Trenton, Maine: Wentworth's Tired Iron Art

A scrap metal band performs endless encores at Wentworth's Tired Iron Art displays.

If it had not been for that big purple dinosaur along the road, I might have missed Wentworth's Tired Iron Art.

For more than four years prior to his death in November 2019, Jack Wentworth busied himself in the shop next to his house creating outsider art. He called it junk, his wife Christie told me. He couldn't figure out why people liked it so much. But luckily he and Christie continued to create. Jack especially liked working with old propane tanks, most of which were dropped off by friendly locals. He cut, painted, and welded using only his imagination as his guide. He never sold anything. If someone liked something, Jack would make another and give it to them for free.

The yard has hundreds of welded items. A fence along the side of the property is filled with smaller pieces, the trees are bedecked with hanging art, and the house has another hundred or so pieces. Jack was quite prolific.

Not liking to be crowded, Jack decided to be buried in his back yard, not in the nearby family cemetery. You can see his marker just inside the iron fence he created.

Jack Jr. now owns the place and plans to keep everything as is, open to all, free of charge.