Atlanta's not-the-offical-Olympic-torch

In honor of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, we look back to when Atlanta hosted the 1996 Olympics.



Everyone remembers the 1996 Olympics were in Atlanta. The Olympic Stadium is now Turner Field, home of the Braves. The official Olympic Torch Tower is just across the parking lot from Turner Field.

And then, there's this. I just assumed this was also an Official Olympic Torch. So did my brother who took me to see this. I would also assume tens of thousands of motorists riding in the passenger seat of northbound traffic of Interstate 75 have photographed it with their smartphones. It's north of Downtown (I guess in Midtown) and really close to Georgia Tech.

So, it's not the official Olympic torch. I did a bit of Internet searching to figure out the who, when and why of this structure, only to have no results. What I did see is that it used to be painted red until five years ago. Recently, I had lunch with my best friend from high school who moved to Atlanta and he didn't know who made it either. If you know, please help me out.

From here, my brother took me to see what I now know is the real one, but my picture of that didn't come out well.

UPDATE: I found this article which explains it better:
http://patch.com/georgia/midtown/spring-spruce-up-for-olympic-landmark

Thacker Christmas Inn

Merry Christmas! For this hotel in Caryville, TN, it's Christmas year round. I guess. (The hotel was under renovation with a construction fence completely surrounding the place when I drove through here last fall. Maybe it will be open by now.) Because it was under construction, I drove around the place for 15 minutes until I could find an unobstructed view, which sadly was not on the sunlit side.

I'm guessing it's still going to be a mom & pop owned place and not part of a chain. It's located along old US25W but still in business since it's next to Interstate 75.

Here are a couple of comments from Flickr users who have been here:

My wife and I noticed in Oct. that they were renovating. I can remember years and years ago stopping and having dinner here, but never stayed. I am glad to see someone taking an interest in getting the place up and running again. It had fell into a pretty sad state of disrepair over the last dozen or so years.

My Grandparents and I used to go there about 2 - 3 times a year and dine in their restaurant. It was one of those special times that we'd look forward to for months, and long time still remembered fondly by me.

Atlanta's not-the-offical-Olympic-torch

Everyone remembers the 1996 Olympics were in Atlanta. The Olympic Stadium is now Turner Field, home of the Braves (although only for a couple more years). The official Olympic Torch Tower is just across the parking lot from Turner Field.

And then, there's this. I just assumed this was also an Official Olympic Torch. So did my brother who took me to see this. I would also assume tens of thousands of motorists riding in the passenger seat of northbound traffic of Interstate 75 have photographed it with their smartphones. It's north of Downtown (I guess in Midtown) and really close to Georgia Tech.

So, it's not the official Olympic torch. I did a bit of Internet searching to figure out the who, when and why of this structure, only to have no results. What I did see is that it used to be painted red until a year ago. Today, I had lunch with my best friend from high school who moved to Atlanta and he didn't know who made it either. If you know, please help me out.

From here, my brother took me to see what I now know is the real one, but my picture didn't come out well.

Random East Tennessee Dragon

Located right off Interstate 75 exit 134 in Caryville, TN, this dragon constructed of rebar and fiberglass has been attracting visitors to a fireworks store since 1986. In May of 2011, the Fireworks store caught fire and everything was a total loss, except for the dragon which still stands on a now vacant lot. (Contrary to some thought, the dragon did not breathe fire upon the store.)

According to www.roadsideamerica.com/tip/14021 as of April, the dragon is for sale. The dragon could be yours, for the right price.

Burger Free Zone - Chik-Fil-A Water Tower

The Fast Food chain Chik-Fil-A is very popular in and around Atlanta, where they got their start. In addition to numerous eye-catching billboards with 3d cows is this advertising water tower seen along the I-75/I-85 Corridor.

Jellico Motel & Restaurant

Quite the large sign and it's easily viewable from Interstate 75 and US25W in Jellico, TN not far from the KY border. Based on this post card which was probably printed in the late 60s, it used to be a Quality Courts Motel.