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Polar Bear Statues

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Polar Bear [gone]
Louisville, KY		 Polar Bears
Rumney, NH		 Polar Bear
Worcester, MA
The Polar Bear in Louisville was installed in front of Zipper Air Conditioning & Heating. The bear originally came from Owensboro, KY but was here for many years. Sometime between 2011 and 2014, the statue disappeared.

These Polar Bears are located at Polar Caves Park. For more, see this website. [map]

The Polar Bear in Worcester is installed on the roof of Polar Beverages' headquarters and production plant. A polar bear named Orson has been the mascot for the company since 1902. This inflatable Orson statue is obviously much more modern. Does anyone know when it was first installed? [map]

Polar Bear
Houston, TX
This Polar Bear was being painted and installed in front of the Chill Spot Daiquiris To Go when these photos were taken in 2018. The statue was supposedly used in a Super Bowl TV commercial by Coca-Cola. I'm skeptical because I think all of those commercials are animated. Some of the statues features (face, back paw pads, both front paws in bottle-holding position) also seem fairly crude to have been produced by Coca-Cola. [map]

Polar Bear & Cubs [gone]
Mesa, AZ
The bronze Polar Bear & Cubs sculpture is about nine feet long. It was created by Dollores Shelledy and installed in Mesa in 2007. It was designed for children to climb on. These photos are from 2012. By 2015, the sculpture was gone. I don't know if it left town or was moved to another spot. There is another casting of this sculpture at Sea World in Orlando, FL.

Polar Bear
Tawas City, MI		 Polar Bear
Elmira, NY		 Polar Bear
Spring, TX
This Polar Bear in Tawas City stands in front of the North Star Motel. The bear wears different outfits throughout the year. [map]

The Polar Bear in Elmira stands on the roof of the Maple Lawn Dairy Bar. They opened in 1962 with a giant metal ice cream cone sign on the roof. The bear is dressed in various outfits throughout the year. [map]

The Polar Bear in Spring was installed in front of Conroe Taxidermy. The fiberglass statue was built in 1989. The space now houses a CBD Dispensary but the statue remains. [map]

Polar Bear & Iceberg
Great Falls, MT
This concrete and plaster Polar Bear & Iceberg was installed on the roof of the Iceberg Cafe in the 1920s. The entire building was styled to look like a block of ice. Forced to relocate for the construction of a bank in 1955, the Iceberg Cafe moved to its current location. The Polar Bear & Iceberg were also moved and put on the roof. At some point, the business became known as the Polar Bear Cafe. In 1985, it became Leonor's Family Restaurant. The following year, the statue was repainted. The polar bear was painted black and the iceberg was painted to look like mountains. In 1990, it became the Polar Bear Cafe again and the sculpture was painted white. In recent years, the building has housed a check cashing business. It is now a tattoo studio but the statue remains. [map]

Polar Bear
McAlester, OK		 Polar Bear
Ada, OK		 Polar Bear
Tulsa, OK
This Polar Bear statue in McAlester is located at the Polar Bear Store convenience store at a Sinclair gas station. [map]

This Polar Bear statue in Ada is part of the sign located at Dependable Heating & Air Conditioning. It was installed sometime between 2013 and 2016. [map]

This bronze Polar Bear statue in Tulsa was installed in front of the Tulsa County Courthouse in 2018. The statue was created by Paul Rhymer. It is one of 30 sculptures installed in Tulsa since 1994 as part of a monuments program with NatureWorks. [map]

Polar Bear
La Crosse, WI
(now Onalaska, WI)		 Polar Bear
Homewood, IL		 Polar Bears [gone]
White Bear Lake, MN
The Polar Bear in La Crosse was installed on the roof of Paul's Heating & Air Conditioning. The store also had a polar bear and seal in the window that were taxidermied after an Alaskan hunt in 1971. This photo was taken in 2007. In 2010, the store moved to Onalaska, WI. The bear is now displayed there on top of the store's sign. [map]

This Polar Bear in Homewood is located on someone's front lawn. This photo is from 2009. I didn't make note of the address, so I don't know if it is still there. Does anyone know where it's located?

These Polar Bears in White Bear Lake were installed in front of the Twin City Nursery. This photo is from 2011. The business closed in 2014 and the statues were removed. I believe they were sold so they may reappear somewhere.

Polar Bear
Larimore, ND
This Polar Bear statue is part of the city's welcome sign. It has been there since at least 2007. The high school sports teams' mascot in the polar bear. [map]

Polar Chevrolet
White Bear Lake, MN
Polar Chevrolet features a 35-foot-tall polar bear statue. The fiberglass and steel bear was installed in 1964. The artist that created him, Gordon Shumaker, is also responsible for other giant statues in Minnesota including the Smokey Bear in International Falls, the Big Ole Viking in Alexandria, the Gopher at the St. Paul Fairgrounds, and the Bluegill in Orr. This polar bear statue weighs several tons. It was originally installed on a post in front of the dealership which was then known as Thane-Hawkins Chevrolet. The statue was a frequent target of local kids who shot arrows at it. To discourage this practice, the dealership moved it to the roof in 1971. However, the statue moved a bit in high winds which caused concern. Therefore, the statue was moved to a new post in 1986. The bear wore painted-on swimming trunks of different designs from around 1986-2004. The statue also wore sunglasses for a while. During a period of road construction, the statue wore a hard hat and tool belt. The smiling bear has remained white and unadorned in recent years. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2. [map]

Commercial Casino
Elko, NV
The Commercial Casino features two giant polar bear statues, one over each entrance. The statues are at least 18 feet tall. Neon tubing behind the bears illuminates them at night. Old postcards reveal that at least one of these statues wore a cowboy hat and bandanna. There appeared to be a pipe or a gun in one of his paws. The inspiration for these statues is the taxidermied polar bear located inside the casino (first photo above). At just over ten feet tall, the Alaskan bear "White King" was believed to be the world's largest polar bear. The bear was shot, stuffed, and displayed at Jonas Furs in Denver, CO before the casino purchased him in 1958. The bear was put in the casino's coffee shop where it remains today. When the casino first bought the bear, it was promoted with a giant billboard across the street which depicted the bear. Around 1959, an additional polar bear sign was installed above the billboard. The bear part of the sign was about 30 feet tall and might have been accented with neon. That sign seems to have disappeared sometime in the 1960s. Today's statues were probably installed in the 1960s or 1970s. They are repainted every couple of years because they are popular bird perches. For more, see these websites: 1 and 2. [map]

More Polar Bears:
Nome, AK
St. Paul, MN
Winger, MN [map]
Kansas City, MO
Toledo, OH
Pawtucket, RI
Jackson, WY
Grand Falls, NB
Cochrane, ON

Polar Bear signs (various cities)

Polar Bears
Nashville, TN
These 5 1/2 feet tall plaster Polar Bears were created in 1930 for Polar Bear Frozen Custard shops. The buildings icy exteriors were embedded with mirrored glass for a glittering appearance. There was a location in Washington, DC which was demolished in the early 1980s. There was also another location in Wichita, KS. I don't know where the chain was first established or how many locations there were. However, the majority of the remaining polar bear statues are in Tennessee.

The statues shown above were installed in front of a residence on Edgehill Ave. in the 1940s. In 2005, they were moved to this new spot in the neighborhood, now officially known as the "Edgehill Polar Bear Plaza". There are reports of two other Polar Bears like this in Nashville - one might be the one described below. Does anyone know where the fourth might be? [map]

Polar Bear
Nashville, TN		 Polar Bear
Jackson, TN		 Polar Bear
Middleton, TN
This Polar Bear in Nashville is another example of the custard shop bears described above. This one is in front of a residence and was missing an arm. By 2021, the arm was restored and the statue was painted. [map]

This Polar Bear in Jackson now functions as a mailbox at the Fireplace Center. [map]

These Polar Bears in Middleton are installed in front of the police station. [map]

Polar Bears [gone]
Memphis, TN
This pair of Polar Bears was installed in front of the Happy Hocker pawn shop. There was originally a Polar Bear Frozen Custard shop here. At some point later, it became the Fairview Drive In. The drive-in closed sometime after the 1990s. The Happy Hocker closed around 2020 and these statues were removed. Only their bases remain.

Polar Bears [gone]
Memphis, TN
This pair of Polar Bears stood in front of Java Juice & Jazz. At some point after 2007, they were moved here from across the street. But before that, I don't know where these bears were located. By 2021, the juice stand had closed and these statues were gone.

Polar Bears
Tunica, MS		 Polar Bears
Memphis, TN		 Polar Bear
Springfield, MO
The Polar Bears in Tunica have been standing in front of Happy Daze since they opened around 1993. These statues came from St. Louis. In 2014, these statues had painted on swim trunks. The snowballs were also painted different colors. [map]

The third pair of Polar Bears in Memphis is at a Dixie Queen Hamburgers location. [map]

The Polar Bear in Springfield is installed on the roof of McDaniel Furs. The statue was originally located at an ice cream store in Springfield. It is believed that the statue was moved to McDaniel Furs around 1947 when Taylor's Drive-in replaced the ice cream store. It has been the furrier's mascot since then. The statue was originally installed in the parking lot. It was moved to the roof in the late 1970s to prevent it from being vandalized or stolen. [map]

Polar Bear
Morenci, MI
This Polar Bear stands on the front lawn of a house. [map]

More Snowball Polar Bears:
Portageville, MO [gone]
Saltillo, MS [gone]

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