Here at the Mount Airy Visitors Center, we have the largest collection of Andy Griffith Memorabilia in the country. Andy’s longtime friend, Emmett Forrest has spent 40 + years collecting everything and anything relating to Andy Griffith. We have all his movie credits, his T.V. credits, and other artifacts from the rocking chair in which he was rocked as a baby (his father was a furniture maker and made that for his mother to ock him in) to a “Matlock” suit he actually wore on the show. One of our latest acquisitions is Otis Campbell’s suit that is on loan from the Andy Griffith Rerun Watchers Club. With Mayberry Days coming up Sept. 27-29, we are expecting a record crowd. On hand will be celebrities Howard Morris, Betty Lynn, and Maggie Peterson-Mancuso.
Our center opened in 1994 and that year we had approximately 8,500 people to sign the guest register. Just six years later at the end of 2000, we had over 46,000 sign-ins. That represents a + 441% change in our visitor numbers since we opened our doors in ’94. Whether people think we are the “mythical Mayberry” or not, we feel that we are as close as it gets! I think most visitors are looking for a “simpler” way of life as depicted on the Andy Griffith Show. Our hope is to greet our visitors with wonderful hometown hospitality that is authentic in every way. There is no admission fee for the Visitors Center or the Andy Griffith Museum. Our hours are Mon.- Sat. 9 am- 5 pm and Sun. 11:00am- 4:30 pm.
We are located at 615 North Main Street just a block north of the Historic Downtown District of Mount Airy and 4 blocks north of Snappy Lunch and Floyd’s City Barber Shop. We are in a beautiful 1910 historic blue house that is the 5th house on the right after turning onto North Main St. Mount Airy Visitors Center ? 615 North Main Street ? Mount Airy, N. C. 27030 ? 1-800-576-0231 ? visitandy@tcia.net
(from our archives, September 2001)
Related Stories & Links
Surry Arts Council to Host Mayberry Days 2001
Andy Griffith Tells His Story
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