Storm-toppled Ashburn peanut resurrected

ASHBURN — Hurricane Michael was still ripping through parts of Georgia, and cleanup efforts in Turner County were underway in 2018 the day after the storm. People started calling County Commissioner Brad Calhoun asking when the giant peanut would go back up.

The storm toppled Georgia’s official peanut monument. It went back up a few weeks ago. A rededication ceremony was held Thursday evening at the peanut.

Calhoun said the peanut is more than a landmark on Interstate 75. It is a monument to Georgia’s peanut farmers and the industry that is so vital to the state.

At the ceremony, Chamber of Commerce Chairman David Mathis welcomed the crowd and thanked Sercer Machine and Fabrication for building the new peanut, which is made from metal. He said plans are underway to have a new marker installed at the base of the peanut to go alongside the original marker.

Sarah Cook from the Georgia Department of Agriculture said the big peanut is a significant landmark. Now a global traveler on behalf of the Ag Department and the state’s farmers, Cook said the peanut is a reminder she is home. Originally from New Jersey, she and her parents and sisters moved here when she was much younger. Even though she and her sisters left for college, they always planned to return here to have their families and settle down.

Don Koehler, executive director of the Georgia Peanut Commission, recalled when the peanut went up and local efforts to get the Department of Transportation to allow the peanut to be clearly seen.

Pine trees were planted, he said, to hide the peanut. The DOT felt “it was a hazard to people getting on and off the Interstate.”

The trees eventually were taken down.

“There wasn’t even a speck of sawdust left,” Koehler said. “That is the best example of good government.”

Georgia grows 53% of the nation’s peanut crop, and the U.S. is a world-leader in peanut production.

“Every time you look at this, I want you thank a peanut farmer,” Koehler said.

The Peanut Commission executive noted that the commission was an original supporter of the monument. He also noted the support of the late Nora Lawrence Smith, whose will provided the impetus for the monument. The GPC also put its financial support behind the new monument.

Smith was a huge supporter of the Interstate system, and Koehler said it is appropriate the peanut is next to the federal highway.

“She was at the ribbon-cutting and helped dedicate the first part of I-75,” he said of Smith.

Rhonda Shannon with AgGeorgia Farm Credit is a peanut farmer’s wife. She said supporting the restoration of the monument was an easy call for the lending company.

“We know the importance of the peanut farmer,” she said. “This is a testament to those who contributed so much to the food and fiber we enjoy.”

County Commissioner Nick Denham, who wrapped up the ceremony, told attendees a “stack of blankets” was in the back for anyone who was cold on the sweltering day. The nation and south Georgia are in a middle of a heat wave with the heat index into triple digits.

Denham credited former Commission Greg Hudgins with getting him involved in the restoration of the peanut monument.

“After that butt-chewing, I contacted (State Senator) Carden Summers and Rep. Clay Pirkle,” Denham said. “Together, they got the Department of Agriculture to contribute money toward the monument’s reconstruction.”

Special Photo: Ben Baker