Everything OddWay knows about. Narrow it down by what you're after, or where you're going.
Giant objects, odd monuments and things built for no clear reason.
Columbus, OH
Topiary Park recreates Georges Seurat's painting A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte using sculpted shrubs instead of paint. More than 50 human figures along with boats, animals and landscape forms fill the public park, which can be walked during normal park hours.
Zanesville, OH
Vasehenge was a circle of enormous painted ceramic vases installed as a tribute to Zanesville's pottery heritage. The installation has been removed and is no longer accessible, but the former location is worth recording as a closed OddWay stop rather than sending travelers there expecting the giant vases to remain.
Hinckley Township, OH
Hidden among sandstone ledges in Hinckley Reservation are faces, animals, religious imagery and other figures carved into the rock by Noble Stuart in the mid-twentieth century. The carvings are reached on a short wooded trail, so this is a hike rather than a roadside pull-off.
Frazeysburg, OH
Longaberger built this huge apple-filled basket at its Homestead property in 1999 as another supersized expression of the company’s basket-making identity. The commercial village later closed and the property became restricted; the basket was repainted in 2022 and is still visible, but travelers should remain on public/access roads and respect barriers and no-trespassing signs.
Dresden, OH
Dresden’s giant Longaberger Market Basket was built from hardwood maple and dedicated in 1980. Measuring 48 feet long, 11 feet wide and 23 feet high, it still stands at Fifth and Main streets as a free downtown photo stop tied to the town’s basket-making history.
Sugarcreek, OH
This giant animated clock was built in 1972 for the Alpine-Alpa restaurant near Wilmot and later donated to Sugarcreek. It was moved and restored downtown in 2012, where travelers can still watch its cuckoo bird, mechanical band and dancing figures perform on a regular schedule.
Warren, OH
Warren’s giant drumsticks were carved from two roughly 23-foot poplar logs by local artist Joel Eggert and installed as part of Dave Grohl Alley in 2013. They remain outdoors with murals and other Grohl-themed artwork celebrating the Foo Fighters frontman’s Warren birthplace.
Columbus, OH
A giant stainless-steel gavel lies beside the Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center in downtown Columbus. The oversized public sculpture is commonly promoted as the world's largest gavel and can be viewed from the public plaza without entering the court building.
Windsor, OH
The Servants of Mary Center for Peace is home to a roughly 50-foot statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe rising above the rural grounds. The religious complex welcomes visitors to its outdoor devotional areas, making the towering figure a publicly accessible roadside destination rather than something that needs to be viewed from private land.
Circleville, OH
Circleville's one-million-gallon water tower was painted in 1997 to resemble a giant orange pumpkin, reflecting the city's famous annual Pumpkin Show. The tower remains part of the working water system and is best viewed and photographed from surrounding public streets rather than approached as a walk-in attraction.
Napoleon, OH
A huge Campbell's tomato-soup-can water tower rises above the company's Napoleon-area processing plant and is commonly promoted as the world's largest representation of the familiar can. The tower is inside an active industrial property, so photograph it from a safe public roadside location and do not enter the factory grounds without permission.
Logan, OH
A giant washboard measuring roughly two stories tall is mounted on the Columbus Washboard Company building in Logan, advertising a factory that still produces traditional washboards. The exterior landmark can be seen at any time from public ground, while the factory store and any interior access follow business hours.
Zanesville, OH
Zanesville's bridge over the confluence of the Licking and Muskingum rivers splits into three directions, creating the unusual Y shape that has defined the crossing for generations. The current structure is the fifth bridge at the location and can be driven across or viewed from nearby public riverfront areas.
