Roadside Attractions: Casey, Illinois – The Land Where Everything Is BIGGER

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– Posted on March 23, 2020

With discretionary travel on hiatus in many parts of the world, presenting some roadside wonders seemed like a good thing to do.  You can only get there by car, van, or pickup. JES

Who says bigger is exclusive to Texas?  It is certainly a sentiment not shared by the 2,762 residents of Casey (pronounced Cay-Z), Illinois.  The town is also big in other areas, holding a total of eight Guinness Records for, well, being big in a small town.

Make sense so far?

The “world’s largest” moniker seems to have long been a staple around the United States, generally used to lure people to visit small, otherwise nondescript towns.  In that sense, Casey really isn’t any different – except they have the documentation to back-up their claim.  Plus their “biggest” boast isn’t for just one item; they have about eight of them plus another eleven biggies to see.

All the big things have popped up within the last ten years, starting with these wind chimes which are 48 feet tall.  There is a pull-rope to use in case there isn’t enough wind.

There is the world’s largest rocking chair, seen in the lead picture, which is reported to weigh 40,000 pounds – which is about the same as nine 1971 Chevrolet Impalas or eight 2020 Honda Odysseys.

Down the street is the world’s largest pencil and an extraordinarily large barber’s pole.  Mrs. Jason wanted to write a letter with the pencil, but she hadn’t picked it up yet.

All of these items are very practical things found around the house.  It’s simply more relevant and useful than the largest ball of twine or aluminum foil.  Here’s the world’s largest knitting needle and crochet hook.  I’d also be willing to bet that last sentence contains the first use of the word “crochet” anywhere at CC.

When visiting in November, there had been some recent snow and ice.

It was a definite concern when climbing up into the world’s largest mailbox.  Yes, the postal service does indeed have a drop-box inside this mailbox so the mailman climbs up here twice daily.

There is also a motor attached to a cable which pulls the lid closed at the end of the day.  It was right at closing time when we were there.

For perspective about (or from inside) the mailbox, one could use it as a garage for both this Dodge and Buick that sat directly across the street.

This 383 powered Coronet looked great but needs to lose the hood-scoops and acquire different wheels.

It even has a white interior.  The air conditioning looks reasonably vintage but I will not wager whether its factory or aftermarket.

The Buick was nice but paled considerably next to the Dodge.

Other large items are wooden shoes (which are like a size 383), a golf tee, a yardstick, and a mousetrap.

The mousetrap seems stout enough to have caught a real rat.

If researching the web for articles about Casey, none of them mention the (world’s largest?) Chevrolet ignition key.  This building was indeed vacant but only due to the Chevrolet dealer having just relocated to a bigger facility (naturally!) a few blocks away.  I’m speculating this was a recent event.

Casey is located on I-70 about midway between St. Louis and Indianapolis.  We were looking for a brief reprieve from the dreariness of the interstate and Casey fit the bill perfectly.  It’s highly recommended.