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Check Out America’s Biggest Stuff – Part 1

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This country knows how to make huge versions of the stuff that is usually not that big. It is a great way for small cities and towns from all over the country to put their name on the map and we decided to celebrate those weird places that went out of their way to create and display the biggest versions of something in the world.

We will go from state to state and find the most alluring of the biggest stuff. Today, we will be doing the first part of our journey and you can check back in the coming weeks to find out what the rest of the country has to offer.

The state of Alabama boasted the biggest soda bottle until it was destroyed in 1937. Unsurprisingly, it was located in a place called Bottle, Alabama. You can’t make up this stuff. So, instead of that, we will direct you to the city of Dothan where you will find the largest hog in the world, also called A Monument to the Hog, 13 feet high and 26 feet long.

The biggest city in the state of Alaska, Anchorage is the proud home of the biggest chocolate waterfall and we are sure you will agree this is really something. It is a true work of art that features 3000 pounds of chocolate. Sweet!

If you wish to find the largest petrified tree in the world, you should head out to Holbrook, Arizona, a small city in Navajo County. The attraction is free and quite a sight to behold.

The story of the world’s largest King Kong in Beaver, Arkansas, is a weird one as it was originally envisioned as the world’s biggest General Douglas MacArthur. Instead, the world got a 42-foot King Kong that still stands. Unfortunately, you cannot actually see it because the park where it is located is closed. Still, we can imagine you finding a way inside.

California boasts quite a few of the world’s biggest things, but we have to go with something quintessentially American here – the largest donut in the world. It is located in Inglewood and together with its slightly smaller cousin, it can be seen from a plane when landing at LAX.

While most states have a few largest things to choose from, Colorado didn’t seem to bother. Instead, they “only” boast the largest fork in the world, located in a place called Creede. It’s really big.

Huge crosses can be found all around the world, but the tallest one, or so they say, is the one in St. Augustine, Florida. It is 208 feet high and illuminated at night, providing quite a spectacle.

In Marietta, Georgia, you will find the largest chicken in the world. Some people probably argue its validity since it is actually a piece of novelty architecture. Namely, it is a chicken-shaped KFC restaurant.

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If you are looking for the largest catsup bottle in the world, you will find it in Collinsville, Illinois. It is actually a water tower shaped like a catsup bottle and it is on the National Register of Historic Places.

If you find yourself near Mentone, Indiana, we suggest you make a detour and see the world’s largest egg. It is a concrete construction, 10 feet high and weighing more than 3,000 pounds.

When we are talking truly Americana stuff, we cannot ignore Iowa 80, the largest truck stop in the world, located in the city of WalcottIowa. It features a parking lot for 900 trucks and also the largest trucker store in the world.

In Lucas, Kansas, you will find the most meta of all the largest things in the world. Namely, that is where you will find the World’s Largest Collection of the World’s Smallest Versions of the World’s Largest Things. Yep.

In Kentucky, you will find the largest baseball bat, leaning against a building on West Main Street in Louisville. It marks the place of the Louisville Slugger Museum.

Louisiana boasts a number of super weird attractions such as Nicholas Cage’s future tomb. However, since we are all about size today, we have to feature the world’s largest Ronald Reagan statue here, located in the city of Covington.

In Michigan, the city of Yarmouth went very specific with their largest thing. Namely, they boast the world’s largest revolving and rotating globe. Is there perhaps a bigger revolving but not rotating globe somewhere else? Or a bigger rotating but not revolving one?

The great state of Maryland boasted both the biggest pencil in the world and the largest trash can. Unfortunately, they are gone. We did come across a large golden ear with a squirrel on it in La Vale, though.

For some reason, we thought Massachusetts would boast a number of large things. Sadly, this is not the case. They do feature the largest clam box in the world, which is actually a building in Ipswich.

In Allen Park, Michigan, you can find the largest model tire which was manufactured by the Uniroyal Tire Company for the 1964 World Fair in New York where it acted as a Ferris wheel. You can imagine how huge it is.

The good people of Minnesota have done their share of huge stuff, but we had to go with the largest snowman in the world, found in North St. Paul. The smiling giant is made of concrete stucco. It has been standing there since 1974.

The state of Missouri has also given this world a ton of huge roadside attractions, but the one we love the most is the world’s largest hot dog cart which you can find in Washington, Missouri. It is a recent attraction that got its creator in the Guinness World Records book.

In southern Nebraska, you will find a place called Hebron and in Hebron, you will find the world’s largest porch swing. They say there is a bigger porch swing somewhere in Canada, but that’s just crazy talk.

In case you are a pistachio aficionado (and we all are, if we’re being honest), you will want to find your way to Alamogordo, New Mexico, where you will find the largest one in the world. It is 30 feet tall and quite beautiful actually.

In Mount Tremper, New York, you can find the world’s largest kaleidoscope which is actually a grain silo that was modified into a particularly hippie attraction whose store also features the world’s smallest kaleidoscope. Neat.

We have seen quite a bit of Ten Commandments monument pop up around the country in the last 15-odd years, but this one precedes them all. It is located in Murphy, North Carolina, and it is the largest Ten Commandments in the world. It is part of a less-than-exhilarating theme park with a religious theme.

In Jamestown, North Dakota, you will find one of the most spectacular ginormous attractions in the country, the famous World’s Largest Buffalo Monument. It really is huge and the best thing is that it is done with significantly more skill than most other attractions around the country.

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Catch us in two weeks when we will continue our tour of the largest stuff in America.

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