When you think of the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), you probably imagine grand mansions, dusty battlefields, or the Liberty Bell. But the truth is way weirder. From giant animals to “heroic” insects, the U.S. government has officially stamped some truly bizarre things as “historically significant.”
Here are 7 of the strangest places on the list—and why they’re actually there.
1. Big Brutus: The 11-Million-Pound Ghost of Kansas
Standing 16 stories tall in West Mineral, Kansas, Big Brutus isn’t a building—it’s a giant electric coal shovel. In the 1960s, it was the second-largest of its kind in the world. It’s so massive that it can’t even move anymore, so the government just decided to list the entire machine as a historic object. It’s a literal iron titan frozen in time.
2. The Boll Weevil Monument: Celebrating a… Pest?
Most monuments honor heroes, but Enterprise, Alabama, built one for a beetle. The Boll Weevil destroyed the town’s cotton crops in the early 1900s, which forced farmers to diversify into peanuts and saved the local economy. The town was so grateful for the “forced innovation” that they erected a statue of a woman holding a giant bug. It made the National Register in 1973!
3. Lucy the Elephant: The 6-Story Real Estate Gimmick
In Margate City, New Jersey, there is a giant, 90-ton wooden elephant named Lucy. Built in 1881 to lure real estate buyers to the shore, she’s served as a tavern, a home, and even a hotel. She is the oldest surviving “zoomorphic” (animal-shaped) building in the country and has survived hurricanes, lightning strikes, and fire.
4. The Teapot Dome Service Station: Coffee or Gas?
Located in Zillah, Washington, this building is exactly what it sounds like: a gas station shaped like a giant teapot. It was built in 1922 as a cheeky political statement about the infamous “Teapot Dome” bribery scandal of the Harding administration. It’s a piece of political shade that became a permanent historic landmark.
5. The Dine-A-Ville Dinosaur: Utah’s 40-Foot Pink Icon
You might expect a dinosaur in a museum, but this anthropomorphic pink dinosaur with long eyelashes used to welcome guests to a motel in Vernal, Utah. Despite being made of wire mesh and fiberglass, it was added to the Register because it represents the peak of “Roadside America” kitsch and mid-century travel culture.
6. The Encinitas Boathouses: Landlocked Sailors
In Encinitas, California, there are two houses that look exactly like SS-style boats docked on a residential street. They were never actually boats—they were built from reclaimed wood from a local hotel and designed to look like they were floating on land. They are masterpieces of “vernacular architecture” and were officially listed in 2019.
7. The Site Where We Found Pluto
Deep in the woods near Flagstaff, Arizona, sits the Lowell Observatory’s Pluto Discovery Telescope. While the telescope is cool, it’s the site itself that is historic. In 1930, a 24-year-old farm boy named Clyde Tombaugh used this exact spot to find the (then) ninth planet. It’s one of the few places on Earth where history happened in outer space.
💡 Mind-Blowing NRHP Trivia
- You Can Say No: The owners of the oldest McDonald’s in Downey, California, actually objected to being officially listed on the Register back in 1984! Because it’s private property, the government can’t force you onto the list if you don’t want to be there.
- It Won’t Save You: Contrary to popular belief, being on the National Register doesn’t prevent demolition. If a private owner wants to tear down a historic site with their own money, they usually can. The listing mostly protects sites from federal projects (like the government building a highway through your historic house).
- The 50-Year Rule: Usually, a place has to be at least 50 years old to be considered. However, there is a “Criteria Consideration G” for places with exceptional importance. This is how things like the Space Needle or NASA Launch Pads got listed way before their 50th birthdays!
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