Q: After recently reading several books on the Battle of Atlanta, I’m curious about a town south of Atlanta but north of Jonesboro called Rough and Ready. I assume it must be near the Atlanta airport. Where was this town?
--Bob McLellan, Lawrenceville
A: As Scarlett could tell you, Rough and Ready was on the way to Tara, and Rhett was headed in that direction when the bickering couple fled burning Atlanta in "Gone With the Wind." Scarlett wouldn't recognize Rough and Ready today, especially since it's been called Mountain View for about 60 years. But don't let the bucolic name fool you. It's in an unincorporated part of northwest Clayton County, so close to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport that the residents have to go through TSA screening to enter their houses. OK, not that close, but you get the idea. There was fighting around Rough and Ready and the Macon & Western Railroad during the Battle of Jonesboro in late August 1864. You'll find two historical markers – one for the town and one for the Rough and Ready Tavern – on U.S. 41, east of the airport. Rough and Ready became Mountain View when the town was originally incorporated in the 1940s, but the charter was gone with the wind after corruption was discovered in the '50s and '60s. Runway View might be a better name now.
Q: How did Dunwoody get its name?
--Lance DeLoach, Thomaston
A: Dunwoody, like many other cities around the state, is named for a person. And no, it has nothing to do with famous native Ryan Seacrest. Charles A. Dunwody was born in 1828 and helped his family run mills around Roswell before he was wounded at the First Battle of Manassas (or, if you prefer, Bull Run) in the Civil War. He returned to the area and later built a home near what is now Chamblee-Dunwoody Road and Spalding Drive. A new railroad transported goods (not the designer names now sold at Perimeter Mall) between Roswell and Chamblee, making stops at Dunwody Station. At some point, as legend has it, Dunwody's last name was misspelled "Dunwoody" in official paperwork, and the locals, always quick to spot trends, took on the new version. Even after the railroad was closed in 1921, Dunwoody continued to grow around Chamblee-Dunwoody and Mt. Vernon roads and then expanded farther south when the Spruill family sold land for Perimeter Mall in 1971. Dunwoody, which now encompasses the northern tip of DeKalb County, was incorporated in 2008.
What do you want to know about Georgia?
If you’re new in town or have questions about this special place we call home, ask us! E-mail Andy Johnston at q&a@ajc.com.
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