I'm a sucker for a good, cheesy roadside attraction. I'll pull over to see a house made from wine bottles, or a “ghost town” and even, “The Giant Monster Found in the Desert!” (It was a dinosaur skeleton.) But my favorite roadside attractions are “The World's Largest...” I don't care if it's a ball of twine, a wad of bubble gum or a dog turd, if it's the “World's Largest”, I want to see it. And I want to buy a T-shirt if they have them!
I recently learned of a little town about 150 miles south of here that has, not one, but about a half dozen “World's Largest” items on display, so, that naturally means a large road trip for Moonbaby and I!
After about a four hour drive (we never take Interstate highways—always two lanes), we made it to Casey Illinois. "Big Things in a Small Town."
The first thing we see as we enter the downtown area is “The World's Largest Yardstick”. Okay, this has me all confused right off the bat. If it's more than 36 inches long, it can't be a yardstick, right?
The next thing that catches our eye is “The World's Largest Windchime”. This thing sounded like the Bells of St Mary's. I wonder what it sounds like during a big storm?
Across the street from that is “The World's Largest Rocking Chair”. Yep, it's as big as it looks.
Up a couple of blocks is “The World's Largest Pencil.”
Along with “The World's Largest Birdcage.”
Nearby is “The World's Largest Mailbox”. You can even climb up inside this one. But it was hot and I'm lazy.
You can even tour their workshop and see some coming attractions!
It appears that they're working on “The World's Largest Gavel”.
Also in the shop were this giant baseball bat and a really well done rocking horse.
The village provides this free trolley to carry visitors around in to all the displays.
There were a couple other big things that we couldn't find. “The World's Largest Wooden Shoes” must have been well hidden. We drove all over that little town and never saw a trace. How could we miss something like that? “The World's Largest Golf Tee” was out at their country club, but I didn't feel like looking for that too. Besides, I was getting mighty thirsty!
Just as we were headed out of town, I spied this place. Unfortunately, It wasn't open, but it sure looked like a cool place. It had obviously been closed for a while, but there was no “For Sale” sign on it. I think that would be the perfect shop for me to spend retirement in. It seems to be calling me. I wouldn't change a thing. If I bought that and moved down here, Casey would then be able to boast “The World's Biggest Fool”.
Happy trails, everybody!
Related Posts: Still Trippin’ After 42 Years, Germantown Memories and A Guy Walks Into A Bar...Five Days In A Row!