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Tourist attraction in Lewis County, Washington
The Winlock Egg is a tourist attraction in Winlock, Washington, United States. It was listed as the world’s largest egg by Ripley’s Believe It or Not! in 1989. The current structure is the fourth reincarnation of the original egg.
The first egg was built for a celebration of the opening of the Pacific Highway Bridge over the Columbia River between Washington and Oregon. The idea of an egg came from John G. Lawrence, the manager of the newly formed egg and poultry co-op as a way to represent the growing industry centered in Winlock in the 1920s.[1] During that time farmers in Winlock were shipping as much as a quarter million cases of eggs to market a year.[2]
The first egg was made of an egg shaped wood frame stretched with canvas and painted white. It was mounted onto a truck as part of a parade of floats and vehicles that traveled from Olympia, Washington to Salem, Oregon on October 23, 1923, to celebrate the expansion of trade between Washington and Oregon through the railroad. After the parade, the egg was placed on a platform near the train depot, and has since remained a source of local pride.[1]
The first egg was covered with plaster and measured 12 feet (3.7Â m) long, with a maximum diameter of 8 feet (2.4Â m). After 20 years in the elements, the 2,000Â lb (910Â kg) egg had deteriorated and was replaced by a plastic version made by a new company to the area, the Johnny Simpson’s Plastic Company. This version lasted until 1958 when it fell from its rotted platform and cracked. A fiberglass replacement was made but not installed until 1965. Weighing in at 1,500 pounds (680Â kg), the fiberglass egg was 15 feet (4.6Â m) in length[1] but there were concerns that it was shaped too much like a football.[2] The community created a fenced park, Vern Zander Memorial Park, around the attraction and the egg was labeled with a sign denoting it as the world’s largest egg.[1][2]
Another fiberglass replacement egg was installed in 1991. The new 1,200Â lb (540Â kg) sculpture was part of the Winlock Egg Day Parade before it was placed in the Vern Zander Memorial Park on top of a 10 feet (3.0Â m) steel support. In the 21st century, the egg has been painted to reflect certain interests or events, such as an American flag after the September 11 attacks and the Seattle Seahawks logo in the 2010s.[1][2]
