Posted on 07/25/2015 10:24:14 AM PDT by smokingfrog
Nestled in a north Georgia forest, over 4,000 classic cars decorate 32 acres that have been turned into a junkyard museum. Owner Walter Dean Lewis’ parents started the business in 1931 as a general store that also sold auto parts. Lewis grew the collection, which had just 40 cars in the ’70s, over time.
“The only thing I ever knew was cars and trucks,” Lewis says. “I like to say I work for tomorrow, always thinking about the future. Someday they would be valuable.”
Lewis stopped selling parts about six years ago, soon after realizing he could sustain the business more as a museum, charging $15 for visitors just looking, and $25 for photographers. He estimates that 95 percent of the people who come through the six miles of trails are photographers.
Visitors are greeted by various artworks and hand-painted messages. On occasion, Eddie McDaniel, who goes by “Fast Eddie,” a childhood friend of Lewis, plays blues piano next to a shotgun and a bear mounted on a wall.
In the 30 or 40 years that many of the cars have never moved, trees now grow through them and, in some cases, even lift them off the ground. One of Lewis’ more popular vehicles is a 1946 Ford truck used in “Murder in Coweta County,” a 1983 film starring Johnny Cash and Andy Griffith.
“It’s history. I saved them when other people were crushing them,” Lewis says. “I don’t know what I would do if I couldn’t get up every morning and look at old cars.”
(Excerpt) Read more at klfy.com ...
OMG! That ol’ guy standing next to the bus at the link looks just like me! Wife agrees LOL. SHEESH!
I heard just about all of the Dodge Chargers used in The Dukes of Hazzard came from GA and AL. I wonder if any came from this place?
Beautiful classic cars rusting into the ground. Terrible.
Sad he never moved from junk to restoration. It is a shambles graveyard.
Not to mention the impact on the forest.
4,000 classic cars decorate 32 acres
4000? I could probably spend a few weeks making photographs at that place...
Kind of like me too, but without the beard. Good thing I don’t have 32 acres to collect junk. LoL!
I heard one of the big tourist attractions of Cuba is people wanting to see all of the old cars still on the road there. After Castro’s revolution, they weren’t able to import new American cars. So a street scene in Cuba looks like something out of the ‘50s.
As Cuba opens up, some Cubans may make some money selling the old cars to evil capitalists, if the cars are in good condition.
Old Car City on US 411 in White, GA. I am so going to visit!
Thank you for posting this!
Google Map location
I am going to try to go. Odds are by myself. If it doesn’t involve ball, live theatre, boring concerts, or some dull cultural event, the spouse will probably careth not.
There is a place just outsideof Greenville, SC that sells all kinds of scrap cars but he is a bit pricey.
I looked at a 67 Cougar that was listed. It was a step above crusher food. Wanted 2500 for it. I guess someone bought it or scrapped. It was removed.
The 57 Pymouth to the left of the Pontiac under the pre-war Ford looks like a Belvedere. But if it’s a Fury and if I hear “Forever My Darling” by Johnnie Ace or “Keep a-Knockin’” by Little Richard, I’M OUTTA HERE!!
Bkmrk.
Cute hat! Is it your wife’s? ;- )
Looks like a fun place to visit.
look back there on the left. Is that Brad?
I bet he got a free bowl of soup with that hat.
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