The MUG Tree

The Mug Tree - I know. I never heard of such a thing either. But there it was in all its glory as we were driving past corn field, after corn field in Illinois. Just south of a little town called Yale, population 100, there is a mug tree on the side of the road on Mike Fisher's property.  We stopped and pulled over to get a closer look at this tree, and here came Mr. Fisher. He told us how an uncle of his had seen a mug tree in his travels all over the U.S. and how when this tree died, he decided to make one of his own in September 2003. Some Amish boys from down the road, helped him chop off the dying limbs so one wouldn't get conked on the head nailing a mug to the tree. They were also kind enough to take some recycled wood and build that little clubhouse of sorts to the top so that no water would come in the hole in the center of the tree. This hopefully will preserve the tree a little while longer. Right now there are somewhere around 108 mugs on the tree. Mr. Fisher said that its a challenge in the winter as he has to come out and empty the snow or rain water out of the cups and rotate them so that the liquid in them doesn't freeze and break the mug. 

So, if you ever find yourself along highway 49 keep an eye out for the mug tree! http://www.roadsideamerica.com/