There’s a certain kind of building that holds onto its history. You can feel it in the walls. At 209 E Third Street in Wendell, North Carolina, that history goes back over a century. Long before Wendell Cigar Co. opened its doors, this town was built on tobacco.
A Town Built on Tobacco
In the 1850s, a devastating crop disease called the Granville Wilt forced tobacco farmers out of Granville County in search of fertile land. Many of them settled in eastern Wake County, planting the seeds of a new community, both literally and figuratively. That community became Wendell, officially incorporated in 1903 and named after author Oliver Wendell Holmes.
As the railroad arrived, Wendell transformed into one of eastern North Carolina’s most important tobacco markets. Warehouses, merchants, and auction houses filled the downtown streets. Farmers brought their harvests to be sold, and generations of local families built their livelihoods around the leaf.
Founded in 1919, the Monk-Henderson Tobacco Company became one of the driving forces behind that economy, purchasing, processing, and packing tobacco into massive wooden hogsheads before shipping it around the world. The Third Street warehouse that once housed that operation is the same building we call home today. (You can read the full account on our Rich Tobacco History page.)
Why This Matters to Us
When we started Wendell Cigar Co., I wasn’t just opening a cigar shop. I was stepping into a legacy built by people like R.B. Whitley, a banker and farmer who helped establish Wendell as a thriving tobacco market and personally helped clear the land that became Main Street. It was carried forward by people like June Perry, who spent decades as a merchant, mayor, and community leader, believing simply in leaving Wendell better than he found it.
Their story is the reason this town exists the way it does. And it’s the reason Wendell Cigar Co. exists at all.
From Seed to Leaf to Cigar
At Wendell Cigar Co., we believe cigars are one of the world’s great handmade crafts. Every leaf is grown, sorted, fermented, and rolled by skilled hands that carry generations of knowledge, much like the farmers, warehouse workers, and merchants who built this town from the ground up.
Our job is to show you the beauty behind that craft. We curate only the finest cigars from the world’s most respected boutique factories and small-batch makers, seeking out the artisans, farmers, and blenders who dedicate their lives to perfecting this tradition.
Whether you’re new to cigars or a lifelong aficionado, our space, set inside a building that has watched this town grow for over 100 years, is designed for you. Elegant. Educational. Completely unpretentious. (New to cigars? Check out our Beginner’s Guide to Cigars before your first visit.)
You Belong Here
We built Wendell Cigar Co. to honor the journey from seed to leaf to cigar, and to give this historic tobacco market a new chapter, one that celebrates craftsmanship, preserves history, and reintroduces premium tobacco as an experience rooted in heritage, quality, and tradition.
Come visit us at 209 E Third St, Wendell, NC. Walk through the same doors that generations of tobacco farmers and merchants once walked through, and discover a cigar that speaks to you. (Want a closer look at the space itself? Read Inside Wendell Cigar Co: A Private Lounge in a Piece of History.)
We built this for you.
Ready to explore? Shop our curated cigar selection, browse our private blend cigars, or contact us to plan your visit.