Old Car City

The sign at Old Car City in Georgia calls it a “photographer’s paradise,” and this claim is quickly substantiated as one enters the 32-acre junkyard where trees sprout from abandoned vintage cars, and moss is the decor of choice. 

The forest land, which has belonged to the Lewis family since 1931, was once a general store, and then a dealership selling used car parts. As the family accumulated more and more cars, the trees surrounding their business slowly blended with the rusting vehicles, creating a unique landscape that was part nature and part manmade.

Dean Lewis, the son of the original owners, saw an opportunity there, and converted it into the showplace it is today, where professional and Instagram photographers alike go to wander around click pictures of the mossy and metallic wonderland. It has more than 4,000 cars and trucks, making it one of the world’s largest automobile junk yards, if not the largest. 

Most of the vehicles are from the 20th century, and the classic cars from the 1950s  through the 1980s are arranged haphazardly. Trails have been created for visitors to see the pieces of automotive history, frozen in place for decades, with signs guiding them through. 

One of the most popular cars in the area is a 1939 Chevy, which has branches appearing out of what was once its windshield, affectionately titled the “Two-ton flowerpot.” One can easily spend an entire weekend here, roaming the six miles of trails filled with rusted cars, parts, bicycles, and some creepy looking dolls.