Big Vic

Big Vic is a big monument with a big story. In 1971, legislation authorizing the establishment of Voyageurs National Park was passed by the US Congress and signed by President Richard Nixon. State and local governments donated land holdings to the park, allowing its formal establishment in 1975. Private lands in the park were purchased as well, but this was and remains a contentious issue, since many landowners felt pressure to sell.

One landowner, Vic David, took this encroachment and pressure to sell to heart and decided to do whatever he could to protest the new national park. After selling small sections of his land to his friends for small amounts of money, forcing the park to deal with more landowners, Davis decided to take it a step further to inconvenience the park. In keeping with the historical theme of voyageurs, Davis commissioned the creation of two large voyageurs named Big Vic and Big Louie. Davis transported the brother statues to islands on Rainy Lake via helicopter; Big Vic was placed on Cranberry Island. Because the park wanted to maintain the natural integrity of the land, they were forced to pay to have the statues removed after they finally acquired the land from Davis and his friends. Eventually, Big Vic was given to the city of Ranier where he stands as a symbol of standing up for causes you believe in. His brother, Big Louie, made his way to Barnum, MN.