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West Virginia Statues

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Fireman
Charles Town, WV
 John Henry
Talcott, WV
This Fireman statue is installed in front of AutoServ, a car repair shop. It has been there since at least the 1950s when there was a fire station on the property. [map]

This statue of John Henry was installed in 1972 at the entrance to the Big Bend Tunnel. According to the legend, John Henry competed in a race with the steam drill during the construction of the tunnel. Henry died during the race. The bronze statue is eight feet tall. It was not on its pedestal in 2021. I assume that it is being repaired. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2. [map]

Coal Miner
Shinnston, WV
This Coal Miner statue was installed in front of Repair King in 1999. It is 21 feet tall and made of scrap metal. The statue was commissioned by Phil Southern. The statue was named "Charlie" as a tribute to his father who was killed in a coal mine explosion in 1951. The statue's helmet has a functioning light.

Mothman
Point Pleasant, WV
This Mothman statue was created by Robert Roach and installed here in 2003. It is 12 feet tall and made of stainless-steel. According to the local legend, this monster terrorized Point Pleasant back in 1966. For more, see this website. [map]

private collection
Unger, WV
This private collection contains many fiberglass statues from International Fiberglass and other companies. George and Pam Farnham started their collection with the Midas Muffler King with the gold crown. That statue came from Whittier, CA where it was originally installed at a Midas Muffler shop.

In 2005, the Farnhams bought the 25-foot-tall Beach Guy from Cincinnati, OH. That statue was originally located at an amusement park in NY where he held a Pepsi.

Soon after that, the Farnhams bought a Big John, the statue holding groceries, from Benton, IL.

The Paul Bunyan statue with the green checked shirt came from Florida around 2007.

In 2008, the Farnhams bought a Miss Uniroyal from Byram, MS. She was displayed at a fireworks stand at one time there. Before that, the statue was located in Vicksburg, MS. Now in Unger, her blue mini skirt and yellow top add-on outfit lays in the grass.

Around 2008, a Mister Fifteen Hamburgers statue was added to the collection. That statue is about 10 feet tall and came from Indiana.

The Ranger Smith and Cindy Bear statues came from a Jellystone Park in Michigan. The Boo-Boo Bear was added later.

The first Santa shown above was previously located in Maine. The Santa in the bottom row came from Dallas, TX. The photos of him are from 2007. The statue was not there when the rest of these photos were taken in 2012.

For more about this collection, see these websites: 1 and 2. [map]

More West Virginia:
Abraham Lincoln (Charleston)
Coal Miner (Fairmont)
Paul Bunyan (Nitro)
Pioneers (Point Pleasant)

Statues Main Page