This Statue of Mary is Hidden in the Hills of Ottertail County

My grandparents just recently built a cabin near Battle Lake, Minnesota and over the weekend my whole family went there for some good quality time.

We all woke up early on Saturday, and as we had breakfast my grandma suggested we go visit the Lady of the Hills. I saw "Lady of the Hills Road" in Millerville as we were driving up late Friday, and it piqued my interest so I was all in.

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My grandma had been there before so she directed me as I drove down an unassuming gravel road, that I honestly thought couldn't be right. Who would build a statue and then place it in the middle of nowhere? But as soon as the thought crossed my head, there she was.

A giant 4,500 lb, 16.8-foot cement statue of Mary stood in an immaculately landscaped area, just below the third highest hill in the state of Minnesota.

Bill Danelke is the reason that statue stands there. The short version of the story goes like so:

Bill was in a farming accident in 1953 with a cow, where the cow's horn caught his jaw and saliva gland. When a doctor cut some of the infected area out, it tested cancerous. Bill's mother said if he prayed a rosary every day, the Blessed Mother Mary would help him through his cancer treatment. Bill took it one step further and promised to build a statue in Mary's honor. And he did just that in 1992.

The statue sees lots of visitors too. The guest book had three pages full of signatures just from this spring and summer, not only from Minnesota but from all around the world.

If you are up that direction this summer, I suggest making a quick stop. It's a cool thing to check out. Get directions to the statue here.