If you have always wanted to see a head state’s head, then find your way to the swampy field outside Historic Williamsburg, Virginia. There, giant and decaying busts, some 20 feet tall and weighing several tonnes each, depict every president of the United States, from George Washington to George W. Bush.
They are just enormous! One visitor exclaimed.
One person said, “This entire thing is vibe.”
They are an accidental tourist attraction. Ben said that you would have expected them to be in a museum. “Instead, they’re outside just in the elements.”
All of this is on the site Howard Hankins’ recycling centre.
Hankins is also a builder. He had helped to create a park for busts in Williamsburg, which opened in 2004. He said that six years later, the economy had “hit ’em hard”. They couldn’t keep the doors closed. They called me and asked me if they could crush them, because I crush concrete.
Rita Braver, Correspondent, asked: “Why didn’t you want to say, “Okay, let’s get rid of those things.” They are not wanted by anyone.
Hankins responded, “They’re our past.” “I don’t care who it might be. It’s yours to save and you can learn from it.”
He decided to use the company’s resources to move the presidents. This caused some serious damage to each of them. “Lincoln was over there, he fell and cracked his back a bit. He will be fine, I can fix it. Jackson was restored to his former glory. He was painted and looked great for a while.
Hankins simply plopped the heads onto his property. Word spread slowly, but quietly. Visitors began sneaking in, taking photos and posting them on social media. This attracted more attention from historians such as John Plashal, who is also a photographer and a sales representative for medical devices. He was drawn to the eerie images of their heads and asked Hankins to allow him to come in to take photos one night.
Plashal said, “He obliged, I suppose because I was very polite towards him.” “And then I was hooked.”
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Hankins was so taken with the idea that he opened Hankins’ property approximately once per month. Hankins sold tickets online, and allowed small groups of people to take guided tours. Plashal stated that the company started locally and then grew to become a national phenomenon. Now, it is international.
The followers of the decrepit heads are even more numerous on social media. A single TikTok post has nearly eight million views.
The statues are a delight to the 95-year old David Adickes. Braver was told by Adickes that he found it amazing. “I’m sorry they were all busted up. If I had known they were going to be moved, I would have told the man how to move them.
Adickes is a successful painter/sculptor who has prominent works in Texas. He was initially inspired by a trip up to Mount Rushmore in early 1990s.
Braver asked Braver, “You felt like you were too far away?”
“Yeah. “Yeah.
Outside his Houston studio, he has his own collection of giant head.
Braver stated, “It’s quite a array.” It can stop you dead in your tracks!
His 44th President is his most recent sculpture. The documentary “Building Obama” demonstrates that Adickes starts by carving a small clay model and then creates a larger styrofoam foundation. Finally, molds are created to make concrete statues. The shoulders are constructed separately using wire frames.
He estimates that it takes approximately a month to make one of these busts.
Braver asked Braver, “Why do Americans need statues like this?”
“History,” Adickes responded. “History,” Adickes replied. History.”
In the beginning, Adickes hoped there would be at most three centers that featured these busts. A park near Mount Rushmore in South Dakota was closed. Visitors can now only see them at the Virginia recycling plant. This is where Jordan Patterson and Eric Nelson found meaning in the decay.
Nelson said that some of the buildings are in decline and others are brand new, while some are more damaged than others. “It’s almost as if they’re still looking after their people in a way.”
“A hierarchy?” Patterson suggested Patterson.
“Yeah. And not necessarily putting them up on a pedestal but just the magnitude and significance of what they represented.”
Howard Hankins, the man who saved these statues from destruction, said he would preserve them but not repair them. Braver observed, “Some people like the look of decay, how they look, weathering, and all that.” Do you?”
Hankins responded, “It gives them more character. Hankins replied, “It does give them more character.
“Many people have praised you for not destroying these things.
“I have received touching letters from children that really touch you, thanking my for everything, and they sent me a $10 gift card. It’s almost like he is kidding me. He laughed. It’s for them, mainly. Let them go out and have fun with them.
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Michelle Kessel produced the story. Editor: Lauren Barnello.
