Blue Ridge Country September/October 2021 - 55

3
While " The Andy Griffith Show " was
in production, the Ford Motor Company
would provide a squad car
for use in filming each year. These
cars were generally Ford Galaxies,
but the first season featured a Ford
Fairlane model. Entrepreneur Mike
Cockerman operates Squad Car
Tours, running out of Wally's Service
Station at 625 South Main Street in
Mount Airy, where guests can tour
($40 for a carload of 5 or fewer)
notable points in the town and the
world's largest open faced granite
quarry. Cockerman acquired a fleet
of vintage Ford Galaxies and retrofitted
them to look like the squad car
from the show. Tourmayberry.com
4
Fans can experience first-hand the
boyhood home of Andy Griffith. The
small house, located at 711 East Haymore
Street is available for overnight
accommodations. Andy lived here
with his parents until he graduated
from high school. The house has
two bedrooms, one bath, kitchen
and living room. It's a close stroll to
the Andy Griffith Playhouse and the
downtown area. bit.ly/2SDxHg9
5
Mount Pilot is referenced quite a
few times on the show. The inspiration
came from Pilot Mountain, a
neighboring town to Mount Airy.
Andy also mentioned communities
outside of Mount Airy, such as Dobson,
Toast, Flat Rock, Fancy Gap,
Triplett and Bannertown. In an episode
where Barney is out of town,
a substitute deputy played by Jerry
Van Dyke serves as a crossing guard
at the corner of Rockford Road and
Haymore Street-Andy grew up a
block or so from the intersection of
Rockford and Haymore. In episode
3, season 4, Ernest T. Bass starts
throwing rocks at windows around
town, and Andy says, " We'll wait
for him at the corner of Pine and
Main. " Pine and Main intersect in
Mount Airy.
6
Emmett Forrest was a close lifetime
friend of Griffith and he saved the
world's largest collection of Andy
Griffith memorabilia. That collection
became the core of The Andy
Griffith Museum. It houses hundreds
of items related to Andy's life and
his prolific career in theatre, film
and music. Andy also named a
character after Emmett on the show.
surryarts.org/agmuseum
7
Mayberry Days is an annual festival
in Mount Airy. Tanya Jones, executive
director of the Surry County
Arts Council, gives a nod to Jim Clark
for sparking the idea for the annual
Mayberry Days celebration. Clark
co-founded The Andy Griffith Show
Rerun Watchers Club (TAGSRWC)
in the late 1970s. The first Mayberry
Days festival took place in 1990 to
celebrate the 30th anniversary of
the show. This year, Mayberry Days
runs September 21-26 with a line-up
of family-friendly activities. While
in town, make sure to check out
the replica Mayberry Courthouse
and Jail located adjacent to Wally's
Service Station. A replica of the Darlings'
cabin sits out back. surryarts.
org/mayberrydays
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 55

http://www.bit.ly/2SDxHg9 http://www.surryarts.org/agmuseum http://www.Tourmayberry.com http://www.surryarts.org/agmuseum http://www.helenga.org

Blue Ridge Country September/October 2021

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