Strange Tourist Attractions

This enormous tire was used as a Ferris wheel at the 1964-1965 World's Fair before being moved back to Allen Park, Mich. See more gigantic, one-of-a-kind or just plain unusual tourist attractions in this gallery. Next up is the world's largest chair.

What better advertisement for a furniture store than a giant chair? The 33-foot (10 meter) sculpture sits in Anniston, Ala. On the other side of the country, a town in California is home to the world's largest artichoke.

This steel artichoke measures 20 feet (6 meters) tall. It's the centerpiece for an annual Festival in Castroville, Calif., the so-called "Artichoke Center of the World." Artichokes are pretty healthy, but the next attraction serves up dubious health benefits.

The Integratron was the brainchild of George van Tassel. He built it on a "magnetic vortex" in 1978 near Joshua Tree National Park. Visitors could stop by and rejuvenate with a "sound bath" in a sonic chamber inside. On the next few pages we'll take a look at some oversized statues.

Babe the Blue Ox is honored with a 10-foot (3-meter) statue in Bemidji, Minn. Nearby stands the famous lumberjack Paul Bunyan...

Paul Bunyan statues can be found from coast to coast. This one, along with Babe on the previous page, was built in 1936 and is now listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

Paul Bunyan's Girlfriend statue resides about 50 miles southeast of Bemidji, Minnesota, in a resort town called Hackensack.

The W'eel Turtle Sculpture was made out of 2,000 tire rims by Dale's Thrifty Barn, a gas station, cafe and motel in Dunseith, N.D. There's something about the Midwest that lends itself to giant sculpture: See some statues on North Dakota's Enchanted Highway on the following pages.

This man is part of the Tin Family, one of many sculptures on the Enchanted Highway. He comes in at 45 feet (13.7 meters) tall. See his 23-foot (7-meter) son on the following page.

The Tin Family was made by artist Gary Greff, a native of Regent, N.D. See another one of his sculptures along on the Enchanted Highway.

This Superman statue was erected by Metropolis, Illinois, to capitalize on the superhero's popularity.

The Pheasants on the Prairie are giant birds made of metal. The largest, the hen pheasant, is 60 feet (18.3 meters) long. Next is a famous troll that lives under a bridge.

The Fremont Troll Statue lurking in Seattle, Wash., brings to mind a creature out of a folk tale. It was built in 1990 as part of an urban rehabilitation program.

The Arrow Statues plunging into the Colorado Plateau are all that remain of advertising for the Twin Arrows Trading Post in Arizona. Next is a giant elephant -- a giant elephant that you can sleep in.

Originally built as a real estate promotion, Lucy the Elephant has since been a summer home, bar and hotel. Staircases in her legs lead to the rooms inside.

Prabhupada's Palace of Gold is found in New Vrindaban, W.V. The former temple was built by followers of Srila Prabhupada, who was known for his work in the Hare Krishna movement.

The towers that make up the Georgia Guidestones were influenced by Britain's Stonehenge. Inscribed in the monument are ten guidelines for humanity, written in eight different languages. For a less solemn attraction, check out Bob's Big Boy.

The Bob's Big Boy in Burbank, California, is the oldest operating restaurant of the chain in the country. It was started in 1936, and the franchises continue to operate across the country.

The Hood Milk Bottle on the Boston Wharf is large enough to hold about 50,000 gallons of milk. Currently it operates as an ice cream stand near the Boston Children's Museum.

Standing since 1979, the 55-foot-tall Jolly Green Giant statue remains the towering symbol of the Green Giant food company, located in Blue Earth, Minnesota.