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This Paul Bunyan statue is about 13 feet tall not including the base on which he is installed. The statue was originally papier-mache. It was built for a J.L. Hudson department store float which was used at a Thanksgiving Day parade in Detroit. After the parade in 1971, the statue was purchased for $50 and brought to Oscoda. In 1983, the statue was restored and covered with fiberglass by Sawyer Canoe. It is located in front of Furtaw Field, also known as Paul Bunyan Park. Oscoda hosts Paul Bunyan Days, a festival with a lumberjack show, chainsaw carving competition, and other events. There was an earlier Paul Bunyan statue in Oscoda at a place called Bunyan Town. In 2024, a Babe the Blue Ox statue was installed next to Paul. [map]
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Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox
Ossineke, MI |
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This Paul Bunyan statue is about 25 feet tall. It was built by Paul Domke who also created Dinosaur Gardens Prehistoric Zoo just down the road. This statue has a loudspeaker under his right shirt pocket. I assume that there was a button somewhere that you could push to hear a recorded message.
The Babe the Blue Ox statue is about 10 feet tall. She was built in 1938 by Walter Hayden. The statue was originally painted white. In 1950, she was painted blue and became Babe. The Paul Bunyan statue was built in 1953 and installed next to her. The statues were moved to their current location in 2006. In 2007, they were repainted. These photos are from 2011. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2. [map]
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Paul Bunyan
Manistique, MI |
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This Paul Bunyan statue is about 15 feet tall and stands in front of the Chamber of Commerce. He was built in the early 1970s and was obviously modeled after International Fiberglass statues. This statue was preceded by a 42 foot tall plywood sign of Paul Bunyan. Manistique built the sign in 1960 for the city's centennial. The sign was blown down around 1975 and destroyed. There is now a fundraising drive to rebuild the sign. For more, see this website. [map]
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Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox
St. Ignace, MI |
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This Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox are located behind chain link fencing at the Castle Rock lookout tourist attraction. There were different statues here in the 1950s. I don't know how long these have been here. These photos are from 2006. The statues were repainted in 2020. For more, see these websites: 1, 2, and 3. [map]
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Giant Lumberjack [gone]
West Branch, MI |
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This Giant Lumberjack sat in front of the Lumberjack Restaurant. I don't know if he was supposed to represent a generic lumberjack or Paul Bunyan. These photos are from 2006. In 2008, the statue was restored. In 2024, the statue was demolished. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2.
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Paul Bunyan
Alpena, MI |
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This Paul Bunyan sculpture is 28 feet tall. It was built in the 1960s by Betty Conn. The metal came from Kaiser automobile fenders and hoods. The sculpture was originally installed on the roof of the Paul Bunyan Gas Station in Gaylord, MI. When the gas station closed in the 1970s, the sculpture was moved to an Indian museum and the later a real estate office in Grayling. In 1988, the statue was moved here to the Alpena Community College. His red shirt and cap have faded since then. [map]
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