Big Heads in Buena Vista: Julie's Tacky Treasures




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Big Heads in Buena Vista

September 20, 2000: Sitting atop one of the Blue Ridge Mountains, looking more like Easter Island than Mount Rushmore, are the giant concrete heads of Abraham Lincoln, William Henry Harrison, and Zachary Taylor. During my annual trip to Buena Vista, Virginia, I was surprised to see these departed heads of state as busts on the hill. None of the other campers in Glen Maury Park knew exactly why they were there, and of course that's where the fun of speculation and rumor-mongering began. "I think all three died in office," said one person. Another said, "I heard someone ordered them made, and then couldn't pay for them." But why are they HERE, I wondered, besides proving that bigger isn't necessarily better.

When I returned home, I raced upstairs to my computer, to fire up the old search engine. The results of my research follow, based on articles retrieved from the Washington Post online archive.

It seems that the owner of a Days Inn in Williamsburg, Virginia named Everette Newman took it upon himself to commission larger than life statues of all 41 presidents, right down to Bill Clinton. The artist, based in Houston, Texas, is named David Adickes, and is apparently known for large, and sometimes controversial public art. He (Newman) requested that seven of the "major" presidents be sized at ten times life size (this includes Lincoln, both Roosevelts, and some others). The "minors" will only be eight times life size. George Washington, however, was to be a full body statue NINETY-TWO FEET HIGH. That's right, and as former county commissioner James Funk pointed out, "We don't have a building that's 92 feet high in York County. The first thing we would have to do is put a lightning rod on his head." Plans for the statue of Washington have since been modified, due to what the Washington Post called "widespread incredulity."

Newman hopes to display them in a 12-acre park he has designed called "President's Park." Apparently, Newman took delivery of the first six heads, which were kind of hard to hide from the York County commissioners, who asked, "what gives?" When Everette told them, they told him he required a permit to publicly display them on his land. They further ordered that no more presidents' heads could be delivered until the matter was straightened out, leaving open the possibility that the permit might be denied. So, Newman parked them on a flat-bed truck outside his motel. The county commissioners considered that a public display and said that the heads had to go. The Norfolk Botanical Gardens now has some of the heads, while the city of Buena Vista now boasts three. There they wait, until the future of the park has been determined.

Newman says all these heads will be educational, and plans to post their biographies by each head. I can't think of anything less intellectually stimulating than looking at a big concrete head, and then reading about it. If the text is as uninspiring as the statues, then I don't see how this "attraction" will attract anyone. And isn't the Williamsburg area already full of tourist traps like Busch Gardens, the pottery factory, and all the outlet stores? How's anyone going to find real history in a place like that? Still, it gave me a chuckle to see these concrete works on the hilltop in Buena Vista, and I kind of hope that they stay there, as a monument to patriotism taken perhaps a little too far. I still don't know why they're in B.V. or why the town wanted them. But maybe, like me, they just didn't like the idea of such dignified men parked on a truck in a motel parking lot.

Updates:

November 27, 2000: The Big Heads appeared in "Zippy the Pinhead."

Zippy the Pinhead ©Bill Griffith. Used by permission.

February 23, 2001: I visited the Norfolk Botanical Gardens, which is the home of the first six of the presidential heads. They are, left to right, Woodrow Wilson, Herbert Hoover, Ronald Reagan, John F. Kennedy, Martin Van Buren, and Thomas Jefferson.

September 15, 2001: In what is becoming an annual pilgrimage to the Big Heads, I travelled to Buena Vista, Virginia, to visit my friends, Abe, Zach, and Bill. Bill isn't looking too good, and I think it's a scandal that after only one year, the paint is peeling off his left cheek. Since the statue is a bust, I think you know which cheek I mean. Anyway, how much did Mr. Newman pay for these statues? Whatever he spent, it seems he should have expected a much better grade of exterior latex paint than he got. And I wonder why the statues are still in Buena Vista, and not at the highly-publicized yet ill-fated President's Park in Williamsburg, Virginia? Are the other Big Heads still in Norfolk? If anyone knows, please email me.

Abe and I had a heart to heart talk while I was there. He's beginning to think of Glen Maury Park as his home, and especially likes the music festival they have there. The sounds of fiddles, banjos, and mandolins drift up the mountain and entertain him. I forgot to ask him what he thought of the recent violence in New York and Washington. I guess I was so much at peace that weekend, that I didn't want to jinx it by bringing it up. Saturday was the first day since 9/11 that I hadn't burst into tears at some point. I wish Abe really could talk. In these worrisome times, we need an inspirational leader; one who speaks from the heart, not the teleprompter.

February 24, 2002: Major News Update on the Big Heads!

Earlier this month, I drove down to Norfolk, Virginia to check on the six Big Heads displayed at the Norfolk Botanical Gardens. I was alarmed to be greeted by the scene to the right.

Actually, this looks worse than it really was. First of all, there clearly wasn't enough rubble to make up even one Big Head. Secondly, this was gray rubble, unlike the bright white of the Big Heads themselves.

I rushed back to the visitors center for an explanation, but all the guy at the front desk could tell me was, "Oh, yeah, they moved them the day before yesterday."

"Where are they? I really need to know," I explained. He had no idea, just that they were gone. On a whim, I asked to speak to someone in the Public Affairs Office. Minutes later, I asked the same question of a sympathetic woman named Kim, who responded, "Oh, they're out back by the greenhouse." She said I was welcome to visit and photograph the Big Heads (or as she called them "the Presidential busts"). According to Kim, there they will stay until the owner takes them away. But where? I wondered.

I was so eager to see my old friends, the Big Heads, that I ran right outside and headed for the greenhouse, aided by a map of the gardens. I didn't even think about what state I might find them in, remembering only the grand display I observed last year.

I found them corralled up closely in a six-pack formation, surrounded by yellow "caution" tape. What a pathetic way to treat six of our presidents!

Before I left, I returned to the former grand site of the Big Heads, and scooped a little souvenir concrete.

Before

After

Observe the cracks in the heads of both Thomas Jefferson and Herbert Hoover. These heads apparently weren't meant for rolling.


Other views of the Big Heads (in case Zippy the Pinhead would like to visit)

Several days later, I was eating breakfast in a coffee shop in Charlotte, North Carolina, when I read an interesting article in USA Today. Actually, I was so surprised when I saw it that I almost spit out my tea (the other brown drink).

Head of State
In Houston: Former president George Bush stands with a 16-foot-tall bust of his son George W. The likeness by artist David Adickes was unveiled Monday. It will be sent to the Presidents Park, which will open in June. The park in South Dakota's Black Hills will feature similar busts of all the presidents.

When I returned to Silver Spring after two weeks on the road, I searched the Web for information and found a site for Presidents Park. This wealth of information on the Big Heads included an online store from which I have already ordered my tee shirt and tote bag.

While enjoying this delightful web site (which included a game of "Hangman" using the presidents' names), I noticed a picture of Ronald Reagan, already pictured in his location in the park. Didn't I just see Mr. Reagan in Norfolk?

I clicked on a link for more information, and asked the question, "How does this park relate to the one that I heard about that is planned for the Williamsburg area? I saw six of the presidents busts in Norfolk Virginia recently."

In about 24 hours, I received my answer: "The park in South Dakota will be finished in July of 2002, unlike the park in Williamsburg. That park is moving along a lot slower, but the busts are the same. Keep checking our website, presidentspark.com, as we are adding more information in the months to come."

Obviously, the saga of the Big Heads continues, and you may rest assured that I will report developments as they happen, or at least as I find out about them.

March 2003

According to an article in the Washington Post (see links below), developer Everette Newman has received all the permits necessary to open President's Park in Williamsburg, Virginia. The opening is slated for President's Day, 2004.

September 16, 2003

They're still there, but probably not for long. Local residents have grown attached to them, and vow that they (the heads) aren't going anywhere. That remains to be seen. Here are some photos taken on September 13, 2003.

Maybe this is Buena Vista's idea of a theme-park. I think it's just more of the same kind of infotainment that has taken over TV channels like A&E, the Discovery Channel, and PBS.

This view of the heads from the next hill, about a mile and a half away, is decidedly un-Rushmore-like. Maybe they'd look better in Williamsburg where people can pay $9 a head (their own, I mean) for an up close experience.

So long, my disembodied friends. I'll come see you in Williamsburg in the spring. I hope you get a good sanding and a new coat of paint before they put you on display.

Big Heads in Buena Vista

Updates:

February 24, 2002: Major News Update on the Big Heads!

March 2003

September 16, 2003

Links: