A near table setting in Franklin, Kentucky

When you come to a fork in the road, take it ---Yogi Berra

The fork in the road - where road trip adventures sometimes begin...or end. A decision point, a local landmark, and in Simpson County, Kentucky - a 21-foot piece of art.

Designed, built, and installed by welding students at Franklin-Simpson High School in 2018 - the literal "fork in the road" stands at the intersection of Uhls and Bunch Road outside of Franklin in South Central Kentucky. The piece of art instantly became a hit - attracting visitors from Kentucky, nearby Tennessee, and all over the country.

Simpson County Bicentennial Commemorative Coins that feature the Fork in the Road.

The Fork in the Road is celebrated throughout Simpson County. During the county's bicentennial in 2019, commemorative coins featured the fork. When I was visiting here in May 2022, I was fortunate to receive two of the Simpson County Bicentennial Coins from a passerby.

Three years later - the students at Franklin-Simpson High School were at it again. This time, the welding students created a 24-foot butter knife sculpture. Called "The Cutting Edge of Simpson County," it is located at the Blackjack Sculpture Park along Blackjack Road - only a few miles from the "fork." The sculpture is considered the world's largest butter knife.

The latest addition to FSHS' public art portfolio is a working weathervane that features a glider airplane with a 48' wingspan.

The sculpture park is home to other FSHS welding class creations, including a glider weathervane and the Captain Wildcat Space Shutter. Franklin-Simpson's welding classes have also created additional public art within Franklin.

There's no word yet on when FSHS students will complete the table setting with a giant spoon.

All photos taken by post author - May 3, 2022.

Comments

Interstate 40's Tumultuous Ride Through the Pigeon River Gorge

In the nearly 60 years Interstate 40 has been open to traffic through the Pigeon River Gorge in the mountains of Western North Carolina, it has been troubled by frequent rockslides and damaging flooding, which has seen the over 30-mile stretch through North Carolina and Tennessee closed for months at a time. Most recently, excessive rainfall from Hurricane Helene in September 2024 saw sections of Interstate 40 wash away into a raging Pigeon River. While the physical troubles of Interstate 40 are well known, how I-40 came to be through the area is a tale of its own. Interstate 40 West through Haywood County near mile marker 10. I-40's route through the Pigeon River Gorge dates to local political squabbles in the 1940s and a state highway law written in 1921. A small note appeared in the July 28, 1945, Asheville Times. It read that the North Carolina State Highway Commission had authorized a feasibility study of a "...water-level road down [the] Pigeon River to the Tennessee l

Mines Road

Mines Road is an approximately twenty-eight-mile highway located in the rural parts of the Diablo Range east of the San Francisco Bay Area. Mines Road begins in San Antonio Valley in Santa Clara County and terminates at Tesla Road near Livermore of Alameda County. The highway essentially is a modern overlay of the 1840s Mexican haul trail up Arroyo Mocho known as La Vereda del Monte. The modern corridor of Mines Road took shape in the early twentieth century following development of San Antonio Valley amid a magnesite mining boom. Part 1; the history of Mines Road Modern Mines Road partially overlays the historic corridor used by La Vereda del Monte (Mountain Trail). La Vereda del Monte was part of a remote overland route through the Diablo Range primarily used to drive cattle from Alta California to Sonora. The trail was most heavily used during the latter days of Alta California during the 1840s. La Vereda del Monte originated at Point of Timber between modern day Byron and Bre

Interstate 210 the Foothill Freeway

The combined Interstate 210/California State Route 210 corridor of the Foothill Freeway is approximately 85.31-miles. The Interstate 210/California State Route 210 corridor begins at Interstate 5 at the northern outskirts of Los Angeles and travels east to Interstate 10 in Redlands of San Bernardino County. Interstate 210 is presently signed on the 44.9-mile segment of the Foothill Freeway between Interstate 5 and California State Route 57. California State Route 210 makes up the remaining 40.41 miles of the Foothill Freeway east to Interstate 10. Interstate 210 is still classified by the Federal Highway Administration as existing on what is now signed as California State Route 57 from San Dimas south to Interstate 10. The focus of this blog will mostly be on the history of Interstate 210 segment of the Foothill Freeway. Part 1; the history of Interstate 210 and California State Route 210 Interstate 210 (I-210) was approved as a chargeable Interstate during September of

Gribblenation

Search This Blog