Must- See Record-Breaking Attractions in Every State

ALASKA: America’s Largest Santa Claus in North Pole

The Santa Claus House has been around since 1952, and sells Christmas memorabilia year-round. Visitors can also see Santa’s reindeer, or write letters from the North Pole.

The 42-foot, 900-pound Santa Claus statue that stands outside the Santa Claus House in North Pole has been greeting visitors since the ’80s. While two more were built, their whereabouts are unknown.

ARIZONA: World’s Largest Rose Tree in Tombstone

The tree officially covers 5,000 square feet, and is so heavy that its branches must be held up with specially built trellises. Its trunk measures about 12 feet around.

The rose tree (also called a rose bush) blooms with Lady Banskia roses every spring. The Rose Tree Inn, where the tree was planted, has been converted into a private residence, but the patio and backyard remain open to the public.

ARKANSAS: The Mammoth Orange in Redfield

Probably the state’s largest orange, if not the country’s, the Mammoth Orange (aka the Mammoth Orange Cafe) is actually a functioning diner.

It’s been around since the ’60s, and was inspired by another orange-shaped food stand in Fairmead, California. The Fairmead Orange has since closed, but the Redfield Orange remains open to this day.

CALIFORNIA: World’s Tallest Thermometer in Baker

The world’s largest thermometer reaches 134 feet tall — a foot for every degree. It commemorates the highest temperature in the US (134 degrees), which occurred in the neighboring Death Valley.

The thermometer was closed for a time between 2012 and 2014 due to unpaid electric bills. The owner explained that the bill had reached $8,000 a month, and in the poor economy, it was wasn’t feasible.

Thankfully, the thermometer was reopened in July 2014, and has stayed open ever since.

COLORADO: World’s Largest Beetle in Colorado Springs

This giant beetle statue’s name is Herkimer, and he’s a West Indian Hercules Beetle. Herkimer stands proudly to direct drivers’ attention towards the May Natural History Museum.

Herkimer was built in the ’50s, briefly moved to Florida in the early ’60s, and then returned to his Colorado home where he still stands today.

The May Natural History Museum is filled with scary, strange, and giant insects (though none as big as Herkimer).

CONNECTICUT: Largest Sperm Whale Replica in West Hartford

Conny is a life-sized replica of a sperm whale, and clocks in at 60 feet in length.

Conny has been greeting visitors to the Connecticut Children’s Museum for 40 years. In the summer time, he sprays water out of his blowhole. You can also walk inside Conny to see just how big he is.

DELAWARE: World’s Largest Doctor’s Bag in Newark

This huge doctor’s bag and stethoscope are appropriately located right outside the Apex Medical Center. The bag might not seem too large compared to other record-breaking attractions, but it does measure a respectable 20 feet tall and 15 feet wide.

FLORIDA: World’s Largest Alligator in Christmas

Swampy, according to Roadside America, is 200 feet and 1 inch long, making him the largest alligator in the world.

Swampy is so large, in fact, that he contains the gift shop, ticket counter, and offices of the park he calls home: Jungle Adventures. Jungle Adventures contains multiple wildlife habitats, a Spanish Fort replica, and a “Jungle Swamp Cruise,” among many other attractions.

GEORGIA: World’s Largest Peanut in Ashburn

There are many claims as to who has the world’s largest peanut, and while Ashburn’s actual peanut may not be the world’s largest (it’s not even Georgia’s largest: 10 feet versus Plains, Georgia’s, 12-foot-tall peanut), it is certainly the highest, perched on top of a 15-foot brick column, and thus called the Official State Peanut Monument of Georgia.

Ashburn is located within Turner County, whose largest and most important agricultural product is the peanut.

After Hurricane Michael knocked down the peanut in October 2018, it has not been restored, though the stand is still present.

HAWAII: World’s Largest Hedge Maze in Wahiawa

The Pineapple Garden Maze at the Dole Plantation was named the world’s largest maze by Guinness in 2008 (though that distinction now goes to a maze in China). It consists of 14,000 plants spread out over two-and-a-half miles.

When you’ve conquered the maze, the Dole Plantation has many other activities and treats to offer, including everyone’s favorite pineapple treat, the Dole Whip.

ILLINOIS: Giant Superman Statue in Metropolis

Many people believe that Metropolis is just the fictional home city of Clark Kent, aka Superman. However, the real city of Metropolis, Illinois, was made the official hometown of Superman in 1972.

The entire town has embraced its Superman connection, and nothing proves that more than the 15-foot-tall, two-ton bronze statue of Superman that watches over the city.

INDIANA: Colgate Clock in Clarksville

The Colgate Clock in Clarksville is the second-largest timepiece in the world — second only to the other Colgate Clock located in Jersey City, New Jersey.

The clock’s face is so large that someone a mile away is able to tell the time on it — it has a diameter of 40 feet. The Colgate-Palmolive factory it stands upon has since closed, but the clock remains.

IOWA: Iowa’s Largest Frying Pan in Brandon

Legend has it that the frying pan in Brandon was supposed to become the world’s largest frying pan, but when measured, it was 3 inches shy of the current record-holder in Washington. So the people of Iowa are content with the Brandon frying pan being Iowa’s largest.

Atlas Obscura reported that the pan could cook “528 eggs or 88 pounds of bacon or 440 hamburgers” at one time, but it’s never actually been used.

KANSAS: World’s Largest Easel in Goodland

The easel itself stands 80 feet tall, but the true attraction is the giant replica of Van Gogh’s painting “Three Sunflowers in a Vase.” It’s an appropriate choice: Kansas is nicknamed the “Sunflower State,” and the city of Goodland is the center of the local sunflower industry.

However, the world’s largest easel may just be the US’ largest: The Goodland easel was actually part of a project that aimed to reproduce all seven of Van Gogh’s sunflower paintings, but there are only two others in Canada and Australia.

KENTUCKY: World’s Largest Baseball Bat in Louisville

This huge bat is located outside the Louisville Slugger Museum, a museum dedicated entirely to the baseball bats of the same name. The bat towers over the five-story building, and weighs in at 34 tons (68,000 pounds).

The original bat used by Babe Ruth was just shy of 3 feet long — the museums’ replica is roughly 40 times the size.

MAINE: World’s Largest Rotating Globe in Yarmouth

This globe, affectionately named Eartha, is housed within the software company DeLorme’s headquarters, and has been the world’s largest rotating globe since 1999.

Eartha is tilted at the same angle like the Earth’s actual axis, and is a one to one million scale replica — California measures three-and-a-half feet on Eartha.

DeLorme originally began as a mapping company, but evolved into a software company specializing in navigation technology.

MICHIGAN: World’s Largest Crucifix in Indian River

The world’s largest crucifix can be found within the Indian River woods — but the record only applies to the man on the cross, not the cross itself.

The cross is 55 feet tall but comes in second for being the tallest one — that record belongs to a different cross in Illinois. But the actual statue of Jesus holds a record for being 30 feet tall, and weighs seven tons.

In addition to being a functional parish with mass and other services, the shrine also houses a Doll Museum, known for having the “largest collection of dolls dressed in traditional habits of men and women’s religious communities in the United States.”

MINNESOTA: World’s Largest Jolly Green Giant in Blue Earth

This statue of the Jolly Green Giant mascot was not built by the namesake vegetable brand. It was spurred on by a Minnesota radio host who would give his interviewees cans of Green Giant vegetables. While the company signed off on the idea of the statue, it didn’t provide any money. The radio host, Paul Hedberg, was able to raise the $50,000 needed with help from local businesses.

The Giant is just over 55 feet tall, and stands on an eight-foot platform.

MISSISSIPPI: Largest Wooden Rocking Chair in Gulfport

While the battle for the title of world’s largest chair has raged on for decades (that honor currently belongs to a 65-foot-tall wooden chair in Manzano, Italy), the first giant rocking chair was only built in 1990. 

The record holder for the largest rocking chair in the country belongs to Casey, Illinois’ rocker, but Gulfport, Mississippi’s rocking chair is still pretty impressive.

The chair measures 33 feet in height and is completely constructed out of southern pine. 

MISSOURI: Largest Pair of Underwear in St. Louis

Of the many oddities and wonders within the City Museum, it’s impressive that the world’s largest pair of underwear stands out.

The tighty whities are six feet wide and seven feet tall — in other words, fit for a giant. In 2011, the underwear briefly went missing, only to be returned two months later freshly cleaned and folded, and alongside a new pair of red women’s underwear.

In 2020, they were once again stolen and returned.

NEVADA: Giant Flashlight at the University of Nevada’s Las Vegas campus

The creator of this large flashlight, artist Claes Oldenburg, told the LA Times that he saw Las Vegas as a “beacon of light in the desert,” and that this sculpture was meant to symbolize that.

The flashlight, which stands between the two auditoriums of the University of Nevada’s Las Vegas campus, is also a reference to ushers using this kind of light to help audience members find their seats.

Students were skeptical of the 38-foot-tall, 74,000-pound sculpture when it first arrived on campus, but they’ve now come to love and appreciate it, according to the Times.  

Oldenburg died in July 2022 at the age of 93.

NEW YORK: The Unisphere in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens

Commissioned for the New York’s World Fair of 1964-65, the 350-ton Unisphere was designed by landscape architect Gilmore D. Clarke and boasted raised representations of the world’s continents and mountain ranges. Capital cities were covered in lenses, and those lenses were then illuminated during the fair.

Although the sphere has seen its fair share of wear and tear, it’s been renovated, cleaned, and reinforced multiple times throughout the years, and in 1995 it was named an official city landmark.

TENNESSEE: The World’s Largest Cedar Bucket in Murfreesboro

Unfortunately, a fire claimed the original cedar bucket, which dated back to 1887. That’s why the current bucket — built in 2011 — is enclosed by a fence. The 6-foot-tall container can hold a whopping 1,566 gallons, and can be found in Cannonsburgh Pioneer Village.

The original bucket had some impressive accolades: It was displayed at both the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair and the 1904 Saint Louis World’s Fair. 

TEXAS: Eiffel Tower with Giant Cowboy Hat in Paris

This loose replica of the Eiffel Tower is — unsurprisingly — located in the city of Paris, Texas. As it turns out, the people of Paris, Tennessee, (yes, there are actually multiple US cities with that name) also built an Eiffel Tower. So, to differentiate the two, a group of investors added a large cowboy hat to the top of Texas’ 60-foot-tall version.

VERMONT: The World’s Tallest Ladder-Back Chair in Bennington

This 19-foot-tall cedar and white pine chair has overcome a number of odds throughout the years.

The first iteration of the ladder back chair was built in 1969 by the Hanes and Kayne furniture store. After 30 years of being exposed to the elements, the chair was torn down, and not long after, the furniture store went out of business.

LaFlamme’s, a new furniture company, took over the location, and the owners constructed a new 3,000-pound chair, but it was knocked over by a windstorm just 20 days after it was erected.

The owners got the chair back up, and this time, they anchored it to the ground. LaFlammes burned down shortly after, and then went out of business, but the chair survived and was up for sale in 2018. The next year, the local credit union purchased it.

VIRGINIA: The World’s Largest Office Building (the Pentagon) in Arlington

The Pentagon’s 6.4 million square feet and 17.5 miles of corridors earned it the designation of the largest low-rise office building in the world. Construction on the uniquely shaped building began in 1941 as a result of pressure from Congress to find a place for the war department’s 24,000 employees, who were spread across 17 buildings at the time.

Today an estimated 23,000 people work in the Pentagon, one of the most recognized symbols of the American military.

WASHINGTON: The Giant Coffee Pot (Bob’s Java Jive) in Tacoma

Contrary to what you’d expect, this 25-foot-tall coffee-pot-shaped building is not a coffee shop. Since it was first built in 1927, it has had many different uses — as a food drive-thru and a speakeasy, for example.

Bob and Lylabell Radonich bought the coffee pot in 1955 and turned it into a bar/music venue with a jungle vibe. The landmark even appeared in two movies: “I Love You to Death” and “Say Anything.”

Bob passed away in 2002, but his daughter took over the Java Jive. It was temporarily closed due to COVID-19, but fans raised money to keep it open and now the place is popping again.