THE BIG BEMIDJI FAREWELL

BEMIDJI, Minn.—On a chilly March morning in Bemidji, Minnesota, the statue of an American Indian warrior stood tall outside the Chippewa Trading Post, his gaze fixed on the highway, as it had been for decades. Then, with help from a crane, his twenty-foot frame was eased onto a trailer for a long (and quite likely) final road trip. Read more…

The figure is one of many “Muffler Men”—towering, fiberglass sculptures produced by the International Fiberglass company of Venice, California, between 1963 and 1972. The figures were molded with hands ready to hold mufflers, tires, and other such products. They were bought by owners of small busineses to serve as roadside eyecatchers.

At once an advertisement, tourist attraction, and work of art, these giants were common before new regulations, changing tastes, and Lady Bird Johnson’s Highway Beautification Act ultimately spelled their demise. Only about 280 originals survive.

The statue in Bemidji, who for nearly sixty years oversaw the comings and goings outside the trading post, was also facing an uncertain future. The store was
moving, and its longtime owner, Roxi Mann, was retiring. As the trading post’s new location could not accommodate him, the statue was now at a crossroads.

Enter Joel Baker, curator of the American Giants Museum in Atlanta, Illinois. Baker first came across the statue in 2022, and as he is wont to do, explained to Roxi that if she should ever need to relocate the giant, he could be a resource. He shared with her the history of the Muffler Men, explained his mission of restoration and education, left his business card, and bid her adieu.

So Baker was surprised but not shocked when Mann rang, and they agreed upon a plan to relocate the giant to the museum. “We put a team together, and a few weeks later, came up and got him,” Baker tells American Road. “On March 31, Baker’s crew gently lowered the statue onto a custom-built trailer headed for the Land of Lincoln. It now awaits a long and meticulous restoration.

Soon, he’ll be standing tall at the museum, his future secure among other kindred giants who have also found the modern roadside a tad too small.