Somewhere between Tucson and the New Mexico border, you’ll see the billboards. Hundreds of them. Big yellow signs with a simple question:
“The Thing?”
If you’re driving Interstate 10 long enough, it’s basically psychological warfare. Curiosity builds. You start wondering—what is it? A cryptid? Alien? Mummy? A joke?
You’ll find out at Exit 322. And you still won’t believe it.
Where It Is
Address: 2631 N Johnson Rd, Dragoon, AZ 85609
Just off I‑10, between Benson and Willcox, Arizona. You’ll see the gas station, the Dairy Queen, the gift shop, and then—behind a gated door—the real weirdness begins.
The Origins of “The Thing?”
Back in the 1950s, a guy named Homer Tate started building bizarre objects for sideshows and traveling exhibits. His “artifacts” included mummified aliens, mermaids, and shrunken heads—all made from papier-mâché, bones, and glue. Total gaff art. The Thing? is likely one of his works.
Later, Thomas Binkley Prince, a collector and showman, bought the piece and built the roadside attraction around it. He knew the mystery sold better than the truth.
And it worked. To this day, nobody really knows what The Thing is supposed to be. And that’s the point.
What You’ll Actually See
The exhibit was completely revamped in 2018, adding a whole backstory involving aliens, time travel, dinosaurs, and ancient civilizations. It’s now a strange, semi-sci-fi museum that tells a weird alternate history of Earth.
You walk through a series of dioramas:
- Alien invaders influencing ancient Egypt
- Nazi officers working with extraterrestrials
- Dinosaurs battling robots
- Time travel conspiracies
And finally, at the end of the maze—The Thing, resting in a plexiglass coffin.
It’s human-shaped. Mummified. Child-sized.
You stare at it, unsure if you’ve been scammed or inducted into something bigger.
Why It Endures
Because it’s weird.
Because it’s fun.
Because it’s perfectly American.
The Thing? is one of those rare attractions that knows it’s ridiculous and leans into it hard. It’s not trying to be real. It’s trying to be unforgettable—and in that, it absolutely succeeds.
Final Notes
- Entry is cheap (under $10), and honestly worth it for the sheer WTF factor.
- The gift shop is packed with alien stuff, cowboy tchotchkes, and inexplicable knives.
- It’s air-conditioned. Which makes it worth the stop alone if you’re driving in 110-degree heat.
You may leave confused. You’ll definitely leave entertained.
And like the sign says…
What IS The Thing?
