SMYRNA, Georgia — Marietta has the big chicken. Smyrna has the big flower.
A new giant jonquil statue has been installed in downtown Smyrna, and city officials are planning a formal ceremony to unveil the public artwork on Friday.
“Gotta have something,” one resident quipped.
A city official confirmed to Sightseers’ Delight that the city paid for the sculpture. However, the official could not say how much it cost taxpayers.
According to a report in The Bright Side newspaper, artist Gabi Madrid created the sculpture, named “The Jonquil Bloom.”
Of course, the Big Chicken, a famous area landmark, almost ended up in Smyrna. It did not, and a version remains in Marietta.
Smyrna, a city where officials give only lip service to honoring its past, is nicknamed The Jonquil City. The origin of the nickname allegedly dates to 1883, when Samuel Taylor and his wife introduced the flowers to the city.
They purchased 80 acres along what is today Atlanta Road. The land is located south of the road’s intersection with the modern-day Collier Road.
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