Greeley, Colorado: Shoe Tree (Gone)

The shoe tree described here is long gone. I remember traveling what is now North 59th Ave all the time as a kid and seeing the pair of trees adorned with various footwear. In the mid 90's the trees caught fire in a farmer's controlled burn that got out of control. It didn't take long for people to redecorate, nailing their nikes to the trees' charred remains.

But alas, the property owner had the two trees removed from the roadside not long after the fire.

This shoe tree is on a rural road that runs north off of the Route 34 bypass (aka West 10th Street) in Greeley, CO towards Severance, CO (Home of Bruce's Bar which claims to be the inventor of the Rocky mountain oyster - Welcome sign says" Welcome to Severance Where the Geese Fly and the Bulls Cry" which is worth seeing in and of itself). Rumor has it that the shoe tree has been struck by lightning and the first set of shoes burned but within a few days the tree was resurrected and covered all over again. I remember the turn was near the country club and the Sheep Draw Veterinary hospital. There was a funky 70's style building on the corner that was a liquor store (maybe 59th Ave).