Hailey Hudson
In between Blairsville and Young Harris, Georgia, is a hidden treasure that you wouldn’t expect to find on the side of the road along Georgia 515: Sleepy Hollow Enterprises, a whimsical fairy garden straight from the imagination of Art Millican Jr.
Millican’s career has been quite a ride.
Hailey Hudson
“I started at Disney in 1974 and fresh out of high school,” he says. Millican wanted to work as an artist, but Disney wouldn’t hire “a kid as an artist off the street,” so he settled for selling popcorn. Before long, Millican had done some sleuthing and figured out exactly where the artists were located. He spent every free moment “bugging” them until, finally, the artists took him in. “Welding, woodworking, sculpting, painting, fiberglass, fabric sewing—you name it, we learned it,” Millican says. At Disney, Millican was given the opportunity to learn from creative purists. “I learned from artists from all over the world that taught the old school ways. No CNC’s [automated tools used to carve materials] or 3D printers, but real craftsmen.”
After Disney, Millican took what he’d learned from those craftsmen and went to work for the company that owned the theme restaurants Planet Hollywood and Hard Rock Cafes, designing new venues. Next, he worked for Michael Jackson.
“I helped him design and build his dream of Neverland,” Millican says. The late singer’s Peter Pan-inspired Santa Barbara ranch is a sprawling property full of lavish buildings and an amusement park; today, the ranch is owned by an investment firm and has been redesigned and rebranded as Sycamore Valley Ranch.
Now, Millican has settled his creative talents firmly in the Blue Ridge Mountains, where he’s designed and built another dream—this time, one of his own.
Hailey Hudson
Perched on the side of a hill in Union County, Georgia, Sleepy Hollow Enterprises is a place where Millican strives every day to keep magic alive. Inside the small gift shop, an array of art supplies is for sale to help mountain residents and visitors alike create magic of their own. Outside, a meandering boardwalk leads the way to the fairy village, where whimsically crooked houses line the mulch path. A bright yellow sign at the top of the boardwalk reads “Fairy Folk Ln,” pointing you towards the enchanted neighborhood. Some houses sit six feet tall, while others are birdhouse-size. Figurines of fairies, gnomes, and toadstools peek around every corner. The fairy garden at Sleepy Hollow appeals to the fanciful side of children and adults alike, and you can purchase fairy houses—each one individually handcrafted by Millican—to take home with you.
Hailey Hudson
For Millican, Blairsville was quite a culture change. A town in Union County, Georgia with a population of just over 600, Blairsville sits in stark contrast to Orlando, a bustling metropolis full of 2 million people and huge commercial attractions—including Millican’s former employer, Disney. But when Millican first came to the mountains to go white water rafting on the Oconee River, he immediately appreciated the change of pace. After getting hit with three hurricanes in Florida, he made the decision to resettle and move to Blairsville.
“I fell in love with the beauty of the mountains, clean air, nice people, and comfortable weather,” he says. “This is a great place to live a more relaxing life.”
In many ways, Millican’s previous jobs prepared him for his current venture at Sleepy Hollow Enterprises. “Disney taught me to build whatever I wanted. If you can dream it, you can build it,” Millican explains. “I wanted to create a place to help others create their own dreams, so I built Sleepy Hollow.”
Disney, Planet Hollywood, and Michael Jackson all helped give Millican the tools he needed to create his dream. Blairsville was a magical place before Millican came along. But now, it’s even more so—and because of Millican’s impact in the community, the magic will linger on.