Talk of the Town - Roll back the clock October 10 2001

It’s our little Mayberry, says Perry Benson of his Senoia residence.

Benson commutes an hour and a half to and from work just to live in the small town of Senoia located minutes from Hartsfield International Airport. He escaped the hustle-bustle and cookie-cutter complex way of living he experienced while living in Atlanta.

Although Benson is a two-year resident, he already knows everyone in town. The friendliness and casual charm of the city is the town’s strongest attribute, according to Benson and other residents. It’s located far enough from the highway to avoid attracting a lot of outsiders and maintain its character.

You get a feeling of what a little town was like 50 to 70 years ago,” said Benson, referring to the old shops and the familiar faces he sees in town.

Founded in 1860, Senoia is filled with historic, Victorian and Greek-revival Southern homes. While they are not as extravagant as Tara, many exhibit tall white columns, large front lawns and quaint Southern porches where you’ll see people smile, wave and continue to sip on their iced tea.

Resident Tom McKeennan spends time on his porch daily, doing crossword puzzles and flagging down neighbors to chat. “It’s slow, and everybody minds their own business,” said McKeennan, who moved to Senoia 12 years ago from New York to get away from city life. “People will ring your doorbell, and you’ll spend an hour or so jabbing, and you’ll sit down and watch the news together.”

Since there are few distractions like theaters or malls, you might expect kids to be bored in Senoia. Resident Gary Grubby admits the town doesn’t do much for teenagers’ social lives, but as father of two young boys, he said his children are extremely involved in their school and sporting activities. If they do want to go shopping or see a movie, Peachtree City is 15 miles away, and Atlanta is only an hour commute.

Grubby feels a personal connection to the residents having photographed them and the town for years. He finds their lack of concern for the big city life nearby refreshing.

“People down here are completely unconcerned with what’s happening in Atlanta. You couldn’t get a conversation going about Atlanta if you passed out money,” he said.

Instead, they talk about their small town, especially the politics of it. With an election coming up, Grubby said, “It’s a political circus down here and certainly fun to watch.”

Despite the time capsule quality of the town, progress has taken a bit of a step to maintain the town’s integrity. One of the biggest projects the city is undertaking is revitalizing its downtown area, most notably the historic shops and buildings on Main Street.

Benson, Grubby and other residents feel like the town has been preserved well. In the past 100 years most of the buildings are the same, although the town keeps attracting new faces.

“A lot of people think we’re out in the sticks,” said Benson, “but we like it this way and we know we have culture here.”??