Park Planning

 

Guilford Courthouse National Military Park (NMP) Foundation Document

This foundational document overview discusses Guilford Courthouse National Military Park's purpose, significance, fundamental resources and values, and interpretive themes.

• Guilford Courthouse NMP Foundation Document Overview [4.01 MB]

 

Current and Ongoing Plans

Development Concept Plan

The National Park Service (NPS) finalized the Development Concept Plan (DCP)/ Environmental Assessment (EA) with a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI). The DCP/EA will guide management of recent and planned land acquisitions, facilities, parking, roadways, trails and any future development or rehabilitation in the park's developed areas.

The DCP/EA evaluated three alternatives, including a no-action alternative and two action alternatives—alternative 2 and alternative 3. Alternative 2, the selected alternative, presents a reasonable and feasible approach that meets the purpose of and need for action. The FONSI documents the decision to implement alternative 2, which addresses the impacts of intrusions to the historic battlefield by improving the integrity and interpretation of the landscape, history, and cultural heritage of the site. The key elements of alternative 2 are: the construction of a new, smaller visitor contact station and demolition of the existing Visitor Center, the construction of nearly a mile of new trails, and the full closure of Old Battleground Road within the park boundary. The DCP/EA was open for public comment from April to May 2025 and received 28 responses.

The finalized DCP will provide guidance for long-term management of the park in a way that protects the cultural landscape and responds to changing urban development patterns in Greensboro, NC which has become increasingly urbanized in the last few decades. In addition, Old Battleground Road cuts through the middle of the battlefield, posing an ongoing challenge to the management of the landscape, interfering with the solemnity of the battlefield, and creating a safety hazard negatively impacting the visitor experience. The plan also addresses the inclusion of recent acquired land like the Hoskins Farm site, which was operated independently until 2010.

 

Current Projects

Winston Monument Restoration

The National Park Service will undertake the restoration of the Major Joseph Winston Monument, located in Guilford Courthouse National Military Park. The monument which was dedicated on July 4, 1895 was vandalized in 2021 when the statue’s sword was stolen and the hand damaged.

Originally erected in 1893 as the Holt Monument— after its benefactor, Thomas M. Holt the former governor of North Carolina, —the stamped metal statue of Major Winston was added to the granite base in 1894. By the time of the battle of Guilford Courthouse on March 15, 1781, Winston had considerable experience fighting in the Revolutionary War, including in the battles of Moores Creek in 1776 and Kings Mountain in 1780. During the battle of Guilford Courthouse, Major Joseph Winston commanded a battalion of riflemen, composed of militia from Surrey and Wilkes Counties, North Carolina.

After the Revolutionary War, Joseph Winston served as a state legislator and US congressman, and he is the namesake for the county seat of Forsyth County, Winston-Salem.

Major Joseph Winston was reinterred in, what is now, Guilford Courthouse National Military Park in the fall of 1906. Guilford Courthouse National Military Park is the first Revolutionary War battlefield preserved by the federal government.

To facilitate repairs to the metal statue, the figure will be removed from the pedestal, crated, and transported to an offsite facility. Once the statue arrives onsite, artisans will begin working to assess the structure to restore it to its historic appearance. Historic photographs will inform the work to replace the missing sword and create a new hand. Once the restoration is complete, the statue will be shipped back to the park and will be reinstalled on the base.

The restoration, which is likely to be completed by mid-spring 2026, aligns with federal responsibilities under historic preservation law.

 

Completed Projects

Trail Rehabilitation Project

Through the Recreation Fee Program, Guilford Courthouse NMP received nearly $2 million to repave and improve the accessibility of the trail system. By replacing asphalt and leveling trails in key visitor areas, the project ensured safe and accessible recreation opportunities at the park while also bringing visitors closer to the battlefield. This project constituted the largest investment at the park since the nation’s bicentennial celebration in 1976. The project ran from March - October 2024. Major accomplishments included the paving of a section of historic New Garden to improve the accessibility of the Nathanael Greene Monument and the repaving of trails around the Visitor Center.

Coble Barn Restoration

The National Park Service secured funding to restore the Coble Barn, located at the Hoskins Farmstead. Project staff and interns from the National Park Service’s Historic Preservation Training Center (HPTC) used original, historic building techniques and traditional tools to hew logs, cut notches, and replace chinking and daubing and install a new cedar shake roof. The barn was previously in poor condition, with significant and extensive repairs required to address weathering-related deterioration of the log walls. HPTC staff replaced existing logs with new replica materials as well as repair of salvageable original materials. Originally relocated to the Hoskins Farmstead by the Guilford Battleground Company in 1985, the Coble Barn provides visitors with a glimpse of Piedmont North Carolina architecture at the nation’s founding. The restoration project concluded in February 2025.