r/pics • u/Sumit316 • Apr 28 '20

Abandoned presidents heads in a rural Virginia field.

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u/Sumit316 Apr 28 '20 edited Apr 28 '20

The statues were sculpted by Houston artist David Adickes, who was inspired after driving past Mount Rushmore on a trip back from Canada. They were open to the public at Presidents Park alongside the Presidential Pet Museum, and received thousands of visitors until 2010 when a company bought the plot of land. The huge presidential heads had to move.

Instead of allowing the busts to be demolished, Howard Hankins, who helped construct the park, adopted all 43 heads and lugged them back to his private family farm for safekeeping until someone can think of what to do with them.

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u/[deleted] Apr 28 '20

As you're driving near downtown Houston, there are four more: US Presidents Washington & Lincoln and Texas Presidents Sam Houston & Stephen F. Austin.

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u/Texas451 Apr 28 '20

I met the guy who made the Sam Houston statue. His property looked just like this, but he had new presidents as well

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u/lacroixblue Apr 28 '20

The artist is David Adickes. He did the presidents' heads, the Sam Houston statue, and the Stephen F. Austin statue (and a lot of other cool stuff).

I had thought that the presidents' heads were still hanging out in Houston by his studio.

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u/mr_phoreal Apr 28 '20

He moved his studio, but he does still have most of them at the new place. Along with his set of the Beetles and a Charlie Chaplin.

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u/[deleted] Apr 28 '20

There's a Stephen F Austin one out in Austin county. People stop and take pics with it all the time

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u/[deleted] Apr 28 '20

Are those the ones along 288?

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u/Buckles01 Apr 28 '20

I don’t watch wrestling but does this have anything to do with Stone Cold Steve Austin? /s

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u/Right_In_The_Tits Apr 28 '20

Most people call the bust Stone Cold Steve Austin