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These are all markers that I was able to locate by descriptions and documentation online. Most of them are verified at least via Google Street View. I also added markers that got mentioned somewhere on the internet or in publications, but that are unverified. And I added locations where the markers got removed. This is just to have them on record. Please tell me about your findings and correct me if I am wrong somewhere.
Many markers were relocated due to highway expansion. Sometimes by local churches or individuals. Some of them ended up on private property, out of sight of the public. Around Middlesboro, KY, Mayes’ remaining markers were donated to the Museum of Appalachia, and some were planted in new places. All thanks to the initiative of Catherine and Clyde Mayes who documented everything around Mayes work in the late nineties.
Thanks to Martha Carver who provided photos and locations from her own research. And thanks to everyone who wrote about the marker online and posted photos. If I used your work and didn’t credit you, email me!
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alt=”Andrews, NC”>
Andrews, NC
Worn-out, heart-shaped marker by Harrison Mayes, behind the local airport in Andrews, North Carolina.
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross (current location unknown)”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross (current location unknown)
This marker was standing till a road expansion in the late nineties and was then moved to a private residency. This cross is supposed to be placed on planet Venus. The following two articles are…
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross in Cleveland, TN”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross in Cleveland, TN
This cross was saved by the members of the Dalton Pike Baptist Church, when a highway expansion project got too close to it. Archival Google Street view images show the construction and the cross moving…
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alt=”Museum of Appalachia”>
Museum of Appalachia
The Museum of Appalachia displays the most extensive collection of Henry Harrison Mayes artifacts including markers of different materials, the cast, his advertising bike, several hand painted signs, his jacket with the crosses, objects and…
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alt=”Conway, AR”>
Conway, AR
Unusual brightly painted marker in Conway, Faulkner County, Arkansas. This one is supposed to be erected in Algeria in 1990. It never made it there, but it has a nice spot there in Arkansas. The…
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross
One of Henry Harrison Mayes original crosses, unpainted, still standing. Photo by Jeff McNelley via facebook
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alt=”Barn in Del Rio, TN (destroyed)”>
Barn in Del Rio, TN (destroyed)
This barn existed until 2021 when it finally collapsed. Not many photos exist online, but archival Google Street View photos document the decline. The phrase “Prepare To Meet God” appeared twice on the barn.
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alt=”Heart-Shaped Marker by Harrison Mayes near Cumberland Gap, KY”>
Heart-Shaped Marker by Harrison Mayes near Cumberland Gap, KY
This marker is the one that was featured in the 1971 National Geographic Magazine about Cumberland Gap, Kentucky. In a discussion thread about the sign on facebook, the person who lives across the road claimed:…
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross (Metal) (unconfirmed, moved)”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross (Metal) (unconfirmed, moved)
This metal cross by Harrison Mayes doesn’t exist at its original place anymore. It got moved to the local museum in 2015, after someone asked to purchase it. John Paulding Historical Msm, 600 Fairground Dr,…
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker
One of Harrison Mayes heart-shaped markers not too far from his hometown, but already in Virginia. The marker was mentioned in the book “Mountain Holiness – A Photographic Narrative” from 2003. This poured cement heart,…
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross
A fixed cross by Henry Harrison Mayes in Fletcher, NC next to train tracks.
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker
A well maintained marker by Henry Harrison Mayes in Harlan, Kentucky. Photo by Lee Akers via waymarking.com
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alt=”Harrogate, TN – Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross”>
Harrogate, TN – Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross
This cross was moved to its present location by Clyde Mayes, Harrison Mayes’ son, on Father’s Day, June 20, 1999. It was relocated from old Highway 25-E at Patterson Road, Harrogate, TN to its present…
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alt=”Get Right with God/Jesus Saves – Metal Sign”>
Get Right with God/Jesus Saves – Metal Sign
A metal sign, that shows some damage in historic Google Street View photos, but seemed to be restored at some point, because on 2013 Street View records the sign says “Get Right with God” on…
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alt=”Get Right With God – Metal Sign in Jesup, GA”>
Get Right With God – Metal Sign in Jesup, GA
Tri-colored metal sign by Henry Harrison Mayes.
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alt=”Maher, WV”>
Maher, WV
One of Harrison Mayes’ heart-shaped markers can be found in Maher, Mingo County, West Virginia. This is only verified by Google Streetview images from 2008 and a photo by photographer Roger May from 2010.
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker
One of the still standing markers in Mebane, North Carolina, that appears to be in good shape.
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alt=”Harrison Mayes First Heart-Shaped Marker at the Family Grave”>
Harrison Mayes First Heart-Shaped Marker at the Family Grave
One of Henry Harrison Mayes’ first concrete signs was placed at the Fork Ridge Cemetery where his parents Ed and Alinda Mayes, his sister Cara and his brother Deward are buried. Lewis Elven “Ed” Mayes…
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker
This marker was supposed to be erected at the Suez Canal in 1990, but it didn’t make it out of Mayes hometown. So it’s still standing at the side of Highway 25E when heading out…
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alt=”Relocated Roadside Cross in Middlesboro, KY”>
Relocated Roadside Cross in Middlesboro, KY
A cross by Henry Harrison Mayes, probably rescued from road construction and planted next to the Bennetts Fork Baptist Church.
The Cross Bench by Harrison Mayes
This sign was placed on a sidewalk downtown near the busiest corner between 19th and 20th Street, and Cumberland Avenue.The size of the bench was 6 ft. long with the beam of the cross measuring…
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alt=”The House of Many Crosses”>
The House of Many Crosses
Mayes former home built in shape of a cross and initially with the message “Jesus Saves” painted on the roof. It’s a private home, so please be respectful. I tried to make this house mean…
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker
This marker is placed a bit off the road, in the woods and might be harder to see in summer.
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alt=”Mayes cross from the iconic James Karales photo of the Selma to Montgomery protest march, 1964″>
Mayes cross from the iconic James Karales photo of the Selma to Montgomery protest march, 1964
Photo by James Karales, “Get Right with God” sign on Highway 80 on the Selma to Montgomery March, 1964 Andreas Karales’ Memories of his Father, James – Gibbes Museum of Art https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selma_to_Montgomery_marches Thanks to Brent Moore for…
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker
This is a broken but still standing cross near a highway rest area. See also: https://blindpigandtheacorn.com/have-you-ever-seen-a-harrison-mayes-cross/
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alt=”Murphy, NC”>
Murphy, NC
A well-maintained marker by Harrison Mayes, next to a church
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alt=”Tazewell, TN – Big 40 ft. Roadside Sign”>
Tazewell, TN – Big 40 ft. Roadside Sign
This is Harrison Mayes last sign, he set up near his old homeplace in Tazewell, TN. According to Google Street View, the sign was still present in 2014, but was gone in 2016. Thanks to…
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alt=”Get Right With God Barn by Henry Harrison Mayes”>
Get Right With God Barn by Henry Harrison Mayes
The letters on the barn got refurbished around 2019. Thanks to Brent Moore for locating this.
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alt=”Ocoee, TN”>
Ocoee, TN
This cross is featured in a few YouTube videos. In an attempt to repair the cross, the D of “GOD” was filled up and it read “GET RIGHT WITH GO”. 2023-12-03 Thanks to Thomas McGuire…
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alt=”Cross in Ringgold, GA”>
Cross in Ringgold, GA
I saw a mention of a Mayes cross in Ringgold, GA, near Chattanooga, TN in a facebook comment, but could not find it on Street View. Thanks to Martha Carver for the confirmation and sending…
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alt=”Faux Mayes Cross near Kingston, TN”>
Faux Mayes Cross near Kingston, TN
A rather unusual, more primitive concrete marker on Hwy 80 in Rockwood, TN near Kingston, TN. The cross misses the typical lettering and message, instead it appears rough and with a different wording than Mayes…
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross (unconfirmed)”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross (unconfirmed)
This sign by Harrison Mayes is different then the traditional concrete crosses as it was made out of corrugated steel. Edit 2023-11-02: another photo of the cross added. Thanks to Danny Martin (@dmartin3162) who remembered…
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross
This cross in Smyrna, Tennessee was being modified for some time when the message said Made Right With God instead of Get Right With God. The most insightful discussion about the meaning of the change might be in the…
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alt=”Speedwell, TN – Get Right With God (Happy Ending) Sign”>
Speedwell, TN – Get Right With God (Happy Ending) Sign
According to “A Coal Miner’s Simple Message” Book, a cross was relocated from Middlesboro, KY to Speedwell, TN to Bill Hatfields property. I wasn’t able to find it via street view or satellite images, but…
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alt=”Speedwell, TN Cross”>
Speedwell, TN Cross
According to the book “A Coal Miner’s Simple Message”, a cross was relocated from Middlesboro to Speedwell, TN to Bill Hatfields property on January 31. 1998. Thanks to historian Martha Carver providing pictures and the…
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alt=”Speedwell, TN Sign”>
Speedwell, TN Sign
On the same property, the relocated Speedwell, TN cross is standing, one of Mayes’ painted sign can be seen on a barn nearby and then another more worn out sign on a different barn.
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alt=”Metal Cross – Get Right With God”>
Metal Cross – Get Right With God
This cross was posted by artist Patrick Owens on his website and Instagram, with only the town mentioned. Must be somewhere near Highway US-11. If you know the exact location, please contact me.
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alt=”Get Right with God – Metal Sign in Stockton, GA”>
Get Right with God – Metal Sign in Stockton, GA
This sign is… …on the west side of the road (southbound). This sign has been restored by community members about 5 years ago now & it was moved 0.5 miles (0.8 km) up the road…
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alt=”Roadside Cross in Tazewell, TN”>
Roadside Cross in Tazewell, TN
White cross with red letters in Tazewell, Tennessee.
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alt=”Unusual Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross and Display in Tazewell, TN”>
Unusual Harrison Mayes Roadside Cross and Display in Tazewell, TN
This is a more unusual display of large letters spelling PREPARE TO MEET GOD and a cross laying flat in the ground. Thanks to Martha Carver for pointing out the iconic red white and black…
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alt=”Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker”>
Harrison Mayes Roadside Marker
Photo of one of Mayes markers in Williamson, West Virginia a coal town, documented by Builder Levy in 1971. Marker might not exist anymore.