Can a state with one of the flattest landscapes in North America inspire tall structures? "One of the world's tallest dormitories", "statue of the tallest man in the world", "one of the tallest free-standing crosses in the world", "the tallest ketchup bottle", "tallest statue of the tallest president of the United States", how often would you find all of the above in one state? All within a three-hour drive of each other?
Little Known America looks in wonder at five of the unlikeliest "one of the tallest in the world" structures in categories you normally don't associate with height.
Watterson Towers, Illinois State University, Normal.
The twin towns of Bloomington-Normal have little to offer if you are on a globe-trot hunting for interesting places. Popular for being the corporate headquarters of State Farm Insurance and a couple of good universities, little else is of any great attraction to most people. May be you would stop-over if you were looking for some history about Steak 'n' Shake or Beer Nuts.
The student residences of Illinois State University has a unique credential not many people including some of its own residents are aware of. The building is one of the tallest student residences in the world. The almost 300 feet tall 28 story Watterson Towers hosts about 2200 students. Named after one of the University's professors Arthur Watterson, the construction of the towers was completed in 1967. It's easy to spot the imposing building towering over the skyline as you enter the Normal downtown area from any direction. If you happen to randomly stop any student and ask about the building, don't be surprised to hear nothing. "Oh! I didn't know. That's cool," said one resident student when I mentioned that she lives in one of the tallest student residences in the world. Does she enjoy the view? "It's not too bad," she says. "There's nothing much to view here anyway."
The tallest Catsup bottle in the world, Collinsville.
If you had the brainstorm to construct the tallest Ketchup (or to sound propah - Catsup) bottle in the world, and erect it on a giant metal frame, you would at least create some fanfare around it. It has its own website, fan club, and has made it to the National Register of Historic places but on the day we were there, no one outside my car seemed interested in the giant red bottle.The catsup bottle sits roadside on Route 159 posing rather unobtrusively. Except for a gas station down the road, one cannot even find a parking space to get a good view of the bottle high up in the air. In 1947, the bottle was a clever idea to create a large water tower that also served as a great signboard. There is a lot of history attached to the business in the town but the very idea of having a 170 feet water tower in the shape of a catsup bottle makes it one of the interesting little-known facts of modern Americana.
The statue of Robert Pershing Wadlow, the tallest man that ever lived. Alton, IL.
Any surprise that the tallest human ever was born in a state that has a strange fascination for tall objects. The gentle giant R.W. Wadlow was born in Alton, IL. When he died at the age of 22, he was 8 feet and 11.1 inches tall. There is a life-size statue and the replica of a chair he used on College Avenue in Alton, close to the home he grew up in. Enough has been written in media about Wadlow, who was a celebrity when alive. Now, the black metal statue is an interesting piece of attraction for children to play.
Alton also has the rare distinction of being the most haunted town in the US. Located just across the Mississippi river, the dark stories of slavery, disease and death mark the history of the what was once a thriving port.
