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Come to Mt. Airy For a Taste of Mayberry

Andy Griffith's hometown and one of the cast members of The Andy Griffith Show welcome you to "Mayberry"

by Karen Lingo, Executive Editor | July 20, 2010

The town of Mt. Airy, North Carolina was the inspiration for the fictional town of Mayberry in the TV sitcom The Andy Griffith Show, which first aired on October 3, 1960. The show ran for 8 seasons, but over the years re-runs have enlisted new generations of fans who fall in love with the characters and the simple life lessons played out on the television screen.

One of the best ways to see Mt. Airy, hometown of actor Andy Griffith, and explore its ties to the television show, is to take a squad car tour in a vintage black-and-white Ford Galaxie 500. You can drive past Andy's boyhood home, see the church he attended, and step inside a re-created town jail. Afterward, have a pork chop sandwich at Snappy Lunch, where Andy and his friends ate during their high school years.

For a special treat, come during the annual Mayberry Days festival, September 23-26, or on October 3, the show's 50th Anniversary date, and meet some of the actors who portrayed the characters in the show. One of the cast members, Betty Lynn, who played the part of "Thelma Lou," actor Don Knott's girlfriend in the show, moved from Los Angeles to Mt. Airy several years ago, so at any time you may see her around town. But for a guaranteed meeting, plan your trip on one of several scheduled dates (August 17, September 21, October 3) when she will be signing autographs at the Andy Griffith Museum.

MEET "THELMA LOU"

Word spreads quickly when Betty Lynn shows up at the Andy Griffith Museum. A delightful octogenarian with a friendly smile and sharp memory, she readily shares her recollections of the show. When asked about her favorite episode, she laughs and says, "The ones I like best are the ones I wasn't in. I love the episodes with Opie in them, especially the one where Aunt Bea first came to live with Andy and Opie.” Of her co-stars she recalls, “Andy and Don were very close, almost like brothers. Don was very quiet. He always thought things out, and wasn't at all like his character (deputy sheriff Barney Fife)."

THE TOWN THAT INSPIRED “MAYBERRY”

Mt. Airy still has the small town charm that helped shape Andy Griffith’s early life, and upon which the TV show was fashioned. The old Earle Theater (now the Cinema Theater) that showed movies when Andy was young, is still open on Main Street. Grace Moravian Church, where Andy served as band and choir director when he was in high school, still welcomes worshipers. And the quarry just outside of town, which has been there for more than a century and provided the white granite for many of the buildings in town, is still in operation.

Even the elementary school Andy attended is still there – at least the exterior walls. It was on the stage here that Andy, in the third grade, first performed, singing Put on Your Old Gray Bonnet in a school talent show. It’s now the Andy Griffith Playhouse. Next door, the Andy Griffith Museum houses memorabilia that was collected by Emmett Forrest, one of Andy’s childhood friends, and items donated by the cast members of The Andy Griffith Show and by Andy himself. Exhibits include class photos from Emmett and Andy’s school days, and posters and photos from Andy’s career in theater, music, and film. It also includes stage props from the TV set for The Andy Griffith Show. A couple of favorites are the gavel that sits on the sheriff's desk in one exhibit, and the keys to the Mayberry Jail.

NOTE: If you’re into geocaching, there’s a site on the grounds of the museum and theater.

TAKE A SQUAD CAR TOUR

Don't miss the narrated squad car tour. The company that operates the tours owns three black-and-whites, all Ford Galaxie 500’s. They date to 1962, 1963, and 1964. Climb in and you’re treated to a drive past all the local spots that relate to Andy Griffith’s time here, complete with details only the locals would know. For example, Andy’s mother worked at a place that sold hot dogs, and every day after school, Andy would stop to eat a hot dog. That remnant from his past shows up in another of Andy's TV shows, Matlock, where his character always seems to be eating hot dogs.

One stop on the tour is at the “Old City Jail,” a re-creation of the sheriff’s office as it appeared on TV, complete with Otis’ jail cell. Otis, for the uninitiated, was the town drunk on the show, and would let himself into and out of jail. Next door is Wally’s Service Station, where you can buy a soft drink and a snack, and sit in one of the rocking chairs out front.

SLEEP IN ANDY’S CHILDHOOD HOME

Another site on the tour is Andy Griffith’s boyhood home, at 711 E. Haymore Street. You can go inside if you reserve an overnight stay. The two-bedroom, one-bath home is decorated in furnishings from the 1930’s-1940s, and has a sunny yellow-and-white kitchen just like you'd find in a regular family home.

PORK CHOP SANDWICH & A HAIR CUT

Stroll down Main Street and you’ll pass Floyd’s City Barber Shop. Step inside for a look at the photos of celebrities on the wall. Owner Russell Hiatt has been cutting hair here for more than six decades. A few doors down, Snappy Lunch, mentioned in an early episode of The Andy Griffith Show, offers a unique taste of “Mayberry.” The steak and biscuit at breakfast is delicious, but the place is better known for its pork chop sandwich, a caloric lunchtime concoction that begins with a battered and fried boneless pork chop topped with anything and everything from chili to cheese and slaw.

For another lunch option, stop in at 308 Bistro, in the Old North State Winery, also on Main Street. The menu includes soups, salads, pastas, and pizzas. While here, take a tour of the winery, which is located in the basement.

RIDE TO PILOT MOUNTAIN

From almost anywhere in town you can see Pilot Mountain, a distinctive landmark that rises more than 1,400 feet above the surrounding countryside. It’s the dominant feature of Pilot Mountain State Park, and the destination on a 35-mile motorcycle/auto tour from downtown Mt. Airy.

At the park you can enjoy a birds-eye view of the area from overlooks tucked along a pathway that leads from the parking area. The one at the end of the path looks straight out at Big Pinnacle, with its sheer rock walls and a rounded top that’s covered in vegetation. The park is also a great place to picnic -- another simple pleasure that's pure "Mayberry."