Folks scamper in droves to Stonehenge, the famous monument on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England. And in the U.S., the Statue of Liberty was visited by a whopping 1.6 million people in 2021. On that same high-brow level of significance, The Big Chair, the small-town claim to fame in Thomasville, North Carolina, is nothing to sneeze at either. The Duncan Phyfe armchair replica was built in 1950 by Thomasville Furniture Industries. And since then, its importance has grown to capture the attention of diplomats and other persons of note. In 1960, President Lyndon B. Johnson chose the stately seat as a critical place to stand during his campaign for the presidential election. However, it wasn’t the first big chair there.
In September of 1922, the original pine chair was built at 13-feet-6-inches tall.
State Archives of North Carolina, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons The construction material didn’t weather well and it lasted until 1936 when it was sadly torn down.
But the public outcry must have been monstrous, as in 1950, the current chair was built.
AmaryllisGardener, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Here is the chair’s monumental plaque highlighting its importance.
Bert J/TripAdvisor
The Big Chair is 30 feet tall with a 10-foot 6-inch wide seat.
The City of Thomasville, NC - Government/Facebook The concrete and steel base is sculpted from Indiana limestone and made to last, even through the cold winters.
Just look at it in the glory of spring.
The City of Thomasville, NC - Government/Facebook
At Christmastime, it gets some special treatment.
The City of Thomasville, NC - Government/Facebook
We love The Big Chair in the shadow of the sunset with the street lamps sparkling at its side.
The City of Thomasville, NC - Government/Facebook
And The Big Chair is even the center of attention during festivals.
The City of Thomasville, NC - Government/Facebook The award-winning Everybody’s Day Festival has entertained people for more than a hundred years, to take place again on Sept. 30.
The chair will silently await, so stately and so proud.
Bert J/TripAdvisor
Are you ready to head to Thomasville to see this small town’s claim to fame? If you visit The Big Chair city, please tell us about your experience in the comments below. And if you’re up for an adventure, book this outdoor laser tag course in Archdale, North Carolina, about 10 miles down the road.
State Archives of North Carolina, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons
The construction material didn’t weather well and it lasted until 1936 when it was sadly torn down.
AmaryllisGardener, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Bert J/TripAdvisor
The City of Thomasville, NC - Government/Facebook
The concrete and steel base is sculpted from Indiana limestone and made to last, even through the cold winters.
The award-winning Everybody’s Day Festival has entertained people for more than a hundred years, to take place again on Sept. 30.
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Address: Thomasville, NC 27360, USA
