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.
Rudolph, WI
Hand-built stone shrines, winding paths and religious tableaux spread through several acres beside St. Philip Church. Local rock, shells and decorative masonry turn the grounds into one of Wisconsin's major Catholic folk-art environments.
Milwaukee, WI
This spy-themed restaurant hides behind a deliberately secretive entrance and fills its interior with espionage props, passages, gadgets and Cold War-style jokes. Guests without the password may have to prove themselves before entering, making dinner part attraction and part interactive gag.
Racine, WI
Frank Lloyd Wright's SC Johnson complex uses mushroom-like dendriform columns, curving brick walls and a glass-tube Research Tower that looks unlike a conventional factory headquarters. Interior access is through scheduled company tours.
Washington Island, WI
Instead of sand, this Lake Michigan beach is covered with smooth white limestone cobbles polished by waves. Removing the distinctive stones is prohibited, so the unusual shoreline should be enjoyed in place.
Stevens Point, WI
Large contemporary sculptures are scattered along wooded walking trails, so pieces appear unexpectedly between trees rather than inside a gallery. The free outdoor park blends a nature walk with an evolving public-art collection.
Onalaska, WI
A huge bluegill/sunfish statue overlooks Lake Onalaska from a public park. The oversized fish celebrates the area's angling culture and makes an easy stop along the Mississippi River corridor.
Spring Green, WI
Frank Lloyd Wright's home, studio and architectural laboratory evolved over decades on a Wisconsin hillside. Fires, rebuilding and Wright's unconventional personal history make the estate as complicated as its celebrated architecture.
Genesee Depot, WI
Broadway stars Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne turned this estate into a theatrical retreat filled with highly personal rooms, art and stage-world connections. The preserved property feels more like stepping into an eccentric private set than touring a conventional historic house.
Spring Green, WI
Alex Jordan Jr.'s sprawling complex combines impossible-looking architecture with rooms packed with automated music machines, model ships, armor, giant creatures, circus displays and the enormous indoor carousel. Few American attractions match its scale of deliberate sensory overload.
Black Creek, WI
A giant carved figure combines Wisconsin's cheesehead identity with exaggerated tiki-style roadside art. It is a deliberately goofy photo stop that works best as a short roadside detour.
Washington Island, WI
This modern wooden church was inspired by medieval Norwegian stave churches, with steep rooflines, carved details and an interior shaped by Scandinavian religious architecture. It reflects Washington Island's strong Scandinavian heritage.
Cataract, WI
Paul and Matilda Wegner covered concrete forms with glass, ceramics and found materials to build a miniature chapel, fanciful structures and sculptural monuments. The preserved environment looks like a mosaic dream hidden among rural fields.
Phillips, WI
Fred Smith spent years covering concrete figures with glass, mirrors, stones and found objects, creating a roadside environment populated by lumberjacks, animals, historical figures and scenes from local life. The preserved sculpture park is one of Wisconsin's major vernacular-art environments.
Wisconsin Dells, WI
A narrow slot-like sandstone gorge winds through mossy walls, boardwalks and unusual erosion forms. The property is generally experienced through Upper Dells boat tours rather than as a free independent hiking destination.
Birnamwood, WI
A huge badger statue towers beside the highway in Birnamwood, turning Wisconsin's state nickname into a literal roadside giant. The fiberglass figure is a simple but highly visible photo stop.
Hurley, WI
An enormous corkscrew sculpture rises outside a Hurley business along U.S. 2. Its exaggerated spiral silhouette makes a strange punctuation mark along a Northwoods highway better known for mines, forests and snow.
Platteville, WI
A huge white letter M built from limestone sits on a hillside overlooking Platteville. University of Wisconsin-Platteville students created the monument to represent the region's mining heritage, and trails allow visitors to approach the giant letter.
Woodruff, WI
Woodruff’s giant concrete penny commemorates the 1953 “Million Penny Parade,” when local schoolchildren and supporters collected more than a million cents to help fund a hospital. The monument was dedicated May 29, 1954 and remains beside the road as a permanent tribute to the campaign.
Plover, WI
Plover installed its nearly 39-foot, roughly three-ton potato masher on May 19, 2023 outside the Food + Farm Exploration Center. The giant utensil was designed specifically as a selfie landmark celebrating central Wisconsin agriculture, and travelers can photograph the exterior sculpture even if they are not touring the center.
Marshfield, WI
Marshfield’s enormous round barn was built in 1916 to house purebred livestock and measures about 150 feet across and 70 feet high. It still serves its original agricultural purpose during the Central Wisconsin State Fair, while interior tours outside events require advance arrangement with the fair office.
La Crosse, WI
La Crosse’s “six-pack” is actually six 54-foot beer storage tanks built by G. Heileman Brewing Company in 1969 and painted as giant Old Style cans in 1970. The working brewery tanks have changed branding several times and returned to Old Style imagery in 2023; travelers view them from the surrounding public streets rather than touring the industrial tanks themselves.
Laona, WI
An enormous metal kettle beside U.S. 8 is a relic of Laona's lumber-camp identity and has long been promoted as the world's largest soup kettle. Its exaggerated scale makes it an easy old-school roadside photo stop.
Kewaunee, WI
A four-faced clock tower built to resemble an enormous grandfather clock stands near the Kewaunee harbor. The whimsical structure functions as public art, a timepiece and one of the city's signature landmarks.
