Few people have a 7- foot-tall landmark to remind passersby of their life’s work. But that is not the case for Samuel T. Mickey.
Samuel Timothy Mickey was born in Salem in 1839, and was the brother of Julius and Frank Mickey. Samuel was a Civil War veteran who was Captain of the 26th North Carolina Regimental Band. And, he was a member of the Norfleet Camp of Confederate veterans.
Samuel and Julius Mickey were tinsmiths in Salem. They erected the Coffee Pot on the corner of South Main and Belews Street in the 1850s to let people know that they made items from tin at that location. Now, more than 150 years later, the Coffee Pot still stands on South Main Street (just down the street from the original location), reminding passersby that it once marked the location of Julius and Samuel Mickey’s tinsmith business.
Today, the coffee pot symbol can be seen throughout Winston-Salem, and has been described as representing the hospitality of the city.
Photo courtesy of Forsyth County Public Library Photograph Collection. Plaque photo by Molly Grogan Rawls.
