With the increased popularity of automobile touring in the 1930s, 40s and 50s, roadside attractions popped up all over the country. They were built to entice you to pull over and spend money in someone's store or restaurant. I have long wanted to construct a giant larger-than-life concrete statue of a Birkenstock Arizona in front of our store, but city sign ordinances do not allow it. Back in 1959 a high school shop teacher, named William "Harry" Wheeler, had a dream. His town of Canyon, TX did not have regulations in place to squash his giant plans. Over a ten-month period, while dangling from tall ladders, he welded six-inch wire mesh and rebar together to form a 47-foot-tall steel slouching cowboy to advertise his curio shop.
He slathered the wire mesh with 7 tons of concrete and clothed the statue with a supersized actual fabric shirt and denim jeans made by Levi Strauss. With the passage of time, of course, the Texas sun and winds stripped Tex of his clothing, a semi-truck crashed into his left boot, and someone shot the cigarette out of his hand. The final blow came when the Texas Highway department rerouted Highway 60 through an underpass, which eliminated drive-by traffic. All of those factors led to Tex's decline and near destruction.
With the passage of more time, thankfully, Harry's crazy dream transformed itself into a much-loved mascot for the city of Canyon. The people of Canyon rallied behind the effort to restore and preserve the tall Texan.
Over $350,000 was raised to repair damaged concrete, paint his clothing on (to keep it on), and create a park around the base of the statue.
An endowment takes care of future maintenance, so Tex can rest at ease.
Take a walk with Birkenstock.
