May 1759. The first planned Moravian settlement, and oldest incorporated municipality in Wachovia is Bethania, North Carolina formed June 12, (1759), also known historically as Bethany, meaning in the Hebrew language, "house/place of dates and figs." Bethania is the German form of Bethany. The Town of Bethania, North Carolina was incorporated 1995, following the reactivation of Bethania's 1838/1839 town charter, and was spared from being annexed into the city of Winston-Salem. Today, Bethania remains the only independent, continuously active Moravian town in the southern United States. In 2007, Historic Bethania, a visitor center and museum, opened in Bethania, providing information and historical interpretation in yet another Wachovia Moravian community. Wachovia's central administrative congregational town of Salem, which can be visited presently in Old Salem Museums and Gardens. Salem was begun in 1766 (formally organized in 1771), and was built by Moravians and friends from Bethabara and Bethania. Subsequent Moravian congregational settlements to be formed include Friedberg (1769), Friedland (1772), and Hope (1775). The congregation at Hope was the first "English" Moravian church in the area. A secular county seat was founded in 1849 in newly drawn Forsyth County, north of Salem. Winston was the name given to the new county seat in 1852. R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, maker of Winston, Salem and Camel cigarettes, was founded at Winston in 1875. The towns of Salem and Winston merged as Winston-Salem in 1913. Bethabara now lies within the city limits of Winston-Salem, and can be visited today in Historic Bethabara Park, operated by the city of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County. Over time, the Wachovia Tract was redrawn into the following counties as the backcountry of North Carolina became increasingly populated: 1753 Rowan County. 1771 Surry County. 1789 Stokes County. 1849 Forsyth County was drawn out of what had been the southern half of Stokes County. Museums Historic Bethabara Park, Historic Bethania, and Old Salem Museums and Gardens are museums which serve to transport visitors in time to what Wachovia once was. The museums each contribute to the story of Moravians in North Carolina, and preserve, interpret, and demonstrate life in Wachovia over time. Wachovia Corporation The area is the namesake and birthplace of Wachovia Corporation, once one of the world's largest banks. The bank was pioneered by Bethanian I.G. Loesch. Salem, then Winston-Salem, was the corporate headquarters for the bank until its merger with the First Union corporation, when the headquarters was