Fairplain, West Virginia: Mysterious Stone Head

Seven-foot-high head carved into a rocky outcrop in the 1930a by farmer Otis Shinn. Is it George Washington? An Easter Island Moai? No one really knows, and we can't ask Shinn; he died in 1962.

Address:: Parchment Valley Rd, Fairplain, WV
Directions:: I-77 exit 132. Turn north, then make a quick left at the first stoplight onto Shinn Lane/Parchment Creek-Valley Rd. Drive one mile, paralleling the Interstate. You'll see the head on the right, up on a rocky outcrop. Also visible from I-77 at milepost 133.5.

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Mysterious Stone Head.

Mysterious Stone Head

Located between the Ripley and Fairplain exits on I-77, this stone face is visible from the road, looking east.

[Caryn Keller, 10/05/2024]

The head can really only be seen from the interstate during the leafless winter months, but a local road runs right past it for year-round views.

George Washington Cliff Sculpture

Hand-sculpted six foot rendering of George Washington's face that also looks like one of the Easter Island statues.

[Jeff Gandee, 05/31/2024]

The head was carved by farmer Otis Shinn in the 1930s. Some who knew him said he was inspired by the then-underway President heads at Mount Rushmore. Others who knew him said that it wasn't George Washington at all; it was just a head.