You Can See the Lights From Halley Hill

We called it Halley Hill. That is the huge hill on Highway 96 between Reynolds GA and Fort Valley GA just before you get to the railroad tracks. Actually I take that back. It used to be there. Halley Hill has given way to progress. That road that I have driven seemingly at least a million times is now a stretch of the four -lane Fall Line Freeway. In other words, Halley Hill is no more. At least it is no more a part of Highway 96.

Halley Hill was important to me growing up because you could see the lights of Reynolds from the top of it. When I was a little kid returning from vacation with the rest of my family in our station wagon, my brother and I would get really excited when we could see Reynolds about ten minutes before we actually got there. We knew we were almost home when we were on top of Halley Hill.

In case you want to know, the famous Halley Hill was named after a Reynolds entrepreneur named Lester Halley. Lester and Mary Halley eloped when Mary was only 16 years of age. They were supposed to be delivering a load of cucumbers but they kept going to Alabama and returned a week later as a married couple with a load of rotten cucumbers. Most people would say a relationship like that would never work. In this case most people would be wrong.

Lester and Mary, schoolteachers by trade, gave up teaching and moved to Reynolds from Mauk GA to start a new life in the early 1930’s. Lester ended up starting N.L. Halley Company which was an appliance store and a dress shop. Lester sold the appliances. Mary sold the dresses. Lester also sold automobiles on the side and also became a farmer. As most people always did that wanted to get ahead in a small town like Reynolds, Lester did several things to provide for his family. Lester saved the money he made throughout the years and continually invested that money in land, including the land on the big hill. When he died suddenly of a heart attack in 1974, his wife did not have to worry about how she would pay her bills. He left her in very good shape.

Lester and Mary not only invested in land but more importantly they invested their lives in their two daughters. Mary, who has been an invalid for the past six years, has been enjoying the incredible dividends of that investment.


Amelia (shown here) was a social worker at the Methodist Home for Children and Youth for 30 years. She quit her job when her mom got sick so she could move back to Reynolds to take care of her. For the past six years, Amelia has looked after her mom seven days a week – 24 hours a day. She never leaves her mother’s side. She has used hired help to come in and work shifts, but Amelia works every shift. Her entire life is now devoted to making sure her mom is comfortable and attempting to meet her every need. Amelia’s sister, Leslie, retired from her job last summer and spends most of her time now in Reynolds with her mom and sister.

Since this family is lifelong friends of mine (and my family) I stopped by to visit them on Saturday afternoon. I really don’t know how they do it.

Lester Halley had a famous hill named after him. But more importantly he had two daughters named after him. And he would be extremely proud of the way they are still looking after that little girl he married almost 80 years ago.

The lights are always on at the Halley house these days. And I have a feeling you can still see those lights clearly from the top of Halley Hill.

Maybe Lester can too.