Salem Sue

Perched atop the only hill visible for miles is the pride of New Salem, North Dakota: Sue, the world’s largest Holstein cow sculpture.

Built by the local Lions Club in 1974 for a mere $40,000, Sue is one town’s tribute to its dairy-farming legacy.

Six tons of fiberglass form Sue’s 38-foot high, 50-foot long, disturbingly anatomically-correct body. Grown men stand beneath her udders with confidence, knowing that their heads will not bonk a teat. Mothers envy her gentle, bucolic gaze while their children wonder at the pink-painted veins running along Sue’s underside.

If, for some reason, appreciating Sue’s shapely body isn’t enough of a treat, visitors can also take the opportunity to enjoy a subtly marvelous view of North Dakota’s wide-open farmlands — farms stretching as far as the eye can see.

Just don’t forget to serenade Sue with her very own ballad:

Her presence shows that New Salem grows / With milk-producers’ yields; / We’ve got the cow, world’s largest cow / That looks across our fields.