Recently in Illinois Category
Moooo...
or should I say
MOOOO!
I drove through Rockford, Illinois, yesterday and tracked down this big bovine.
The giant cow looks over the children's farm at Lockwood Park. "Gertrude" the cow is fawn/brown with white spots and measures about 21 feet long and 19 feet high.
Site: "Gertrude" the cow
Location: Lockwood Park Trailside Equestrian Centre and Children's Farm, 5201 Safford Rd., Rockford IL 61101
Cost: Free to see.
Hours: The park is open dawn until dusk, year-round.
Date: June 7, 2008
It is a sad day in Silly America. On Friday night, with no warning, the Berwyn Spindle, the car kabob, cars on a spike, was torn down.
All that is left right now is a stump and soon that will be cleared away too to make room for a Walgreens.
From what I've seen and heard the top two cars may have been saved before the rest was ruthlessly chopped down. We'll see if anything ever comes of those.
For now, Silly Americans, we'll bid adieu to our tower of cars. It will be sadly missed.
I've talked about it before...but it's looking more and more official every day.
The Spindle aka cars on a stick aka car kabob will soon be torn down.
Created in 1989 by Dustin Shuler, the Spindle has graced Cermak Plaza in Berwyn, IL for almost as long as I've been alive. The sculpture towers above the parked cars in the lot, showcasing vehicles from the late 60s to early 80s impaled on a 50-foot spike. To me, it's best known as being my first real glimpse of roadside oddities, to others it is probably best known for its cameo in the Wayne's World film.
Unfortunately, the years (and birds) haven't been kind to the sculpture, which has been plagues with rust (and feces) for years. Now, the Spindle has a problem that no mechanic can fix: Walgreens.
Yes, my silly American friends, Berwyn now plans to tear down the iconic kabob to put up a brand new Walgreens. Plans have been in place for a while now, and despite efforts of multiple organizations to save it (it's been estimated that it will take $300,000 to move it), it looks like the Spindles fate is futile.
Alas, in what seems like a last-ditch effort, the Spindle is up on eBay. While I'd hate to see it go from my backyard of Berwyn, it would be nice to think that the cars have found a proper home amongst the roadside attractions of America. So...if you have an extra $150,000 to spare... , bid on!
Site: The Spindle
Location: Cermak Plaza, Cermak and Harlem, Berwyn, IL
Admission: Free to see...$150,000+ to purchase
Date: August 12, 2007
This water tower is happy to live in Atlanta, IL.
Site: Smiley Face Water Tower
Location: Atlanta, Illinois
Cost: Free to see.
Hours: Always visible.
Date: July 15, 2007
Cock-a-doodle-doo.
A Giant Rooster outside of Carl's Bakery in East Peoria, Illinois.
Site: Giant Rooster
Location: Carl's Bakery and Restaurant, 819 E Camp St, East Peoria, IL 61611
Cost: Free to see.
Hours: Always visible.
Date: July 15, 2007
I have a confession to make.
I have licked a public watermelon.
Yes, it's true. I went to take a picture with the watermelon, stuck out my tongue to "pretend" to be eating it, and accidentally licked it. It tasted metallic. Lesson learned: I would highly recommend against licking any of the silly sites I describe here.
Unless, I suppose, it's something like the world's largest lollipop.
***
I am leaving this month of Abraham Lincoln monuments with one of the most bizarre memorials I have ever come across: the Lincoln Watermelon Monument.
Yes, my silly American friends, it is a pink and green slice of watermelon dedicated to our sixteenth president and the christening of Lincoln, Illinois. That's it.
As the story goes, on August 27, 1853 the first sale of lots in the new town of Lincoln took place near where the watermelon monument now stands. Abraham Lincoln, in whose honor the town had been named, was present and was asked to officially christen the town. He chose a watermelon from a nearby pile, cut into it with his pocketknife, and then bumped it on a pile of lumber. He squeezed the juice into a tin cup, gave a brief speech, and christened the town.
In celebration of that fateful day, the town constructed this monument in the shape of a slice of watermelon. Definitely one of the weirdest sites I've seen and it certainly would be the highlight of any road trip through Illinois. Just remember, as yummy as it looks, try not to lick it.
Your Silly American Adventurer after accidentally licking the watermelon.
Site: Lincoln Watermelon Monument
Location: Broadway and Chicago, Lincoln, IL
Cost: Free to see.
Hours: Always visible.
Date: July 15, 2007
Happy President's Day Silly Americans!
In honor of President's Day I bring you one of the more somber of our sites: Abraham Lincoln's Tomb.
Now, I know you may be thinking, "what's so silly about a tomb?" Well...in front of the beautifully designed granite tomb is a bronze statue of Lincoln's head, a reproduction of Gutzon Borglum's marble bust located in Washington, D.C.
And now, you might ask, "what's so silly about a statue of Lincoln's head?" Well...the statue itself isn't "silly" per se, but the ritual it inspires may be. The bust of Lincoln sports a nose that's just dying to be rubbed for luck, and thousands of visitors each year do. I most certainly did, and you can tell from the faded bronze schnoz that I'm not alone.
I'm sure Lincoln isn't rolling in that grave at the fact that so many people touch his lucky nose...but, if you try to pick it, that may be another story.
Site: Abraham Lincoln's Lucky Nose
Location: Lincoln Tomb, Oak Ridge Cemetery, 1500 Monument Avenue, Springfield, IL 62702
Cost: Free to see.
Hours: Open 7 days a week: March–October/9am–5pm; June–August/Tuesdays 7pm–8pm; November–February/9am–4pm (Closed New Year's Day and day after; Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday; President's Day; General Election Day; Veterans' Day; Thanksgiving Day; Christmas Day and day after.)
Date: July 15, 2007
Happy Birthday Abe!
Now I bring you Abraham Lincoln if he had been a hippie. OK, not really, but I at least think he looks kind of like a hippie here...
This is "The Railsplitter," a 30-foot tall ax-wielding fiberglass statue of a young Abraham Lincoln stands tall at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. It was created in 1968 by Springfield's own Carl W. Rinnus, for Illinois's sesquicentennial.
Site: "The Railsplitter" - statue of Abraham Lincoln
Location: Illinois State Fairgrounds, 801 Sangamon Avenue, Springfield, Illinois 62794
Cost: Free to see.
Hours: Open when the grounds are open.
Date: July 15, 2007
A 350-pound, 12-foot tall statue of Abraham Lincoln reads a law book while sitting upon a large-covered wagon in the only town in the United States named for and by Abraham Lincoln before he became president: Lincoln, Illinois.
The Railsplitter Covered Wagon that he sits on is the The World's Largest Covered Wagon. The 40-foot long, 12-foot wide, 24-foot tall wagon Weighs five tons, the wagon is officially recognized as being the largest by the Guinness Book of World Records.
Site: Abraham Lincoln on the World's Largest Covered Wagon
Location: J & S Auto Centre/Penache Boutique (1006 Woodlawn Road) on the corner of Woodlawn and Route 66, Lincoln, IL
Cost: Free to see.
Hours: Visible at all hours.
Date: July 15, 2007
Happy February Silly Americans! As you all know, the month of February gives us all an opportunity to take a moment to honor a certain someone special in the form of a holiday. Yes, I am of course talking about President's Day. Each year the third Monday in February is set aside for you to pay tribute to whichever president stands closest to your heart.
This February I have decided to pay homage to our sixteenth president: Abraham Lincoln. Being from the "Land of Lincoln" myself there is no doubt that it's not hard to come across a statue or memorial dedicated to Mr. Lincoln, and this month I will be sharing five of the silliest Lincoln sites Illinois has to offer.
First up: The World's Tallest Abraham Lincoln Statue.
We all remember Abraham Lincoln as being tall, but not this tall. The World's Largest Lincoln proudly stands in Charleston/Ashmore, Illinois, at a height of about 72 feet, towering over surrounding trees and allowing the top of his head to be just visible to keen out lookers on the road.
Your Silly American Adventurer under the statue, so you can see just how tall it is!
The statue was built in 1969 on a campground near the Charleston Speedway. While the campground closed in the mid-nineties, Lincoln proudly stood put. Unfortunately our dear president was plagued by years of wear, flaking paint, blown-off appendages, and bullet holes that led many to dub him "The World's Tallest and Ugliest Lincoln Statue."
Luckily for him (and for presidents everywhere), a change of fate came in 2007 with the erection of Lincoln Springs Resort, a 130-acre family resort destination containing campgrounds, mini golf, dining, and much, much more. The tall Lincoln now stands near the resort entrance: and that meant that it was time for a facelift.
Now the World's Tallest Lincoln statue proudly boasts a newly painted physique (and has all of his fingers in place). And, as the centerpiece to the resort's "Abe's Garden," our dear president is no longer alone. He is now surrounded by a collection of mini-Abes. These wood-carved statues surround the path and show Lincoln at various stages of his life and career.
In light of all the disappearing roadside attractions that people deem "eyesores" and owners don't bother to maintain, it would have been pretty easy for this giant Lincoln to be dismantled and removed from the American landscape for good. Instead, almost 40 years after it was first put in place, the developers of Lincoln Springs Resort decided to embrace its oddity, fix it up, and keep its legacy alive.
Abraham Lincoln once said that "common looking people are the best in the world: that is the reason the Lord makes so many of them," and while this statue is in no way common, I'm sure he would be proud that his 72-foot likeness has been saved.
Site: The World's Tallest Abraham Lincoln Statue
Location: Lincoln Springs Resort, 9699 N County Road 2000 E, Ashmore, Illinois 61912
Cost: Free to see
Date: July 14, 2007
