What’s In a (Road) Name?

Written by BLUE COLE | Photographed by JACKIE KENNEDY  

Between Sharpsburg and Senoia, the tiny town of Turin is situated along Highway 16 in East Coweta County.

In 1830, early settlers gathered at Preston, a small village about one mile south of present-day Turin. The railroad came in 1870, pulling Preston north, and it was renamed Turin. The founding families donated land for churches, schools and town needs. Agriculture boomed, bringing in banks, blacksmiths and retail trade. In 1890, Turin was incorporated as a town by the Georgia General Assembly.

Turin thrived while passenger service and farming boomed until the boll weevil spread, slowing growth until Highway 16 was paved in 1937. Since then, Turin has hosted many businesses supplying the needs of their area. Peaches were a well-regarded crop, and a hat maker was kept busy in one of the town’s four general stores. The Turin Garden Club, founded in the early 1900s, is one of the oldest gardening social clubs in Georgia.

George Revell, Lynch, Odom, Hunter, North, Will Banks: All of these roads are named after prominent Turin settlers and their families. A mix of businessmen and farmers, these individuals contributed to the schools, churches and development of the area.

Reese Road, runs north-south on the eastern edge of Turin and is named after H.S. Reese, a local farmer and preacher. Also a writer, Reese wrote the social column for a county paper, The Newnan Advertiser. Writing as RAT, (’Round About Turin) he detailed the comings and goings of the busy town.

Longstreet Avenue’s origin is a bit shrouded. Is it named as a route to the Longstreet community, at the time near Cokes Chapel, or was it named after the Confederate general?

North Road and West Road: North and West roads match their cardinal descriptions, but North Road is named after the North family, home to several doctors in the early years of Coweta County. West Road, opened in the 1980s, is believed to describe the direction it runs, but there were several early West families in the area.

Church Street and Railroad Street are descriptive. Turin Methodist Church sits at the corner of Longstreet and Church, in sight of Turin Baptist Church at the corner of Church and North Hunter.

Lecoja Trail is named for the daughters of Leroy Johnson, a former county commissioner and well-known farmer in Coweta County. Previously named Turin Road, it shared that name with another Turin Road, located in Senoia. Asked to change the name, Commissioner Johnson took the first two letters of the names of his three daughters, Leroyce, Corille and Jane. NCM

Wanna help us out?

We’re working on a series of articles about local road names and the history behind the names. We know there are plenty of untold stories out there, and that’s where you come in. If you know the origin story of the streets or roads in your area, please share at magazine@newnan.com and we may include your neighborhood streets in an upcoming article.