W. C. Rice Cross Garden - Prattville, AL - Junk Design Houses on Waymarking.com

In 2010, this site was named one of Time Magazine's "Top 50 American Roadside Attractions," where they called it an example of American folk art. It was created in the 1970s by W. C. Rice and added to until his death in 2004. Among the signs are several warning the visitors that Hell is hot and they need to make a decision. The garden is located on Indian Hills Road (Autauga County 86) off of U.S. Highway 82 west of Prattville, Alabama. Since this is located in a neighborhood, the best time to come by would be during daylight hours. There is no fee, web page, or posted hours.

"On two small hillsides abutting County Road 86 in Alabama stand thousands of wooden crosses and a smattering of old washing machines, fridges, and other pieces of scrap metal. They all hold messages of despair. "Hell is hot." "You Will Die." Stuff like that. William C. Rice, who died in 2004, built this "garden" as a testament to his salvation by Christ in the late 1970s. While frightening in its fervor, the collection is an example of folk art at its most primitive." source is Time page at (visit link)

"William Carlton Rice passed away on Jan. 18, 2004, at home, surrounded by his family and his Cross Garden. W.C. had been hospitalized for a few weeks fighting pneumonia. He was buried at Prattville Memory Gardens. According to Montgomery Advisor writer Blu Gilliand, widow Marzell Rice said the family plans to maintain the Cross Garden. "We're going to keep it going," said Marzell. "We promised him that." According to Blu, the family may even add on to the Garden in the future." source is Roadside America web page at (visit link)

Another article tells how divine guidance led Mr. Rice to begin placing crosses and other items around his house. I will use this one for the web site below, as the Rice family does not have one of their own. " Rice's next divine message told him to move the symbols of his faith outside. "It was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life." Rice said. "It hurt my chest. It's not something that people are used to seeing in a man's yard." Rice's concern that his display would draw attention was well-founded. During the past two decades, Rice and his crosses have been featured in several folk art books and numerous magazine and newspaper articles." source: (visit link)

Web site: [Web Link] City/State: Prattville, Alabama

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