's Main Building designed by Orlo Epps.

During the twentieth century, Greensboro continued to expand in wealth and population. Rapid growth led to construction of grand commercial and civic buildings, many of which remain standing today, designed by hometown architects Charles Hartmann and Harry Barton. Other notable industries became established in the city, including Vicks Chemical Co. (famous for over-the counter cold remedies such as VapoRub and NyQuil), Carolina Steel Corporation, and Pomona Terra Cotta Works. During this period of growth, Greensboro experienced an acute housing shortage. Builders sought to maintain a construction goal of 80 to 100 affordable housing units per year in order to provide homes for workers. Greensboro's real estate was considered "the wonder of the state" during the 1920s. Growth continued through the Great Depression, as Greensboro added an estimated 200 new families per year to its population. The city earned a reputation as a well-planned community, with a strong emphasis on education, parks, and a profitable employment base.

Prosperity brought new levels of development involving nationally and internationally known architects. Walter Gropius designed a factory building in the city in 1944. Greensboro-based Ed Loewenstein contributed designs for projects throughout the region. Eduardo Catalano, and George Matsumoto both brought designs to the city that challenged North Carolinians with modernist architectural concepts and forms.

Civil rights movement
As Greensboro evolved into one of North Carolina's primary cities, changes began to occur within its traditional social structure. On February 1, 1960, four black college students from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College sat down at an all-white Woolworth's lunch counter, and refused to leave after they were denied service. Hundreds of others soon joined in this sit-in, which lasted several months. Such protests quickly spread across the South, ultimately leading to the desegregation of Woolworth's and other chains. The original lunch counter and stools where the four first sat are still in their original location, now home to the International Civil Rights Center and Museum (though a section of the counter is also on display at the Smithsonian ). The museum opened on February 1, 2010, the 50th anniversary of the sit-ins.

After the desegregation of Woolworth's and other minor concessions by Greensboro's white community, a brief period of patience and negotiation was followed by further protests in 1962 and 1963, culminating in the largest civil rights protest to take place in North Carolina history during May and June 1963. In addition to the desegregation of public accommodations, protestors sought economic and social justice, such as hiring policies based on merit and the integration of public schools. Marches of over 2,000 protesters per night took place in Greensboro's segregated central business district. William Thomas and A. Knighton Stanley, coordinators of Greensboro's local CORE chapter, invited Jesse Jackson, then a student at A&T to join the protests, and Jackson quickly rose to prominence as a student leader and public representative of the protest movement. To invoke arrest by violating segregation rules of local businesses, trespassing, and other non-violent breaches of the law, soon became a primary tactic of the protestors, especially among college and high school students. Seeking to overflow city jails and overburden municipal resources, at one point approximately 1,400 blacks occupied Greensboro's jails, which drew serious attention from both Greensboro's mayor and Governor of North Carolina Terry Sanford. In the end, the protests achieved gains toward racial equality in the form of further desegregation, reformed hiring policies in city government, and commitments to progress by Greensboro's mayor and Governor Sanford, who declared, "Anyone who hasn't received this message doesn't understand human nature." However, though these concessions helped build progressive momentum, significant change in race relations came about at a painfully slow pace, and verbal commitments from white leadership in 1963 proved to be more symbolic victories than substantial ones.

In spite of this period of progress, old wounds had yet to heal. On November 3, 1979, members of the Communist Workers Party (CWP) were holding an anti-Ku Klux Klan rally, when a group of KKK and neo-Nazis caravaned into the Morningside Heights neighborhood where the rally was being held and ambushed the protest. Four local TV news stations filmed the event as it happened. Although a pistol likely was fired by a CWP organizer (allegedly into the air) and the Klan caravan was beaten with sticks prior to stopping, only the anti-Klan protesters were injured and killed. Five CWP members died and seven were wounded. Television footage of the event was shown nationwide and around the world, and the event became known as the Greensboro Massacre. The accused Klansman and neo-Nazis all were acquitted by an all-white jury in two separate criminal trials. In 1985, a civil suit found five police officers and two other individuals liable for $350,000 in damages to be paid to the Greensboro Justice Fund.

Greensboro Riots 1969
May 19-20, 1969 Violence erupts after weeks of community meetings and protests over administrators not allowing a student election to stand at Dudley High School. Students are arrested. Police are accused of misconduct.

May 21 Students assemble again near Dudley. The principal requests police aid. Rock throwing erupts. Tear gas is used to disperse the crowd. Activity moves to A&T. The mayor requests National Guard assistance. By 8 p.m., police barricade streets in the area to prevent white motorists from traveling through. Late that evening, police and the National Guard begin receiving sniper fire. Sometime late that night or early the next morning, Willie Grimes, A&T student is shot in the back of the head.

May 22 Students bring Grimes by car to Moses Cone Hospital. He is pronounced dead on arrival at 1:30 a.m. Another student is shot in the leg. Reports of sniper fire continue until dawn. At 10 a.m., the mayor declares a state of emergency. A curfew is imposed. That afternoon, A&T officials announce the school will close as of 6 p.m. May 23. Gunfire continues throughout the evening between students and police.

May 23: Five police officers are wounded, one seriously, when they are shot near Scott Hall at 1 a.m. The National Guard sweeps Cooper and Scott halls at 7 a.m., fearing a large number of firearms are being stored. Students are taken downtown and released that afternoon. Nine weapons, three of them operable, are found.

Aug. 26: The police chief announces that findings in the joint police and SBI investigation into Willie Grimes' death are inconclusive.

Oct. 3-4: A state arm of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights holds hearings in Greensboro on the "disturbances" at Dudley and A&T. Grimes is mentioned little in the testimony.

March 1970: The committee concludes an underlying system of inequality in the city created conditions that caused violence to erupt. It offers recommendations on changes..

In 2007, Greensboro voters elected the first African-American mayor of the city, Yvonne Johnson.

Government
Greensboro is governed under a Council-Manager system. Bill Knight (R) is the mayor. The City Council Members are: Nancy Vaughn (Unaffiliated), Mayor Pro-Tempore, At Large; Danny Thompson (R), At Large; Robbie Perkins (R), At Large; T. Dianne Bellamy-Small (D), District 1; Jim Kee (D), District 2; Zach Matheny (R), District 3; Mary Rakestraw (R), District 4; and Trudy Wade (R). District 5.

Neighborhoods


Greensboro's earliest neighborhood is College Hill, located between West Market Street and Spring Garden Street, in and around Greensboro College.

Southside is among the oldest neighborhoods in the city and has experienced major redevelopment.

The Aycock and Fisher Park neighborhoods were established in 1895 and 1901, respectively. The Aycock neighborhood features large Queen Anne residences of the turn-of-the-twentieth century, as well as Foursquare, Craftsman, and Colonial Revival styles.

Irving Park, developed in 1911 around the golf course of the Greensboro Country Club, was modelled on nearby Pinehurst by designer John Nolan. The prestigious neighborhood includes large homes on ample lots, and remains popular today.

The Warnersville neighborhood was a once thriving area in south Greensboro. When Urban Renewal was initiated in the mid-1900s, most of the business and homes were destroyed and replaced with new roads and development. However, this area has not recovered still. Remnants of the once booming Ashe St. can be seen behind the Greensboro Urban Ministry on Eugene St.

The urbanization of Greensboro during the early twentieth century was influenced greatly by the popularity of the automobile, which enabled citizens to live farther from the city center in more suburban surroundings. A series of "streetcar suburbs" were established, including Glenwood, Hamilton Lakes, Lake Daniel, Latham Park, Lindley Park, O. Henry Oaks, Rankin, Starmount, Sunset Hills and Westerwood. Many of these neighborhoods include some of the city's finest public parks. Recent neighborhood additions include sprawling large-scale planned unit developments such as Adams Farm, Lake Jeanette, The Cardinal, New Irving Park, and Reedy Fork Ranch.

Sister cities
Greensboro maintains a "sister city" relationship with three cities in order to foster international friendship and cooperation.
 * 🇫🇷 Montbeliard, Franche-Comté
 * 🇲🇩 Buiucani sector, Chişinău
 * Yingkou, Liaoning, People's Republic of China

Geography and climate
Greensboro is located at 36.08°N, -79.81944°W (36.079868, -79.819416).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 109.2 square miles (283.0 km²), of which, 104.7 square miles (271.2 km²) of it is land and 4.5 square miles (11.8 km²) of it (4.16%) is water.

Greensboro is situated among the gently rolling hills of North Carolina's Piedmont and is situated midway between the state's Blue Ridge and Great Smoky mountains to the west and the Atlantic beaches and Outer Banks to the east. The view of the city from its highest building&mdash;the Lincoln Financial tower (commonly known as the Jefferson-Pilot Building)&mdash;reveals that the town is populated with large numbers of green trees, lending perhaps another dimension of significance to its name. The city is at the nexus of several major freeways, with Interstates 40, 85, and the planned I-73 passing through its borders.

Thunderstorms are common during the humid spring and summer months, some being severe in nature. On April, 2 1936, at around 7:00pm, a large, F-4 tornado cut a seven-mile (11 km) swath of destruction through southern Greensboro. 14 people were killed and 144 were injured as the tornado moved through the city, including part of downtown. The storm was part of an outbreak known as the 1936 Cordele-Greensboro tornado outbreak. Strong tornadoes have struck the Greensboro area since then, notably Stoneville, North Carolina on March 20, 1998, Clemmons, North Carolina and Winston-Salem, North Carolina on May 5, 1989 and Clemmons, North Carolina and Greensboro on May 7, 2008, High Point, March 28, 2010

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Crime
In a pattern usually seen within urban areas within the Southern United States, Greensboro tends to have crime levels considerably higher than the national average. The same pattern usually dictates segregated/pocketed crime which is the trend in Greensboro as well, where a very high percentage of crime takes place in minority populated/low income neighborhoods. For the year of 2006, the city experienced 6,931 overall crimes committed per 100,000 residents; the national average was 4479.3 per 100,000 residents. For that year Greensboro ranked above the national average on every category of violent crime as well as all forms of property crime. For the year of 2008, Greensboro ranked above the national average for all forms of violent crime and property crime. The city also ranked higher on crimes than the North Carolina state averages. There was a total of 15,901 crimes committed for the year of 2008, this is a decrease when compared to the previous year of 2007, that year Greensboro experienced 16,676 total crimes citywide. According to the Congressional Quarterly Press City Crime Rankings 2009-2010, Greensboro holds the 75th highest crime rate out of 393 ranked US cities.

Demographics
The Center for New North Carolinians details more information about Greensboro's ethnic and cultural diversity.

As of the census of 2000, there were 223,891 people; 92,394 households; and 53,958 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,138.3 people per square mile (825.6/km²). There were 99,305 housing units at an average density of 948.4 per square mile (366.2/km²). The racial composition of the city was: 55.49% White, 37.40% Black or African American, 4.35% Hispanic or Latino American, 2.84% Asian American, 0.44% Native American, 0.04% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, 2.08% some other race, and 1.71% two or more races.

Of the estimated 92,394 households in the city in 2000, 27.5% included children under the age of 18, 39.8% were married couples living together, 14.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.6% were classified as nonfamily. Of the total households, 32.6% were composed of individuals, while 8.7% reported someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.30 persons, and the average family size was 2.94 persons.

The age distribution in 2000 was 22.3% under the age of 18, 14.1% from 18 to 24, 31.6% from 25 to 44, 20.2% from 45 to 64, and 11.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 89.2 males---for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city in 2000 was $39,661, and the median income for a family was $50,192. Males had a median income of $34,681 versus $26,797 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,986. About 8.6% of families and 19.3% of the population in 2000 were living below the poverty line, including 25.8% of those under age 18 and 10.6% of those age 65 or over.

Economic development


Notable companies headquartered in Greensboro include the Honda Aircraft Company, Lorillard Tobacco Company, Kayser-Roth, VF, Syngenta Crop Protection, Mack Trucks, Volvo Trucks of North America, RF Micro Devices, the International Textile Group, NewBridge Bank, The Fresh Market, Cook Out, Ham's, Biscuitville, Tripps, Gilbarco Veeder-Root, Daimler Buses and Columbia Forest Products. Greensboro is also a "center of operations" for the insurance company Lincoln Financial Group. Greensboro is also headquarters to the Atlantic Coast Conference. Although traditionally associated with the textile and tobacco industries, Greensboro leaders are working to attract new businesses in the nanotech, high-tech and transportation/logistics sectors. The University of North Carolina at Greensboro and North Carolina A&T State University opened a joint research park, Gateway University Research Park. O'Reilly Auto Parts has recently chosen Greensboro as a location for a large distribution center and expects to hire 400-500 more employees once it is fully open and functional.

Largest Employers
According to the City's 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the largest employers in the city are:

Downtown area
Downtown Greensboro has experienced construction investment in recent years with developments such as NewBridge Bank Park, and residential developments and office construction. The Southside neighborhood downtown exemplifies central-city reinvestment as a formerly economically depressed neighborhood that has been redeveloped into an award-winning neotraditional-style neighborhood. Downtown Greensboro also has experienced a dramatic increase in nightlife with the opening of numerous nightclubs, bars and restaurants. The entire redevelopment of the downtown was aided by the 2006 opening of the Elon University School of Law. The law school is credited with bringing student dollars to the downtown both day and at night. Moreover, the influx of nearly 300 highly educated men and women from across the country has added to the cosmopolitanism of the downtown. Additional human capital has been developed by innovative artistic ventures like the Elsewhere Artists Collaborative, which attracts some of the most promising young artists from around the world to live and create in a 24/7 art installation.

Additional downtown attractions include: the Carolina Theater, Triad Stage (Pyrle Gibson Theater), Blandwood Mansion, Center City Park, NewBridge Bank Park, Greensboro Historical Museum, Greensboro Cultural Center, the J. Douglas Galyon Transportation Depot, and the Greensboro Children's Museum. A multi-million dollar greenway loop around downtown is currently under construction. It will be among the first urban greenway loops in the country and will have walking paths, biking paths, parks, recreational facilities, outdoor classrooms, and art show spaces. The project is being built in phases and could take 5 to 10 years to complete and will also connect with the greenway system throughout the city.

Four Seasons/Coliseum Area
Located at 3121 High Point Road, the Four Seasons Town Centre sits just outside the downtown area. It is a multi building complex developed by the Koury Corporation. It includes multiple hotels, most prominently the Koury Convention tower and a shopping mall. Boasting over 250000 sqft of flexible meeting space, the Joseph S. Koury Convention Center is the largest convention center between Atlanta, Georgia and Washington, D.C.. In 1990, the convention center opened next to the Holiday Inn Four Seasons (now Sheraton Four Seasons). In 1994 the 28 story hotel tower was constructed atop the Koury Convention Center bringing the room total of the complex to well over 1,000. The Four Seasons Town Center mall sits just behind the convention center and is a popular shopping attraction for the entire piedmont triad.

The Greensboro Coliseum is located .9 mi down High Point Road. Many of the city's major events take place between the convention center and the coliseum. A new ACC Hall of Fame and an $18.3 million aquatics center are planned to be built on site starting in 2010.

Airport area
In 1998, FedEx chose to build and operate a $300 million mid-Atlantic air-cargo and sorting hub at Piedmont Triad International Airport, following an intensive competition for the hub among other regions of the state, as well as locations in South Carolina. After the hub announcement, the project faced court battles concerning potential noise and pollution abatements from neighborhoods located near the planned hub site. Nonetheless, the hub opened in 2009 is building on the city's effort to strengthen its position as a transportation, distribution and logistics hub in the Southeast and middle Atlantic regions.

In February 2007, Honda Aircraft Company announced it will develop a multi-million dollar jet airplane facility and world headquarters at Piedmont Triad International Airport. The company will build the new HondaJet at the site, and the first planes were planned to roll off the assembly line in 2010. In 2001, the test flight for the jet took place at the airport.

Institutes of higher education

 * Bennett College for Women
 * Elon University School of Law
 * Greensboro College
 * Guilford College
 * Guilford Technical Community College
 * North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
 * University of North Carolina at Greensboro

For-profit universities

 * Brookstone College
 * DeVry University
 * ECPI College of Technology
 * Strayer University
 * Triad's Best Bartending School

Boarding schools

 * American Hebrew Academy
 * Oak Ridge Military Academy

Private education

 * Greensboro Day School
 * Our Lady of Grace Catholic School
 * New Garden Friends School
 * Caldwell Academy
 * Canterbury School
 * Noble Academy
 * Ballinger Prepatory Academy
 * Vandalia Christian School
 * Shining Light Christian Academy

Public education
High Schools and Middle Colleges
 * James B. Dudley High School
 * The Early College at Guilford
 * Eastern Guilford High School
 * Greensboro College Middle College
 * Grimsley High School
 * Northern Guilford High School
 * Northeast Guilford High School
 * Northwest Guilford High School
 * Walter Hines Page Senior High School
 * Lucy Ragsdale High School
 * Ben L. Smith High School
 * Southeast Guilford High School
 * Southern Guilford High School
 * Southwest Guilford High School
 * Western Guilford High School
 * Philip J. Weaver Academy
 * The Academy at Smith

Attractions

 * The Bog Garden is accessed by an elevated boardwalk that comprises a half-mile of the 1.06 mi of trails that wind through a garden of plants and wildlife that thrive in a wetland ecosystem.
 * Bicentennial Garden was developed in 1976 to commemorate the U.S. bicentennial. The garden contains 1.25 mi of paved trails, along with outdoor sculptures and a pavilion.
 * The International Civil Rights Center and Museum, opened in 2010, is located in the building in which the Greensboro sit-ins occurred beginning February 1, 1960. The museum was founded by the Sit-in Movement, Inc. to commemorate the sit-ins and persons involved, as well as other events in the history of the American Civil Rights movement.
 * Greensboro Center City Park occupies half a city block adjacent to the Greensboro Cultural Center. Sponsored by Action Greensboro, the park features a fountain as well as works by several North Carolina artists.
 * Greensboro Arboretum was completed as a partnership between Greensboro Beautiful and the City of Greensboro Parks & Recreation Department. It offers an extensive selection of flora for study and enjoyment. The 17 acre site features 12 permanent plant collections as well as special display gardens with a fountain, overlook, arbor, gazebo, bridges, and viewing benches.
 * Blandwood Mansion and Gardens is the historic home of former North Carolina Governor John Motley Morehead. Today the site serves as a museum of national architectural and historical significance. It is the earliest example of Tuscan Italianate architecture in the nation, designed by New York architect Alexander Jackson Davis.
 * World War Memorial Stadium was one of the oldest continuously used professional baseball facilities in the nation before it was replaced by the city's First Horizon Stadium in 2005. The memorial stadium was constructed in 1926 to honor the memory of lives lost during the first World War. It anchors the Aycock Historic District and remains in use by collegiate baseball teams, amateur leagues, and other special events throughout the year. The stadium was home to the Greensboro Bats professional minor-league club until the new First Horizon Park opened and the team became the Greensboro Grasshoppers.
 * Hagan Stone Park is a scenic 409 acre (1.66 km2) wildlife refuge and family campground owned and operated by the city of Greensboro, North Carolina located on Hagan Stone Park Road off U.S. Highway 421. It is open daily 8 am to sunset, weather permitting. The park has several lakes, camp shelters with charcoal grills, and playgrounds. The park is the home of the Greensboro Invitational Cross Country Meet hosted annually in September by the Greensboro Pacesetters for high school and college athletes.
 * Greensboro Coliseum Complex was conceived as, and continues to operate as, a multibuilding facility to serve the citizens of Greensboro and the surrounding region by hosting a broad range of activities including athletic and cultural events; concerts, theater and other entertainment; educational activities, fairs and exhibits; and various other public and private events such as conventions, convocations and trade/consumer shows. The coliseum complex has hosted prestigious events such as the collegiate Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) basketball tournament, East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) and American Hockey League (AHL) professional hockey, the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship and Starrcade (1983). Additionally, the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League called the Greensboro Coliseum its temporary home while its permanent venue was being constructed in Raleigh. Since 1959, the coliseum has featured superstars ranging from Elvis to the contemporary R&B singer Usher. The facility is scheduled to again host ACC Basketball Tournaments (men's and women's) in 2010. It will also host the 2011 United States Figure Skating Championships. The complex has undergone several major renovations, most recently in 1994, enlarging the maximum arena capacity to its current 23,500 seats. The ACC Hall of Champions and Museum will open adjacent to the coliseum complex in March 2011, as the ACC was founded in Greensboro in 1953 and currently is headquartered at the Grandover Office Park in south Greensboro.
 * NewBridge Bank Park is home of the Greensboro Grasshoppers baseball club. Completed in 2005, it hosts additional outdoor events and concerts during the summer months.
 * Guilford Courthouse National Military Park commemorates the Battle of Guilford Court House, which occurred at the location on March 15, 1781. The battle opened the campaign that led to the America's victory in the Revolutionary War. The British lost a substantial number of troops in the battle, which factored in their surrender at Yorktown (Virginia) seven months later. The battle site remains largely undeveloped with large stone memorials erected early in the twentieth century to memorialize the nationally significant event.
 * The Natural Science Center of Greensboro is a family oriented, hands-on science museum and planetarium. The zoo reopened in summer 2007 after undergoing extensive renovations.
 * The Greensboro Children's Museum (GCM) offers hands-on and interactive exhibits, educational programming and special events all year long for children newborn through age ten.
 * The revitalized downtown Elm Street area is known for its collection of antique shops, art galleries, and restaurants and clubs. Many people attend the First Friday events held each month at the various participating merchants.
 * Wet 'n Wild Emerald Pointe has 36 rides including Daredevil Drop, one of the nation's tallest water slides, and family rides such as Tropical Drop. The park also features two heavily themed family sections known as Splash Island, and Happy Harbor. Emerald Pointe is also the largest water park in both of the Carolinas. According to Amusement Business magazine, Emerald Pointe boasts the tenth highest annual attendance among American water parks at nearly 500,000 visitors.

Shopping


Greensboro is home to a large variety of retail shopping from well-known national chains to local boutiques and galleries. Four Seasons Town Centre, located on the city's southwest side off I-40, is a three-level regional mall with anchors Belk, Dillard's, and JCPenney. Friendly Center, located off Friendly Avenue is an open-air shopping complex featuring Belk, Macy's, Sears, Barnes & Noble Booksellers, the nation's largest Harris Teeter supermarket, Old Navy, and a multiplex cinema. The Shops at Friendly Center, adjacent to Friendly Center, is home to many specialty retailers and restaurants, many of which that are exclusive to the Triad area, including Anthropologie, the Apple Store, White House Black Market, Sur La Table, REI, Brooks Brothers, Bravo! Cucina Italiana, P. F. Chang's China Bistro, DSW Designer Shoe Warehouse, and Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar. Additional shopping centers are located primarily on the West Wendover corridor near I-40 and on Battleground Avenue on the city's northwest side. Recently, "big-box" retailers have clustered at the site of the former Carolina Circle Mall on the city's northeast side and on the city's far south along the newly completed Painter Boulevard (I-85).

Greensboro is also home to the largest retail horse depot in the world, located near the famed "Sharpe Family Horse Farm" on Middlesex Drive. First opened in 1894 as a wholesale supplier to the southeastern Pony Express, the farm now sells thoroughbred mares, yearlings, phillies and Arabian horses to an estimated 8,000 private purchasers annually.

Sports
Greensboro is not currently home to any top-level professional sports teams. The National Hockey League's Carolina Hurricanes franchise moved to Raleigh from Hartford, Connecticut in 1997, but the team played its first two seasons at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex while its home arena, Raleigh's RBC Center, was under construction.

The Greensboro Grasshoppers (formerly the Greensboro Bats and the Greensboro Hornets) are a minor league baseball team located in Greensboro. They are a Class A team in the South Atlantic League, and have been a farm team of the Florida Marlins since 2003. They play at NewBridge Bank Park.

Greensboro is home to the headquarters of the Atlantic Coast Conference, despite having no school participating within the league. The Greensboro Coliseum Complex has hosted the Men's ACC Tournament 23 times since 1967 and the Women's ACC Tournament 12 times since 2000. Greensboro has also hosted the NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four on four occasions.

The PGA Tour holds a tournament annually in Greensboro. The Wyndham Championship is held at Sedgefield Country Club and is the last PGA Tour event before the Playoffs for the FedEx Cup. The tournament was founded in 1938 as the Greater Greensboro Open and one of the oldest events on the PGA Tour.

Arts
Greensboro is home to an active and diverse arts community. Events and venues range from the nationally acclaimed annual Eastern Music Festival to Weatherspoon Art Museum to the cutting edge performances of the Triad Stage theater company.
 * Carolina Theatre is a performing arts facility that has been a part of downtown Greensboro since 1927. Since the facility's renovation in the 1990s, the theater has served as the home of the Greensboro Ballet, the Community Theatre of Greensboro, the Livestock Players Musical Theatre, Greensboro Youth Symphony and a variety of other local performing arts groups.
 * City Arts showcases a variety of musical and theatrical productions by The Livestock Players, Greensboro Children's Theatre, the Music Center, Greensboro Concert Band, Philharmonia of Greensboro, Choral Society of Greensboro, and the Greensboro Youth Chorus. Most of these groups participate in the city's annual OPUS Concert Series and the summer "Music for a Sunday Evening in the Park" series.
 * Community Theatre of Greensboro has presented Broadway and off-Broadway plays and musicals for more than 45 years. The CTG's Studio Theatre is housed in the Greensboro Cultural Center.
 * Eastern Music Festival brings more than 100 summer performances, from symphonic works to chamber music to recitals by professional and talented students from around the world. The event also hosts the Fringe Festival, showcasing avant-garde and nontraditional music and performances.
 * Elsewhere Collaborative is a living museum set inside a former thrift store on South Elm Street in downtown Greensboro. Elsewhere is an interactive, evolving environment of objects, creatives, and creations. The living museum hosts events, performances, projects, and productions that activate the 58-year collection and foster communications between creatives and participants.
 * Greensboro Ballet and School of Greensboro Ballet: A traditional December production of "The Nutcracker" is just one of the many artistic and educational activities offered by the ballet company. The School of Greensboro Ballet is one of a relative few nonprofit ballet schools in the nation.
 * Cultural Center The Greensboro Cultural Center houses more than 25 visual and performing arts organizations, five art galleries, rehearsal halls, a sculpture garden, privately operated restaurant with outdoor cafe-style seating, and an outdoor amphitheater. Art galleries include the African American Atelier, the Green Hill Center for North Carolina Art, the Greensboro Artists' League Gallery and Gift Shop, the Guilford Native American Art Gallery and the Mattye Reed African Heritage Center Satellite Gallery.
 * Greensboro Opera Company is a highly-regarded regional opera company founded in October 1981 that has experienced much growth and expansion. Beginning with the production of Verdi's La traviata featuring June Anderson (then a rising young New York City Opera soprano), the company expanded from a single fall production of a major opera in the years 1981-89 to the addition of Sunday matinee performances in the 1990-99 season when, in response to successive sold out productions of Madame Butterfly and Carmen in 1997 and 1998, a second spring opera with two performances was added, beginning in 1999-2000. The company has successfully blended outside and local singers with a full orchestra, manned by members of the Greensboro Symphony, in the pit at their home at Greensboro's War Memorial Auditorium.
 * Greensboro Symphony Orchestra, led by conductor Dmitri Sitkovetsky, has developed a strong reputation among national musical organizations, including continued exposure on National Public Radio's Performance Today. Sitkovetsky began his career as a violin soloist. He focused on the chamber orchestra repertoire when starting out with the European String Orchestra, a superb group of musicians pulled together by Sitkovetsky. The orchestra performs classical and pops concerts and holds educational programs for young listeners throughout the year.
 * Reed African American Heritage Museum, located at North Carolina A&T State University, hosts one of the most acclaimed collections of African culture in the nation. The museum houses more than 3,500 art and craft pieces from more than 30 African nations, New Guinea and Haiti.
 * Triad Stage is a not-for-profit regional theatre company based in Greensboro's downtown historic district. All productions are created in Greensboro using a combination of local and national talent. The theater company recently was recognized as ‘One of the 50 Best Regional Theatres in America!’ by New York‘s Drama League, ‘Best Live Theatre’ in Go Triad/News & Record The Rhino Times, and was voted ‘2003 Professional Theater of the Year’ by the North Carolina Theatre Conference.
 * Weatherspoon Art Museum, located at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro, houses one of the foremost collections of modern and contemporary art in the Southeast. Composed of six galleries, the museum is nationally recognized for its collection of 20th century American art. The permanent collection also includes lithographs and bronzes by Henri Matisse, and art by celebrated masters such as Willem de Kooning, Henry Ossawa Tanner, John Graham, Pablo Picasso, Robert Rauschenberg, and Andy Warhol.
 * , The Greater Triad Shag Club is a non profit club dedicated to the music and dance associated with Carolina Shag. The Shag is dedicated as the "North Carolina Popular Dance" . The Greater Triad Shag Club meets monthly @ Thirsty's 2 in Greensboro, NC.

Born in Greensboro

 * Thomas Berry, international spokesman in support of ecology and care of the earth
 * Inez and Charlie Foxx, African-American rhythm and blues and soul duo known for the 1963 hit "Mockingbird"
 * Hal "Skinny" Brown, former MLB pitcher, Baltimore Orioles.
 * Spencer Chamberlain, Singer, Songwriter. Vocalist for Underoath.
 * Joey Cheek, Olympic gold-medal speed skater
 * Levi Coffin, noted Quaker educator and abolitionist
 * Marques Douglas, NFL player for the New York Jets.
 * Donna Edmondson, Playboy Playmate of the year 1987
 * Vince Evans, former NFL quarterback.
 * Tal Farlow, a pioneering American Jazz Guitarist.
 * Joey Hackett, former NFL tight end
 * O. Henry, short-story writer (actually born in Guilford County, outside Greensboro)
 * John Isner, professional tennis player
 * John Anthony Lennon, composer (b. 1950)
 * Caroline Lind, 2008 Olympic Women's 8 rowing gold-medal
 * Dolley Madison, First Lady and wife of President James Madison
 * Doug Marlette, Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist.
 * Jack F. Matlock, Jr. U.S. ambassador to the U.S.S.R., 1987–1991
 * Robert McAdoo, former NBA All-Star and college basketball All-American.
 * Edward R. Murrow, CBS News Anchor
 * Fred "Curly" Neal, former Harlem Globetrotter
 * Ronald Perelman, Billionaire Investor
 * Eddie Pope, soccer star of Real Salt Lake and the US National Soccer Team
 * Millard Powers, musician, songwriter, record producer, and grammy nominated recording engineer. Current member of Counting Crows.
 * George Preddy, World War II ace
 * Conrad Laurel Raiford,Champion Athlete, educator, goodwill ambassador, one of first African-Amercian Police Officers hired by the Greensboro Police Department
 * Jeff Varner, Survivor contestant (Season 2)
 * Gene White, former NFL defensive back
 * Kelly Wiglesworth, Survivor contestant (Season 1)

Residents

 * Rex M. Best, Emmy award winning writer for the CBS daytime dramas "The Young and the Restless" and "The Bold and the Beautiful"
 * Orson Scott Card, author, journalist and professor; several of his books, including Ender's Game and Shadow Puppets feature settings in and around Greensboro.
 * Eugene Chadbourne, composer and musician
 * Golda Fried, Novelist, Writer, and Poet
 * Kay Hagan, United States Senator for North Carolina
 * H.T. Kirby-Smith, author and poet
 * Michael Parker, novelist
 * Garry Peterson, long time drummer of the Guess Who
 * Ricky Proehl, retired NFL Player
 * Stanley Tanger, founder of Tanger Factory Outlet Centers

Associated with Greensboro

 * Ken Jeong, actor, grew up in Greensboro, North Carolina and graduated from Page High School
 * 2004 American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino briefly lived in Greensboro and is from nearby High Point.
 * 1960s American rhythm and blues and soul duo Inez and Charlie Foxx, known for their hit single "Mockingbird", are from Greensboro.
 * Journalist and true crime author Jerry Bledsoe lives in nearby Asheboro; his regular column appeared for many years in the Greensboro News & Record, and his investigative reporting is featured in the Rhino Times.
 * Jeff Bostic, NFL player for the Washington Redskins, born in Greensboro, graduated from Ben L. Smith High School
 * Joe Bostic, NFL player for the St. Louis (later Arizona) Cardinals, born in Greensboro, graduated from Ben L. Smith High School
 * Ethan Albright, NFL player for the Washington Redskins (and previously the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills), born in Greensboro, graduated from Grimsley High School
 * Joseph M. Bryan, businessman and philanthropist, lived in Greensboro until his death in 1995.
 * Andy Cabic of indie folk band Vetiver lived in Greensboro while a member of indie-rock band The Raymond Brake.
 * Eugene Godsoe was the NCAA National Champion in the 100 yard backstroke in 2010. From Greensboro, he swam for the Greensboro Swimming association and graduated from Stanford University in 2010.
 * Spencer Chamberlain, current lead vocalist of the band Underoath, was raised in Greensboro.
 * Billy "Crash" Craddock, country music legend, born and lives near Greensboro.
 * Rock star and 2006 American Idol contestant Chris Daughtry is from nearby suburban McLeansville and is a resident of nearby Oak Ridge.
 * Rick Dees, radio personality, graduated from Grimsley High School
 * Marques Douglas, NFL player for San Francisco 49ers, attended Dudley High School
 * Barry Farber, radio talk show host, author and language-learning enthusiast. born in Greensboro, and graduated from Greensboro Senior High School (see Grimsley High School).
 * Brendan Haywood, NBA player for Washington Wizards, attended Dudley High School
 * Torry Holt, wide receiver for NC State and the St. Louis Rams was born in nearby Gibsonville.
 * Nationally acclaimed poet Randall Jarrell lived in Greensboro, where he was a professor at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro until his death in 1965. He is buried near the Guilford College campus.
 * Haywood Jeffries, Retired NFL player, played for the Houston Oilers.
 * Frank Lucas, famous heroin dealer, subject of American Gangster motion picture staring Denzel Washington.
 * Danny Manning, an All-America basketball player for the University of Kansas, attended Page High School in Greensboro.
 * Edward R. Murrow, famed World War II CBS radio broadcaster and award-winning journalist, was born outside Greensboro.
 * Dave Muselman, lead guitarist for band Jet Black Stare grew up in Greensboro and graduated from Lucy Ragsdale High School. He is linked to also being in bands with members of both Underoath and Sullivan.
 * Kyle Petty, Nascar driver and racing commentator lives near Greensboro in Trinity, North Carolina
 * Lee Petty, Pioneer of Nascar racing. Three time National Champion. Founder of Petty Enterprises, Level Cross, North Carolina, near Greensboro.
 * Richard Petty, Seven-time Nascar champion lives near Greensboro, in Level Cross, North Carolina
 * Singer Cat Power (Chan Marshall) lived in Greensboro with her mother as a teenager in the late 1980s.
 * Charlie Sanders, 2007 |NFL Pro Football Hall of Fame tight end for the Detroit Lions, attended Dudley High School
 * Ski, Hip-Hop producer and rapper, lived in Greensboro
 * Tooth and Nail recording artists Sullivan formed and lived in Greensboro
 * Robert Walden, Pioneer Nascar driver lives near Greensboro
 * Haywood Jeffires NFL pro bowler. Former wide receiver for the Houston Oilers and New Orleans Saints.  Coach of a Texas semi-pro football team.

Transportation


Greensboro is served by Piedmont Triad International Airport, which also serves the nearby cities of High Point and Winston-Salem as well as the surrounding Piedmont Triad metropolitan region. PTI was a hub for the now defunct Skybus Airlines.

Amtrak's daily Crescent, Carolinian and Piedmont trains connect Greensboro with the cities of New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, Richmond, Raleigh, Charlotte, Atlanta, Birmingham and New Orleans.

Amtrak trains, taxis, local and long-distance buses arrive and depart from the Amtrak station and rail depot located at 236-C East Washington Street. Originally constructed in the early 1920s, the station and depot were renovated in 2004.

The Greensboro Transit Authority offers public bus service throughout the city, including a service called Higher Education Area Transit, or HEAT, which links downtown attractions to area colleges and universities. Regional public transportation throughout the metropolitan area is coordinated by PART, Piedmont Area Regional Transportation.

Interstate highways

 * I-40.svg Interstate 40
 * I-85.svg Interstate 85
 * Business Loop 85.svg Interstate 85 Business
 * I-73.svg Interstate 73
 * I-785.svg Interstate 785
 * I-840.svg Interstate 840

Interstate 40 and Interstate 85 share the same freeway facility for several miles in the Greensboro area. The consolidated highway, which is now the Interstate 40/Business 85 junction, is located just south of downtown and forms the western end of a stretch of freeway known throughout the region as "Death Valley", a congested and accident-prone stretch of roadway where six major federal and Interstate routes combine into a single freeway facility.

Construction is currently underway on the Greensboro Urban Loop, a freeway that, when complete, will encircle the majority of the city. Sections of this beltway may form the future alignment of Interstate 73. U.S. Highway 29---which travels through the southern, eastern and northern sections of the city before heading northeast toward suburban Reidsville---is a major route in Greensboro and offers freeway access to the more urban and central areas of the city.

Newspapers
The Greensboro News & Record is the primary daily newspaper in Greensboro. The Business Journal, a member of the American City Business Journals chain of business weeklies, is based in Greensboro and covers business across the Piedmont Triad metropolitan region. The Carolina Peacemaker is a news weekly that covers the African-American community. The Rhinoceros Times and Yes! Weekly are free weekly alternative newspapers, and the Hamburger Square Post is a free monthly newspaper.

Broadcast television
Greensboro is a part of the Greensboro/Winston-Salem/High Point television designated market area and includes the following commercial broadcast stations (listed by call letters, channel number, network and city of license): Greensboro is also home to the Triad bureau of News 14 Carolina
 * WFMY-TV, 2, CBS, Greensboro
 * WGHP, 8, Fox, High Point
 * WXII-TV, 12, NBC, Winston-Salem
 * WGPX, 16, ION, Burlington
 * WCWG, 20, The CW, Lexington
 * WUNL-TV, 26, PBS/UNC-TV, Winston-Salem
 * WXLV-TV, 45, ABC, Winston-Salem
 * WGSR-TV, 47, Independent, Reidsville
 * WMYV-TV, 48, MyNetworkTV, Greensboro
 * WLXI-TV, 61, TCT, Greensboro

Documentaries

 * February One California Newsreel documentary on 1960 sit-in by the Greensboro Four.
 * 88 Seconds in Greensboro PBS Frontline transcript. Reported by James Reston, Jr. Directed by William Cran. Original Airdate: January 24, 1983. Retrieved April 2, 2005.
 * Greensboro Child, documentary about the 1979 Greensboro Massacre and the shadow it cast on the survivors.
 * Elvis Presley's concert in Greensboro, NC in April, 1972 was professionally recorded and became part of the Golden Globe Award-winning musical-documentary motion picture Elvis On Tour featuring Elvis Presley in three different concerts, the one in Greensboro and three others; two in Virginia and one in Texas.