Mountain View (also known as Rough and Ready) is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in northwest Clayton County,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, United States. The community is bounded on the east and south by

Forest Park A forest park is a park whose main theme is its forest of trees. Forest parks are found both in the mountains and in the urban environment. Examples Chile * Forest Park, Santiago China * Gongqing Forest Park, Shanghai * Mufushan National Fore ...

, on the north by the Fulton County line, and on the west by the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

History

Mountain View was originally named Rough and Ready for the Rough and Ready Tavern or Bagley House, a stagecoach stop on the line from Macon to upper Georgia. It was later the site of the first railroad station south of

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

on the

Macon and Western Railroad The Macon and Western Railroad was an American railway company that operated in Georgia in the middle of the 19th century. Originally chartered as the Monroe Railroad and Banking Company in December 1833, it was not until 1838 that it opened for bus ...

, 13 miles from the terminus at

East Point East Point is the name of several places: United States * East Point, Alabama *East Point, Georgia **East Point station * East Point, Kentucky * East Point, Louisiana *East Point Military Reservation, in Nahant, Massachusetts * East Point, Texas * ...

American Civil War

The Rough and Ready Tavern served as a temporary headquarters for

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...

William J. Hardee during the Atlanta Campaign (1864).

Twentieth Century

Its name was changed when it was incorporated as a city in 1956. The name "Mountain View" refers to the fact that, on a clear day, one can see

Stone Mountain Stone Mountain is a quartz monzonite dome Inselberg, monadnock and the site of Stone Mountain Park, east of Atlanta, Georgia. Outside the park is the city of Stone Mountain, Georgia. The park is the most visited tourist site in the state of Ge ...

20 miles to the east. The slogan, "Gateway to Clayton County," was featured on the city seal. Mountain View was a city from 1956 to January 1978, when the

Georgia General Assembly The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is bicameral, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each of the General Assembly's 236 members serve two-year terms and are directl ...

voted to repeal the

city charter A city charter or town charter (generically, municipal charter) is a legal document (''charter'') establishing a municipality such as a city or town. The concept developed in Europe during the Middle Ages. Traditionally, the granting of a charter ...

. A five-member delegation of Clayton County legislators proposed a bill to abolish the city in order to clean up corruption in the city government. During his four terms in office (1972-1977)

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Ray King, though popular with his constituents, was charged with bribery, nepotism, conspiracy, assault, and violating the city charter by accepting an illegal salary. Rather than reform the city leadership, Clayton County sought to dissolve Mountain View entirely.

State Representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United St ...

Rudolph Johnson of

Morrow Morrow may refer to: Places in the United States and Canada United States * Morrow, Arkansas *Morrow, Georgia * Morrow, Louisiana * Morrow, Ohio *Morrow County, Ohio *Morrow County, Oregon Canada *Morrow Lake, Ontario *Mount Morrow, Northwest Ter ...

, chair of the delegation said, "They've had controversy out there for 20 years. It's an accumulation of things, really." In 1972, (then)

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

suspended Mountain View's police powers for several months during an investigation into an alleged speed trap on

I-75 Interstate 75 (I-75) is a major north–south Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes and Southeastern United States, Southeastern regions of the United States. As with most Interstates that end ...

. Though no wrongdoing was confirmed, the allegations contributed to Mountain View's bad publicity. Along with the city's controversial 24-hour sales of beer and wine in an otherwise

dry county In the United States, a dry county is a county whose local government forbids the sale of any kind of alcoholic beverages. Some prohibit off-premises sale, some prohibit on-premises sale, and some prohibit both. The vast majority of counties n ...

, its reputation for public drunkenness and fighting, and a notorious mayor, the legislative delegation determined the city to be a "blight on Clayton County." However, long before Mountain View was formally dissolved, the City of Atlanta Department of Aviation actively acquired properties and assisted in relocation of the residential population due to noise impacts from the nearby runways. In 1978, sound expert Dr. Clifford Bragdon called Mountain View the "most noise-impacted city in the U.S. or Europe." Despite the constant roar of jet engines, many residents did not want to leave and some homes were taken by

eminent domain Eminent domain, also known as land acquisition, compulsory purchase, resumption, resumption/compulsory acquisition, or expropriation, is the compulsory acquisition of private property for public use. It does not include the power to take and t ...

. Past population estimates were between 2,100 and 3,000 persons. The current population is unknown, but many of Mountain View's original businesses remain.

Economy

Plans are on the drawing board for economic redevelopment the community, but the plans call for no residential population due to the noise from the takeoffs and landings at the Airport.

In popular culture

* Mitchell, Margaret. ''

Gone with the Wind Gone with the Wind most often refers to: * Gone with the Wind (novel), ''Gone with the Wind'' (novel), a 1936 novel by Margaret Mitchell * Gone with the Wind (film), ''Gone with the Wind'' (film), the 1939 adaptation of the novel Gone with the Wind ...

''. This novel mentions Rough and Ready. The people of Atlanta were evacuated to Rough and Ready on the

for further transport south.

References

External links

Mountain View Historical Tours
at Stumptown, GA (stumptown.typepad.com)
Rough and Ready
at The Historical Marker Database (HMdb.org)
Rough and Ready Tavern
at The Historical Marker Database (HMdb.org) {{DEFAULTSORT:Mountain View, Georgia 1956 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) 1978 disestablishments in Georgia (U.S. state) American Civil War sites in Georgia (U.S. state) Former municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state) Populated places established in 1956 Populated places disestablished in 1978 Unincorporated communities in the Atlanta metropolitan area Unincorporated communities in Clayton County, Georgia Unincorporated communities in Georgia (U.S. state)