Oklahoma Roadside Oddity: The Winganon Space Capsule
In Northeast Oklahoma, a cement mixer abandoned after a 1959 (or 1971) truck accident was transformed into the "Winganon Space Capsule" in 2011 by local artists Barry and Heather Thomas. Painted to resemble a NASA capsule, it remains a quirky roadside attraction on East 300 Rd., near Highway 169, despite potential road construction.
By Wendy Brunner
If you ever find yourself on the road between Talala and Winganon in Northeast Oklahoma, you might be surprised to see what appears to be a space capsule crashed into the ditch. Is this a Cold War relic? Did the Soviets paint it to look like a U.S. rocket with “NASA,” “United States of America” and the American flag stenciled on its sides to spy on the fine residents of these two small towns?
Nah, nothing sinister like that. This roadside oddity is actually a cement mixer painted to look like a U.S space capsule.
There is some confusion about when this landmark came into existence, with some reports saying it happened in 1959 and other reports saying it was 1971. Although the year is in question, how it came to be in the ditch is the same tall tale regardless of when it happened.
A concrete-filled cement mixer truck was on its way to help build the bridge over Oologah Lake, rolled over at this location in 1959 (1971?) and by the time a tow truck arrived to haul the cement truck away, the cement inside the mixer had hardened. Unable to handle the extra weight, the crew decided to haul only the truck and come back for the detached mixer later, which for some reason never happened (did a cement company really never miss its mixer? I have questions).
The relic became a surface for people to spray paint messages on it until September 2011, when local artists Barry and Heather Thomas turned it into a space capsule. The couple attached canning lids, garden hose, broken reflectors and other household items to the mixer to make the transformation complete. Before it was imagined as a space capsule, the mixer was painted in a patriotic stars-and-stripes motif.
In 2023, the future of the roadside attraction was uncertain when a major road construction project was announced. The roadwork was to involve repaving and improving Winganon Road from Highway 169 across Oologah Lake, and the space capsule would probably have to be removed. As is common in state government, nothing more has been said about the pavement improvements or moving the roadside attraction, so it’s still there for now, to motorists’ delight. The address is East 300 Rd., just east of Highway 169, in Talala, Oklahoma.
Check out the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/winganonspacecapsule. (Photos and information from travelok.com.)
