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Phones began ringing in December at visitor centers throughout northwest Georgia with bargain-seekers planning a summer weekend getaway to the annual Dixie Highway 90-Mile Yard Sale. This year’s sale takes place June 4-6 along the historic Dixie Highway in Ringgold, Tunnel Hill, Rocky Face, Dalton, Resaca, Calhoun, Adairsville, Cassville, Cartersville, Emerson, Acworth, and Kennesaw. Thousands of individual yard sales will be held during this annual event hosted by Georgia’s Dixie Highway Association.

Some of the unique items sold in past years have included authentic chenille bedspreads, antique gum ball machines, and even a “Tiffany blue” professional salon hood hair dryer. Enterprising residents baked cakes, smoked barbecue and erected old-fashioned lemonade stands just as they did when the Dixie Highway route first opened in the 1920s.

More ways to save

Another unique and timely economic feature of the sale is the creation of Dixie Dollar Coupons which are printable from www.DixieHighway.org. These coupons are designed specifically for visitors attending the annual three-day event offering savings on lodging, dining and unique retail purchases along the way. Coupons will be posted throughout May, so be sure to print these just before leaving for your Dixie Highway Weekend. Tip: Many of the coupons remain valid beyond the Dixie dates for adding savings in the coming months.

In addition, the website will post a list of Registered Yard Sales in late May. This will help guide you to those special and unique items on your shopping list.

Official yard sale signs

Residents, businesses and churches along the original 90-mile stretch can purchase “Official Dixie Highway Yard Sale” signs with stakes for just $5. All those who purchase a sign may choose to have their sales promoted through direct mail and online to thousands of visitors attending the sale. The signs can be purchased from the Gordon County Chamber of Commerce, 300 S. Wall St., Calhoun Monday-Thursday 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. or Friday 8:30a.m.-4 p.m. If you wish to have a yard sale but do not have a spot along the Dixie Highway route, call the Chamber 706-625-3200 for a list of spaces available for rent.

About the Dixie Highway

When Carl Fisher, an enterprising northerner conceived the idea of the nation’s first interstate in 1912, he had the success of several personal business ventures in mind ranging from Michigan to Florida. But it was the enterprising nature of the south that proved the Dixie Highway route would be a lasting success for all. Even today in the shadows of its descendent, Interstate 75, the Dixie Highway is still in business thanks to Georgia’s Dixie Highway Association.

DIXIE HIGHWAY YARD SALE QUICK FACTS

Event: Dixie Highway 90-Mile Yard Sale

When: Friday-Sunday, June 4-6, always the first weekend in June.

Where: Along the nostalgic Dixie Highway, the “granddaddy of I-75”, which stretches 90 miles in northwest Georgia from Kennesaw to Ringgold.

Sponsor: The Georgia Dixie Highway Association, 770-387-1357; www.dixiehighway.org. Ask for your free Dixie Highway Guide.

Vendors: To purchase a yard sale sign $5 each or find a space to rent call 706-625-3200.