Kingsport, Tennessee: Big John: Giant Native American (Gone)

The Indian still stands along Stone Drive in East Kingsport. Stone Drive is also US-11-W. The wife and I were raised in Kingsport and had supper at Pratts resently. The Indian has been a part of our lives since we were both small children. For locals the Indian in part represents the city's only high school, Kingsport's Dobyns-Bennette High, known as "The Indians." Once an Indian always an Indian, the saying goes.

This location is the second home for the Indian. He has stood where he is since the early 1960s, when the new 11-W was built through the area where Pratts is now located, bypassing "downtown." The Indian stood on the ole US-11-W, now Hghiway 126, on what is known as Chestnut Ridge, about 2 miles as the crow files east of where he now stands. It was front page news the day "Kaw-Liga" was moved off the Ridge to his current home.

The old Pratt's location still stands as a private dwelling. The wife and I remember what a special treat it was to be taken to Pratt's when it was on the ridge for a hand dipped cone.

I am 36 years old and lived in Kingsport from 1965 to 1977, The Indian has been in front of Pratt's as long as I can remember. I recall that sometime in the mid-1970s a tornado passed by the Indian, left him standing but removed his loincloth. The entire city was scandalized to find out that the Indian chieftain was in fact an Indian maiden. If I recall correctly (I may have been 11 years at the oldest) a picture of the Indian sans loincloth made front page in the Kingsport Times-News the next morning. Thanks for bringing back a childhood memory.

This big guy has been standing in front of Pratts BBQ Barn for at least 25 years. He provides humor for the locals when his skirt periodically comes off. He is about 5 miles from the "Pals Man" in Kingsport.

The Pratt's Barn restaurant, where there is a huge Indian, does serve excellent food. They are locally known for their spiral sliced hams. I also think there is a muffler man at a place called Goony Golf on Brainerd Road in Chattanooga...at least it was there last time I was there.

This Indian stands on the south side of 11W north of Kingsport, in front of Pratt's Barbeque Barn. The restaurant is not open on Saturday so I don't know how the food is.