Category: Roadside Attractions

Expedition Team: Dave Miller
Expedition Date: September 2016

Has anyone seen this truck in the Dayton area? After an event at Riverscape Park in Dayton I saw and took photo’s of this unique vehicle. There are over 1,000 items glued onto the pickup truck such as star wars characters, barbie dolls, disney characters, bat mobile, bumper stickers, buttons, shells, an etch-a-sketch and other figures. The truck had a sign that said “gives away free books to encourage people to become Literacy Tutors”. There was a couple dozen old paperback books on the truck.

Expedition Team: Dave Miller, Rosie Miller

Expedition Date:  September 2013

When traveling how many of you stop at Roadside Attractions, Guinness Book of World Records sites or other Oddities? I am guilty.   We were traveling to Vermillion, South Dakota to watch our son Matt play college football at the University of South Dakota, Dakota Dome. I stopped for gas at Ft. Dodge, in north central Iowa and noticed an old fort museum down the road. It turned out to be an old 1860’s western fort with lots of antiques, stuffed buffalos and local history. Out back was a building all by itself with a large sign saying “We Dare You to See the Cardiff Giant”. I was hooked. We went in.

What was the Cardiff Giant? It was one of the most famous hoaxes in USA history. It was a 10 foot tall purported “petrified man” uncovered on October 16, 1869 by workers digging a well (Photo #1 & #2) behind the barn of William Newell in Cardiff, New York. Newell set up a tent over the giant and charged 25 cents per person to see it (Photo #3). Two days later he increased the price to 50 cents. People came by the wagon load. Archaeologists pronounced it a fake while some preachers called it authentic. Newell made lots of money. The giant was eventually moved to Syracuse, NY for exhibition (Photo #4). The giant drew such large crowds that showman P.T. Barnum offered $50,000 for the giant.

At Fort Dodge, the giant rests peacefully on display (Photo #5) surrounded by informational boards and copies of old newspaper articles, posters (Photo #6) and vintage photos of the giant. Looked sort of like Andre the Giant. The giant was the creation of a New York atheist named George Hull who decided to create the giant after an argument at a Methodist revival meeting about Genesis 6:4 (stating there were giants who once lived on Earth). In 1868, Hull hired men to carve the 10 foot 4 inch block of gypsum in Ft. Dodge, Iowa, shipped it to a stonecutter in Chicago who carved it. Sworn to secrecy, the sculptor added stains and acids to make the giant appear old and weathered and shipped it by rail to the farm of William Newell his cousin. The giant was buried and dug up the following year. The rest is history.

Expedition Team:  Dave Miller, Rosie Miller, Holly Miller, Shane Miller     Expedition Date:   June 2012

An very unique Roadside Attraction.  Called “FinnJet” after a Finnish turbine powered ferry, this 29 foot silver car is fitted with a freezer, microwave, two air conditioners and a sauna all fed by three batteries and three alternators.  It is powered by a Mercedes-Benz turbojet engine.  The owner told me he started collecting chrome parts and many accessories for over 15 years and then built it in 2000.  The exterior of FinnJet has parts from 40 cars, 36 mirrors, 86 lamps, a space shuttle and other planes on the roof.  He gets 20+ miles per gallon, weighs 9,500 pounds and has 3 axles.

FinnJet won first place in the Houston Car Art Parade three times, the USA’s largest car-art event.  And talk about chrome, I had to wear sun glasses to take the photos as the Florida sun reflecting off the car blinded me.  I asked, but he would not let me sit behind the steering wheel.

Expedition Team: Dave Miller, Rosie Miller, Shane Miller, Holly Miller, Matt Miller, Jacque Miller

Expedition Date:  August 4, 2009

A great roadside attraction.  P.T. Barnum once said “A sucker is born every minute”. I must have been one of those babies. For over 90 miles throughout New Mexico & Arizona I kept reading yellow billboards painted with giant letters stating “We Dare You to See The Thing”, “What is The Thing? Creature From Another World”, “The Thing – Mystery of the Desert”.

I was hooked. We had to stop and find out what The Thing was. Finally, in the middle of the desert at Exit 322 off of Interstate 10 a sign with a 30 foot arrow said “Enter Here to see The Thing”. We exited to find a large yellow building (Photo #4) containing a gift shop, gas pumps and ice cream shop. I should have known better when we were charged only $1.00 for adults and 75 cents for kids to see a possible alien from Outer Space (photo #1). I thought an extraterrestrial would have better market value.

We entered a room and the first thing I saw was one of Adolph Hitler’s staff cars with a wax museum body of Hitler in the back seat (Photo#2). The car was surrounded by wax figures of American Indians, some on horseback. I know a lot of history but I don’t think that Apache Indians fought against the Nazi’s in Europe in WWII? Well, it was too late to turn back now. I had to continue.

There were several more rooms that contained old covered wagons, a teepee ,western antiques, ancient methods of torture and a few classic cars but nothing that looked like it came from our solar system.

Following the painted monster footprints on the floor, up ahead a sign stated “Beyond this Door is The Thing!“. Finally, the moment of truth. We opened the door and went in. In a white, block, coffin-like box with a see-through plastic cover was a body. It did not look like an otherworldly creature from Mars. It was very old, dry, with wrinkled skin. It looked like a cross between Mick Jagger and Keith Richards who in real life look like 150 year old walking mummies. (Photo #3) Yep, no alien from the Milky Way. Probably was an old Indian mummy from a century or two ago resting comfortably with a Japanese garden hat laying on its lower body instead of a space helmet.

So was it worth stopping at? You betcha. It is exciting to explore unknown things. Even if they are fake.

Expedition Team: Dave Miller, Rosie Miller, Matt Miller, Jacque Miller. Holly Miller, Shane Miller

Expedition Date:  July 2005

Just west of Amarillo on Route 66 heading to New Mexico we exited and came upon two interesting sites: a rundown closed up hotel called the Bates Motel (Norman or his mother did not appear to be home) and a mile down a dusty two lane road was an empty field and the infamous Cadillac Ranch.

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE:  This roadside oddity is actually ten Cadillac automobiles buried nose down in the ground supposedly at the same angle as the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt. The cars all face west in a line from a 1949 Cadillac Club Sedan to a 1963 Cadillac Sedan de Ville. The Cadillac Ranch is a tribute to the Cadillac Tail Fin.  An Amarillo billionaire wanted a piece of public art that would baffle the locals. He hired a group of art hippies from San Francisco who invented and built the display in 1974.

FINDINGS:  The cars were very securely cemented in the ground as we all climbed on them and posed for photos. All were colorfully adorned with spray paint and graffiti. We saw a car park and two men from Virginia approached. They were scientists who had heard about the Cadillac Ranch and the cars mathematical positioning in line with the pyramid and were excited to see it.