Skip to main content

The BBBBIIIIGGGG Chicken - Marietta, GA

Image
By


"...turn left at the Big Chicken."

Landmarks, before the era of GPS navigation, physical places, man-made or not, were often used in directions to help get from one place to another.

"...one mile South of the Big Chicken."

On US 41 in Marietta, Georgia - a 56-foot tall red-and-white chicken - complete with a moving beak and rolling eyes - dominates the suburban commercial strip.  You can see it from nearby Interstate 75 - it's simply known as The BIG Chicken.

The story of The Big Chicken dates back to 1963. Stanly "Tubby" Davis wanted a unique way to promote his Johnny Reb's Chick-Chuck-'N'-Shake.  The restaurant served fried chicken, hamburgers, and milkshakes.  It also was a drive-in offering curbside service.

Davis commissioned a local Georgia Tech student, Hubert Puckett, to design the roadside attraction.  Puckett would later be involved in renovations to the structure after it sustained significant storm damage in 1993.

Close-up of the moving beak and rolling eyes of The Big Chicken.

Kentucky Fried Chicken would become the new home of The Big Chicken in 1974.  Puckett sold his business to his brother, who would convert Johnny Reb's to a KFC franchise. 

The seven-story attraction has survived numerous attempts to dismantle it.  At first, Kentucky Fried Chicken did not like the locally beloved landmark.  It would later try to move the bird to another Atlanta location.  However, a January 1993 windstorm would cement The Big Chicken permanently at the corner of Cobb Parkway and Roswell.

The 1993 renovated version of The Big Chicken - (Joe Babyak - January 2008)

High winds had dislodged several steel panels from the body of the chicken.  KFC officials were ready to move on and tear it down. Marietta and area residents protested as it had become a local attraction.  Aircraft pilots also stepped in to support The Big Chicken.  They used The Big Chicken as a landmark on their approaches to nearby airports.  KFC relented - and a renovation project would restore the chicken back to operation the following year.

KFC enthusiastically embraced The Big Chicken in the 2017 remodel.

The Big Chicken would undergo a second renovation in 2017.  A $2 million renovation updated the chicken, restaurant, and accompanying gift shop.  The restaurant was updated to modern-KFC standards. And, to show how far KFC-corporate has changed its view of Puckett's chicken, the BIG Chicken is the centerpiece of all the local branding.

All photos taken by post author - March 2023 - unless otherwise noted.

Sources & Links:

How To Get There:

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Petroleum Club Road (former California State Route 33 and US Route 399 past the Lakeview Gusher)

By
Petroleum Club Road is an approximately 5.3-mile rural highway located in the Sunset Oil Field of western Kern County.  This corridor was constructed as a frontage road of the Sunset Railroad and would be the site of the Lakeview Gusher in 1910.  Petroleum Club Road was the original alignment of California State Route 33 and US Route 399 between 1934-1938.  In 1938 the West Side Highway was constructed west of Lakeview Gusher and still serves as the current alignment of California State Route 33.   Part 1; the history of Petroleum Club Road Petroleum Club Road is the original highway which linked the oil communities of Maricopa and Taft.  Both cities were developed around the early boom of the Sunset Oil Field.  The early Sunset Oil Field can be seen centered along Cienega Canyon Road southwest of Buena Vista Lake in Township 11 North, Range 23 West on the 1898 Kern County Surveyors map .  In 1901 Post Office Service would be established at the Su...
Post a Comment
Read more

Did Caltrans just kill the G26 cutout US Route shields?

By
The US Route System was formally created by the American Association of State Highway Officials during November 1926.  Through the history of the system the only state to which has elected to maintain cutout US Route shields has been California.  The G26 series cutout US Route shields have become a favorite in the road enthusiast hobby and are generally considered to be much more visually pleasing than the standard Federal Highway Administration variant.  However, the G26 shield series appears to have been killed off on January 18, 2026, when Caltrans updated their Manual of Uniform Traffic Control Devices.  This blog will examine the history of the US Route shield specifications in California and what is happening with the 2026 changes.  The blog cover photo is facing towards the terminus of California State Route 136 and at a G26-2 specification US Route 395 shield.  In the background Mount Whitney can be seen in the Sierra Nevada range.   ...
3 comments
Read more

Rosecrans Avenue Overpass

By
In 1995 the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway installed the modern Rosecrans Avenue Overpass.  The current 300 feet long Polygonal Warren Through truss is the third railroad overpass structure to have been built at the intersection of Rosecrans Avenue and Aviation Boulevard.  The modern structure was proceeded by a 164.1-foot-long span built in 1964 which was a replacement for the original 1924-era overpass.  An overview of the Rosecrans Avenue Overpass The intersection of Rosecrans Avenue and Aviation Boulevard (originally Redondo Road) lies at the boundaries of three cities.  The city of Hawthorne occupies the lands east of the intersection, El Segundo occupies the northwest corner and whereas Manhattan Beach is located at the southeast corner.   Since 1924 the intersection Rosecrans Avenue and Redondo Road would be the location of a railroad overpass structure.  The original overpass was a 100-foot-long pony truss/plate girder design built by t...
Post a Comment
Read more