Muffler Man: Bunyan + Babe
Next up on the roster of Muffler Man we saw on our recent road trip is one of the Paul Bunyan varieties. This dapper lumberjack once stood outside of Stan the Tire Man in Salem, Illinois, but was moved to Battleboro, North Carolina in 2007. While in Illinois, he was accompanied by a UniRoyal Gal but she was sold and moved to California when Stan the Tire Man closed in 2015.
After he was moved to NC, this Bunyan traded his Gal for a Babe—Babe the Blue Ox, from the Paul Bunyan legend. The first Muffler Man I ever saw was a Bunyan-type at the Magic Forest, in Lake George, NY and I've seen a few more of the style since. Even though the thing I love most about Muffler Men is their ability to be customized and that they all look different as a result, the Bunyan is what I think of when I think of the quintessential Muffler Man.
This gentleman is wearing a knit cap and holding an axe—similar to the World's Fair giant we saw, also in Lake George—but I can't for the life of me figure out what is in Babe's mouth (my mom said, "is that an e-cigarette?"). They stand guard over the Original Log Cabin Homes sales center, and you can see them best while driving south on 1-95. We parked and walked right up to them, and although no one said anything to us, we did see a lady come out of the office ... and walk back inside when she realized we were more interested in Bunyan and Babe than in purchasing a log cabin home.
Original Log Cabin Homes
7677 N Halifax Road
Battleboro, NC 27809
A little tricky to get to, but no one seemed to mind us walking through the property