10 Silly and Strange Objects That Made These Destinations Famous

When the purported “world’s largest Cheeto” (yes, that salty orange-coated snack in a bag) went up for auction after Mike Evans unearthed it in 2003, tucked into his bag of Cheetos while stationed with the military in Hawaii (https://www.mashed.com/217853/the-truth-about-the-worlds-largest-cheeto/), he put it up for auction on eBay. The cost for this cheesy glob soared so high—above $1 million—that eBay shut down the auction. Evans donated the Cheeto to Sister Sarah’s Bar in the small farming town of Algona, Iowa, as its residents had bid $180 as a result of listeners calling in to a local radio show. It’s in a glass display propped up on a purple velvet cushion, and the business is now a restaurant called Emerald’s.

If you want to check off a bunch of the “world’s largest” items in one swoop, then head to this charming town in eastern Illinois, 35 miles from Terre Haute, Indiana, and a two-hour drive from St. Louis. Home to only 2,400 people, that includes a dedicated group that has worked hard to amass the world’s largest … totaling 12 different items. This includes a swizzle spoon, a pitchfork, a rocking chair, and a barbershop pole. The town has organized the items so they are on view outdoors because, duh, they’re too big to show off inside.

Depending on who you ask, dolls are either cute or creepy. This Japanese village of 27 people on the island of Shikoku has 10 times as many dolls (around 350) as people, and what’s even more striking is that they are life-size. These dolls were all crafted by Tsukimi Ayano, a collection that began in the early 2000s with a single doll that resembled her father. That origin story continued with subsequent dolls, many of which are made in the likeness of the village’s former residents.

This is definitely one for the treasure hunters. Considered a retail store, it’s the only one of its kind and opened for business in 1970. Everything sold here is a passenger’s unclaimed checked luggage from an airline trip. The center markets itself as “sustainable shopping” (because everything is gently used), and a new online store means anyone can shop here. Items are categorized by type, such as jewelry, headphones, handbags, watches, cameras, shoes, and gaming, basically anything you’d take on a vacation … but hope doesn’t get lost. There’s even a $9,099.99 two-carat diamond engagement ring.

It should be no surprise that the world’s largest tire model ever built (80 feet tall, weighing 12 tons) is on display just outside of Detroit, known as “Motor City” for its history of auto manufacturing. You can find it along I-94. Made by the United States Rubber Company for the 1964-65 World’s Fair in New York, it was initially built as a 96-passenger Ferris wheel that carried more than 2 million riders—including Jacqueline Kennedy. It was built next to the Grand Central Parkway. After the fair, the tire was disassembled and relocated to Michigan, near the United States Rubber Company’s headquarters.

This collection of 7,800 clown dolls, figures, and memorabilia came to be when one local woman (Mary Sue Schnase) started amassing them, and it soon outgrew her living space. That’s when this museum was created, as a permanent home. There’s no admission fee, and it’s located off of U.S. Highway 20 in northeastern Nebraska. About 1,300 people live in this town, so it’s definitely on the smaller side, and the museum has helped earn the moniker of “the Klown Kapital” of the world. Creepy or cute? You decide! Guided and self-guided tours available.

You literally can’t miss this strange object—thought to have arrived somewhere between 1959 and the early 1970s—while driving alongside Highway 169 in this unincorporated community an hour’s drive north of Tulsa. The land is flat and, well, the object stands out. It’s also a bit of a myth that this is a fallen space capsule, as it’s been determined to be the main vessel of a concrete mixing transport truck, but sure, call it a fallen space capsule, as that’s certainly more interesting. Thanks to a few creative and industrious locals, in 2008, they doctored up the vessel with a garden hose, canning lids, and other items, so now it actually resembles something that dropped from space.

Open since 2002—with a bang, ha ha—this collection of hammers is the first museum dedicated to the history of hammers. It’s in the northern Alaska panhandle, 92 miles north of Juneau, a trip that involves a ferry ride and actually takes about five or six hours. You can easily find this museum if you keep your eyes peeled for a 20-foot-tall hammer. Museum founder Dave Pahl began collecting hammers through his work as a blacksmith, and later bought a century-old building in downtown Haines so others could view the collection, which displays hammers and accompanying tools from around the world, including Roman battle heads and a Tlingit warrior’s pick unearthed during the process of converting the building into a museum.

A watering can may be considered a blah household object whose purpose is to keep plants from dying, but here, in this German town an hour’s drive north of Frankfurt, it’s an art form. The museum debuted in 2011, showing off the various colors, shapes, and motifs that can adorn this common object. There’s no fee to enter and browse the collection, which was donated by foundations as well as private individuals, so it’s a true community effort.

Just when you think you’ve seen it all in terms of the quirkiest, weirdest collections, this one takes the cake. About 1,400 toilet seats transformed into canvases for paint, stickers, or other artifacts (including pieces from the Berlin Wall and the Challenger space shuttle) are tucked into an indoor space at Truck Yard, a spot for food trucks to park each evening. If Truck Yard sounds familiar, that’s because there are additional ones in Texas (in Dallas, Fort Worth, and Houston) as well as in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. You can even reserve this museum—which was established in 2019, the year Barney Smith died, and the collection was sold at auction two years prior—for a private event. The collection was formerly in Smith’s private home and includes seats rumored to have been used by famous people, such as Jacqueline Kennedy and Saddam Hussein.