• Meet Me
  • Media Kit
  • U.S. Destinations
    • California
    • Chicago
    • Florida
    • New Mexico
    • Road Trips
    • Seattle
    • Seasonal
  • Worldwide Destinations
    • Camino de Santiago
    • Canada
    • Costa Rica
    • Cuba
    • England
    • France
    • Greece
    • Italy
    • Other
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Linkedin
TravelSmart Woman
  • Meet Me
  • Media Kit
  • U.S. Destinations
    • California
    • Chicago
    • Florida
    • New Mexico
    • Road Trips
    • Seattle
    • Seasonal
  • Worldwide Destinations
    • Camino de Santiago
    • Canada
    • Costa Rica
    • Cuba
    • England
    • France
    • Greece
    • Italy
    • Other
Home » Budget Travel » Casey, Illinois: Tiny Town, BIG Things!
Budget TravelU.S. Destinations

Casey, Illinois: Tiny Town, BIG Things!

travelsmartwoman May 24, 2020 solo travel, US travel Comments are off
Casey, Illinois, has eight of the world's largest items! It's worth a drive!

You probably wouldn’t give Casey, Illinois a second thought. It’s a very small town (population 2,635) not conveniently located in the East-Central part of the state. In fact, it’s a hundred miles closer to Indianapolis than Chicago.

But Casey is definitely worth your time. Guinness World Records has certified eight items in little Casey as the largest in the world. Drive there, park your car and follow the handy signs to see them for yourself.

There are 12 “World’s Largest” objects, plus another 12 “Big” objects in Casey, Illinois. Most are outdoors; the ones that are inside shops are placed next to windows, so you can still get a good peek.

Signs in Casey, Illinois, point the way to the Guinness World Record attractions.
Main Street in Casey, Illinois has a garden setting. Signs point you in the direction of the “World’s Largest” attractions. (Photos by Suzanne Ball)

Casey needed some pizazz, BIG time!

Pizazz: An American slang word from the 1930s that means “the energy, style, or flair that makes something dazzling or exciting. It’s that extra element that makes something really pop or sparkle.”

Casey, Illinois had zero pizazz. Jim Bolin, a local businessman and lifelong resident of Casey, wanted to change that. But how, exactly, do you convince people to get off the interstate highway? He needed a BIG idea.

And Jim came up with one. Literally.

Casey, Illinois, started its BIG collection with a 56-feoot-tall wind chime. Ring the chimes yourself!
It all started with a BIG idea…and a wind chime.

Behold the World’s Largest Wind Chime

A man on a mission, Jim Bolin started in 2011 with a wind chime. Using recycled materials, he and his crew constructed the 55-foot-tall wind chime, with 48 feet of working chimes. (His company, Bolin Enterprises, was hired to remove and discard old telephone poles. Instead of destroying them, he decided to repurpose them. Old pipes and obsolete oil tanks are used, too.)

Close-up of the World's largest Wind Chime in Casey, Illinois.

Step right up and pull the rope to ring the chimes. Look up and you’ll notice symbols of Christianity (the fish) and Judaism (the Star of David). A plaque at the base of chimes reads:

“In our little town
Many records were set
To make this a place
That is hard to forget…”

The wind chimes made the Guinness Book of World Records in 2012. Whitling Whimsy Cafe, another Bolin endeavor, sits next to the wind chimes. “Doing our best to give our guests a fresh, hand-crafted, and friendly dining experience.” The cafe is open for breakfast and lunch, Monday-Saturday. At some point during your tour, stop and sign the Casey Guest Book, outside the cafe.

Sign the Casey Guest Book when you're there!
Don’t leave town without signing the Guest Book! It’s on the porch of the Whitling Whimsey Cafe on Main Street.

The World’s Largest Rocking Chair!

It’s impossible to miss the World’s Largest Rocking Chair. You’ll see it before the wind chimes. One foot taller than the chimes, it weighs over 40,000 pounds. It’s one of the few attractions that can’t be climbed or used, but that doesn’t make it any less awesome.

The World's Largest Rocking Chair in Casey, Illinois.
The World’s Largest Rocking Chair took the coveted title from a Route 66 attraction near Fanning, Missouri.

Some years there’s a raffle, with the winner getting the chance to sit in the rocker. I’m betting one of the fire department’s ladders is involved. If the raffle tickets are on sale when you’re there, spring for the $5. It’s also a fundraiser.

Keep going–there’s plenty to see!

It’s not hard to spot “The World’s Largest” objects, but Casey provides a handy printable map so you don’t miss anything. (A few require getting back into your car, but they’re not far away.)

My favorite BIG thing was the mailbox. Climb the stairs to get a view of the town. There’s even an official mail slot at the top to post your letters. Even better, when an outgoing piece of mail is dropped into the slot, a red flag on the side pops up. This is the Real Deal!

You can actually mail a letter in th e World's Largest Mailbox!
The World’s Largest Mailbox is irresistible. Bring something to mail from the top. Or send postcards from Casey, Illinois!

From the mailbox, get a view of other attractions to visit when you’re back on solid ground:

Be a bird in a gilded cage when you visit Casey, Illinois.
Bird in a gilded cage…

Across the street from the mailbox is the gilded bird cage. Channel your inner Tweety Bird–climb in and have a swing on the perch.

Twitter fans: Send an authentic “tweet” from here!

Directly behind the mailbox is Casey’s Candy Depot, with a special “Kid’s door” for little ones to enter. The store (formerly an oil rig maintenance building) is at the site of the Doty Railroad, which ran through Casey from 1890 to 1938 on a track that was 30 inches wide. A stretch of original tracks now hold a flat car with 55-gallon barrels of ice cream toppings. Inside the store: the World’s Largest Wooden Shoes! Weighing 2,500 pounds, and 11 feet 5 inches long, toss a coin in one of them for good luck…and to help the local food pantry.

Giant barrels of ice cream toppings sit on a flat car outside Casey's Candy Depot.
All aboard for an ice cream sundae!

Who doesn’t love a candy store? This one has 40 kinds of taffy, 12 kinds of fudge, oodles of chocolates, popcorn, Jelly Bellys, and your childhood favorites.

An ice cream stand is a few steps away, directly next to the mailbox.

Very important: Public restrooms are in this mailbox/candy store area.

Casey, Illinois features a 32-foot-long pencil!
There’s no excuse for not doing your homework with this pencil.

You’ll grin like a little kid next to these objects. No need to be shy or embarrassed–when I was there, adults were having more fun than the children. Down the street from the pencil is a 36-foot-long yardstick. A little farther, a huge Minion welcomes you into a store.

The World’s Largest Teeter-Totter is across the street from the World’s Largest Wind Chime and the World’s Largest Rocking Chair.

The bookworm outside the library is made from junk pipe that Jim Bolin kept for over 20 years, waiting for inspiration. It doesn’t qualify as as “World’s Largest,” but makes a mighty fine addition to the library’s lawn:

Recycled pipes make the big green bookworm outside the town's library in Casey, Illinois.
A cheerful bookworm greets library patrons every day of the year.

There’s something on every street

Casey, Illinois covers just a few blocks, so wander freely. Part of the fun is turning a corner and discovering something new:

A giant top outside a charming vintage/collectible store. A 26-foot-tall replica of Jim Bolin’s Chevy truck key (World’s Largest, of course) is down the same block as the World’s Largest Barber Pole.

Not the World's Largest Top, but still very big!
Not the “World’s Largest,” but a BIG top sits outside a shop. There are 12 BIG objects in Casey.
Giant ear of corn, Main Street in Casey, Illinois.
How many photos of BIG corn are in your collection? If you haven’t reached your limit yet, head to Casey, Illinois to add this one. Then turn around and snap a shot of…
The Farmer’s Wife Gift and Yarn Shoppe is home to the World’s Largest Crochet Hook AND the World’s Largest Knitting Needles.

But wait! There’s more!

Return to your car and follow the signs for a couple of miles northeast. Your first stop is at the Casey Country Club to see…what else? The World’s largest Golf Tee!

Casey, Illinois has the World's Largest Golf Tee! Drive to the country club, walk through the Pro Shop and there it is, right next to the fairway
Casey Country Club proudly shows off the World’s Largest Golf Tee. Pull right up to the Pro Shop and walk straight through to the viewing platform.

Continue down the same road to Richards Farm, a farm with a thriving restaurant in what was once the Richards family’s barn. Next to the restaurant you’ll find the World’s Largest Pitch Fork, a full 60 feet long.

Richards Farm in Casey, Illinois hosts the World's Largest Pitch Fork.
Richards Farm is a great place to eat. It opened in 1976, serving a variety of locally-sourced foods. Stroll the gardens before or after eating in the refurbished 1930s barn.

Come anytime! And it’s all free!

The outdoor objects are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If the shops with objects are closed, you can still get a good look through the windows.

Be aware that Casey pretty much shuts down on Sundays. (Richards Farm is open for lunch and dinner.) The upside: fewer tourists and easy parking. The downside: the cute shops and the Whitling Whimsy Cafe are closed.

As you leave Casey, Illinois, notice…

Every street light in Casey, Illinois has a sign with the name of a resident who has served in the military, along with their branch of service.
As you drive away from town–or if you’re astute on your way in–notice the street lamps. Each one has the name of a Casey citizen who has served in the military, along with their branch of service. It’s impressive how many have served from this little town.

More “local” fun? Sure!

Seattle Space Needle: “Clearly” Improved!

Meow Wolf in Santa Fe, NM: The “Multiverse” Awaits!

5 Chicago Buildings You Should Know

Jack London: He Wrote So He Could Be. Farmer

Mornings in NOLA: Watching New Orleans Wake Up

Previous Article How About an English Afternoon Tea? Pip-pip! Cheerio!
Next Article Travel Lessons from the Lockdown

About Author

travelsmartwoman

Related Posts

  • Painting of Cahokia Mounds

    Cahokia Mounds, IL: Prehistoric American City

    May 17, 2022
  • Sonoma Plaza: Where California Began

    Sonoma Plaza: Where California Began

    September 1, 2021
  • Starved Rock State Park, Oglesby, Illinois

    State Parks: Something for Everyone!

    June 14, 2021

Worth 1,000 Words…

A labyrinth can reset our mind and intention. Can we do the same with how we travel? (Photo by Suzanne Ball)
Flower Vendor at sSeattle Pike Place Market
Seattle’s Pike Place Market is one of the nation’s treasures. (Photo by Suzanne Ball)
The World's Largest Rocking Chair in Casey, Illinois.
Going to Seattle? Of course you'll want to visit the Space Needle. Fresh from a renovation, here's what to know!
"Becoming Human" by Christian Ristow welcomes you to Meow Wolf.The flower-sniffing robot is 30 feet tell. (Photo by Suzanne Ball)
A "young man" of 70+ years leads the band in Santa Clara. (Photo by Suzanne Ball)
Sandia Peak Tram was a challenge to build.
After your selfie at The Bean, visit one of the Chicago food halls!
The passage to the stadium was once covered entirely by a stone arch roof. Today, only one section remains. It's easy to imagine how athletes felt as they ran down the narrow entry into the stadium
The wooden roof is what burned on 15 April 2019, taking the spire with it. When it was built, Notre Dame Cathedral required 52 acres of forest to complete the roof.
Loretto Chapel, Santa Fe, NM: The Mysterious and Miraculous Staircase
Better to see something once than hear about it a thousand times..
Solo travel doesn't really have many downsides
Unclaimed Baggage Center is easy to find in Scottsboro, AL.
Milwaukee Art Museum: Architect Santiago Calatrava designed MOM to resemble a ship. Given its location on the Lake Michigan waterfront, his idea was brilliant. (Photo credit: Suzanne Ball. All rights reserved.)
Peace solo travel by eating at a nice restaurant
Rome-Colosseum
U.S. Destinations-Seattle-Pike Place
Window shopping in Florence: Silk ties
The Acropolis in Athens awaits!
Craving Europe? There are some surprising European destinations in the US!

Use Tags to Find a Topic

Airlines architecture Books budget travel Camino de Santiago Canada Chicago Covid-19 cruise Cuba England Europe Food Greece Health history Holidays Hotels hotel tips inspiration Italy Markets museum New Mexico Packing Quotes recipes Rick Steves road trips safety Seattle single supplement solo travel Thoughts & Opinions tours Train Travel Travel Insurance Travel Planning Travel tips U.S. Destinations US travel vacations walks World Views Worldwide Destinations
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Linkedin Instagram
© Copyright 2014-2018. Theme by BloomPixel.