This MN Town is Famous for What? Let's Make One 65 Feet Tall!

What does it take to entice you to take a road trip to another city here in Minnesota? Is it a concert, a festival or maybe a museum of something that peaks your interest? How about a 65 foot statue?

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The city of Luverne in southwest Minnesota has a unique plan to increase tourism: a 65-foot-tall nutcracker. Luverne is already known for its nutcrackers. The Rock County History Center is home to a collection of 6,000 of them, outnumbering the town’s population of just around 5,000 people.

The city hopes that leaning into its nutcracker fame with the new statue will help draw tourists. It will be the
tallest in the world, outpacing the current Guinness World Record holder in Neusausen, Germany, by about 30 feet.

First of all, let's put this into perspective. A 65 foot statue is tall! If you've been to the Paul Bunyan statue in Bemidji and thought that was big, well it's got nothing on this. The Paul Bunyan statue pales in comparison, coming in at just 18 feet high. Although, still an impressive statue.

Abbey Minke/ TSM

The Nutcracker stature will be even taller than the Jolly Green Gian in Blue Earth. That statue is 55 feet tall.

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Day 11: Minnesota - Home

Started the day in Blue Earth, MN to check out the Jolly Green Giant then on to Jordan, MN for Minnesota’s Largest Candy Store (oh my)!!! Homeward bound now but only 15 more sleeps to my next vacation…and it’s a warm one so bonus.

Well alright Luverne, MN! Maybe this 65 foot Nutcracker is just the thing to draw folks there. Wait, what I meant was the soon to be tallest in the world and Guiness World Record holding 65 foot Nutcracker statue!