''Paul Bunyan'' and ''Babe the Blue Ox'' are the names of a pair of large statues of the American folk hero

Paul Bunyan Paul Bunyan is a giant lumberjack and folk hero in American and Canadian folklore. His exploits revolve around the tall tales of his superhuman labors, and he is customarily accompanied by Babe the Blue Ox. The character originated in the or ...

and his ox, located in

Bemidji, Minnesota Bemidji ( ) is a city and the county seat of Beltrami County, in northern Minnesota, United States. The population was 14,574 at the 2020 census. According to 2021 census estimates, the city is estimated to have a population of 15,279, making it ...

. This roadside attraction has been listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

since 1988. Built in 1937 to attract attention of passing motorists, these are similar to such structures as the

Benewah Milk Bottle The Benewah Milk Bottle is a landmark in Spokane, Washington. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, there are two constructed milk bottle-shaped buildings in the Spokane area, which accompanied a successful dairy operation's stores. ...

, the

Teapot Dome Service Station The Teapot Dome Service Station is a former Filling station, gas station built in the shape of a teapot located in Zillah, Washington, Zillah, Washington (state), Washington, United States, that is listed on the National Register of Historic Place ...

, or the comparably colossal Dinosaur Park sculptures in South Dakota. These were all built in a period of time when automobile travel became increasingly affordable and popular.Determining the Facts Reading 3: The Roadside Colossus
Roadside Attractions, National Park Service. This pair of statues are said by the Kodak Company to be the "second most photographed statues in the United States", behind

Mount Rushmore Mount Rushmore National Memorial is a national memorial centered on a colossal sculpture carved into the granite face of Mount Rushmore (Lakota: ''Tȟuŋkášila Šákpe'', or Six Grandfathers) in the Black Hills near Keystone, South Dakota ...

in South Dakota.

History

The city of Bemidji is located in a vast woodland and lake region. As early as the 1890s, the town enjoyed a modest tourist trade. When rail connections were constructed to Bemidji in 1898, promoters began the development of lakeshore sites for cottages, hotels, and resorts. Most of these resorts catered to hunters and anglers. In the 1920s the rise in

automobile A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with Wheel, wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, pe ...

popularity and affordability contributed to a significant boom in Bemidji's tourist industry, but it suffered during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. Enter

and Babe the Blue Ox. As a means of stimulating tourism in Bemidji, a number of local, civic organizations sponsored a winter carnival meant to promote the city's resources for

winter sports Winter sports or winter activities are competitive sports or non-competitive recreational activities which are played on snow or ice. Most are variations of skiing, ice skating and sledding. Traditionally, such games were only played in cold area ...

. Due to Bemidji's once prominent status as a

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks or skeleton cars. Logging is the beginning of a supply chain ...

and lumbering center, the celebrations focused on Paul Bunyan, the larger-than life

lumberjack Lumberjacks are mostly North American workers in the logging industry who perform the initial harvesting and transport of trees for ultimate processing into forest products. The term usually refers to loggers in the era (before 1945 in the Unite ...

who is an American

folk hero A folk hero or national hero is a type of hero – real, fictional or mythological – with their name, personality and deeds embedded in the popular consciousness of a people, mentioned frequently in folk songs, folk tales and other folklore; an ...

. On January 14, 1937 the carnival opened with Earl L. Grinols, Sr., elected as the carnival king. Two giant statues were unveiled at the event: one of Bunyan and the other of his giant blue ox, Babe; the pair were to serve as carnival mascots. Babe was brought into town on a Grinols Implement & Fuel Co. truck arranged so that its exhaust exited through Babe's nostrils. The statues were designed by Lennord L. Pitney of Park Rapids, Minnesota. They were built by Carl Aldal (1897-1966), a local cement man. In March 2006, the

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...

of Bemidji raised $53,000; along with a $68,000 federal grant, the club undertook to repair some damage to the statues. The money was also allocated for use in maintenance, with the majority slated for stabilizing the ground beneath the statues, to lessen shifting in freezing temperatures. The work included repairing a crack in Babe from the neck to the hindquarters; this had continued to widen despite yearly fixes by the city with caulk and blue paint.Babe the Blue Ox gets fed highway funding
UPI, March 14, 2006. retrieved Dec. 2010 In October of 2013, local organizers ran the first

Bemidji Blue Ox Marathon The Bemidji Blue Ox Marathon is a race in Bemidji, Minnesota, first run in 2013. The race runs around a lake, along a state trail and through a state park. It takes place in October, when many of the forest surroundings are bright with color. Th ...

and planned the course to run past the statues.

Dimensions

''Paul Bunyan'' is approximately tall and measures across at his base. From toe to heel, ''Paul Bunyan'' measures . ''Babe the Blue Ox'' is about tall and across at the front hooves. From nose to tail, Babe measures about .

In popular culture

* The statues were featured in the 1996 film '' Fargo''. * The statues are featured in the first season of the FX series '' Fargo''. While mainly shown throughout the season on Bemidji's fictional welcome sign, in the episode " A Fox, a Rabbit, and a Cabbage" the statues are depicted as smaller, life-size statues standing upon tall pedestals near railroad tracks and not Lake Bemidji. * The statues are featured in the 2014 film ''

Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter ''Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter'' is a 2014 American drama film co-written and directed by David Zellner. The film stars Rinko Kikuchi, Nobuyuki Katsube, Shirley Venard, David Zellner, Nathan Zellner, and Kanako Higashi. Alexander Payne and Kikuchi ...

''. * The 8th track from the album ''Danza IIII: The Alpha - The Omega'' of American

mathcore Mathcore is a subgenre of hardcore punk and metalcore influenced by post-hardcore, extreme metal and math rock that developed during the 1990s. Bands in the genre emphasize complex and fluctuant rhythms through the use of irregular time signatur ...

band

The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza was an American mathcore band from Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The band was founded (sans a vocalist) in Monroe, Louisiana by members Layne Meylain, Mason Crooks, Brad Thompson, and Mike Butler. They relocated ...

is titled "Paul Bunyan and The Blue Ox". * The statues are featured on a postcard during the opening sequence of the film ''

National Lampoon's Vacation ''National Lampoon's Vacation'', sometimes referred to as simply ''Vacation'', is a 1983 American road trip comedy film directed by Harold Ramis starring Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Imogene Coca, Randy Quaid, John Candy, and Christie Brinkle ...

''.

References

External links

Image Gallery
Statues from all sides.
"Construction complete: Bemidji's Paul and Babe statues reopened for visitors"
''

MPR News Minnesota Public Radio (MPR), is a public radio network for the state of Minnesota. With its three services, News & Information, YourClassical MPR and The Current, MPR operates a 46-station regional radio network in the upper Midwest. MPR ha ...

'', September 21, 2022. {{Paul Bunyan 1937 sculptures Bemidji, Minnesota Buildings and structures in Beltrami County, Minnesota Cattle in art Colossal statues in the United States Novelty buildings in Minnesota Outdoor sculptures in Minnesota Roadside attractions in Minnesota Tourist attractions in Beltrami County, Minnesota Paul Bunyan National Register of Historic Places in Beltrami County, Minnesota 1937 establishments in Minnesota Statues of fictional characters