Punkyville

Little unique towns are dotted across the country, often in rural areas. They don’t have Wal-Marts, and you won’t find a Denny’s, an ATM, or be able to fill up your gas tank. Because they are not real towns at all, but a mishmash of antiques, constructed storefronts, Americana, and imagination. They are usually the work of a man who has the right amount of restlessness, expendable energy, property, and time to build it. One such town is Punkyville, a roadside rest stop worthy of a detour in Falmouth, Kentucky, on State Route 27.

The man’s name was Charles “Punky” Beckett (1945-2021). His creation has been preserved by his family, including a nephew who is on the property when I pull into the gravelly driveway. He’s waiting for a friend to come over and help him fix his car; we chat briefly, and he invites me to look around. Punky started building his town in 2003. It includes the expected staples of any small town: general store, bank, church, post office, jail, and gas station.

The first building I walk into contains an Elvis mannequin, a mail truck, and an old electronic scoreboard. If you like antique cars, there’s several of those, and they’re mostly in fine shape. Signs inside and out of all the buildings advertise anything from “Polled Herefords,” the “Big Bold Breed” at a local farm, to Coca-Cola to Auto-Lite Automotive Cables to Mennen’s Toilet Powder. An old phone booth, bags of poultry mixer, an organ, empty bottles, and a barber chair are just some of the many artifacts on display. At the jail, there’s a cell with a cot and a desk with rifles. In the B&O caboose on the property, you can view all kinds of railroading equipment, like lights and signals.

Punky worked for a paving company and lived on the property with his wife. He told a reporter from The Spirit of the Bluegrass that he salvaged a lot of it and collected things because he liked them, not for monetary gain. And being the mayor, he always enjoyed giving tours if he was able and let visitors roam freely if not. “Most of the time I walk through with them,” he said. “But if someone comes and I gotta go somewhere, I say ‘you all just look around. I’m gone. I’ve got stuff to do.’”

While I don’t get the pleasure of meeting the mayor, it is nevertheless a privilege to walk through his town, knowing he built something not just for himself but for any visitors wanting a bit of history and distraction on a Kentucky highway.

Visited: August 5, 2021