Visiting Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park in Downtown Wilson, NC

Most towns have a statue or two. Wilson, North Carolina has thirty giant, windmill-like sculptures that spin, chime and flash in the wind. Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park is a two-acre park in the heart of downtown Wilson, and it is one of the most memorable stops in eastern North Carolina. Visiting is free.

What is a whirligig?

A whirligig is a large kinetic sculpture made from recycled metal, spray paint and reflectors, built to move with the wind. The ones in Wilson were made by Vollis Simpson, a Wilson County native who worked as a farm-machinery repairman before he became a folk artist.

Who was Vollis Simpson?

Simpson was born in 1919 to a farming family in Wilson County and began building whirligigs in the early 1980s. He died on May 31, 2013, at the age of 94. Weeks later, in June 2013, the North Carolina legislature designated his whirligigs the official folk art of the state.

How the whirligigs came downtown

For years the sculptures stood on Simpson's farm outside Wilson. With so many old moving parts, they needed serious conservation work, so a partnership of Wilson Downtown Properties, the North Carolina Arts Council and the City of Wilson set out to restore them and give them a permanent public home. The park held its grand opening on November 2, 2017.

What to see and do

The park is home to 30 whirligigs, including some of the largest pieces Simpson ever built. Many of them carry reflective signs and pieces, so the park looks quite different after dark than it does in daylight. There is also a lawn amphitheater used for music and film events, benches and tables for a picnic, and a shelter that hosts a farmers and artisan market.

Across the street, the Whirligig Park Museum & Gift Shop displays original Simpson pieces, a video about his life and a timeline of the park project. The park's website has listed hours of Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., so check the latest hours before you go.

Where it is and how to plan your visit

The park is at 301 S. Goldsboro Street in Wilson. Wilson is about 50 miles from Raleigh, which makes the park an easy day trip from the Triangle. The historic brick tobacco warehouses around it are part of a National Register historic district, so the park sits inside a piece of the city's history as well as its art.

Pair it with a food and history tour

The park tells one part of Wilson's story. To hear more of it, and to taste some of the city's food along the way, join a guided walking tour of downtown Wilson. Our Downtown Walking Food & History Tour runs about three hours and combines local small plates with stories about the city's past. You can book at gigabitesofwilson.com.

Sources: Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park (wilsonwhirligigpark.org), VisitNC, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the City of Wilson.