On Google Maps there is a small island called Volvo Island, where a car has been parked for 13 years

It might seem absurd, but come on Google Maps you can find a place called “Volvo Island”, a small island in the United States on which a car is parkedcar of the Swedish car manufacturer from ben 13 years old. The place, which you can visit on the Mountain View application by clicking on this link, is located exactly at Rutland Townshipa small town in LaSalle County (Illinois) where just 3,700 souls live. There are no details here tourist attractionsif not the aforementioned Volvo Island, which has become a sort of obligatory stop for anyone passing through the area, at least for those who know its curious history (now a memes). But what exactly is this place?

As shown by the Imagesalso visible on Street Viewit is a tiny islet inside a lake just enough to accommodate a car, in this specific case one Volvo S80 2001, silver in color, a luxury sedan. The car, as indicated, is parked on the small island since 2012. It didn’t end up there after a flood and it wasn’t even abandoned by someone; as can easily be understood, it was put there on purpose by someone, even if it can be said that the situation got a little out of hand. It was the car owner’s idea, Scott Manna man who lives in nearby Ottawa and who owns a couple of auto repair shops in the area. The idea of ​​Volvo Island came to him when the area, where one was located open pit mine abandoned, it was flooded to create a artificial lake.

When the lake was created, there was a spit of land connecting the lands around the Hiawata Pioneer TRL road to where the islet is now located. In practice, there was one peninsula. Mr Mann’s light bulb went on: he had the idea of ​​positioning his Volvo at the tip of the peninsula and removing the connection to the mainland using an excavator. The initial plan was to hold a sort of online contestwhere participants would have to guess how the car ended up on the newborn islet. After some reasoning, however, he decided not to propose competitions because someone could get very, very hurt. The main risk is that at night some curious person could try to swim across the artificial lake to reach it machine; a risk, given that the deepest point reaches 12 meters and there is a very dangerous step, going from a walkable area to the overhang. Someone unable to swim could have easily drowned, believing they could reach the car on “walk”.

Scott decided to leave his Volvo there anyway, since it all started with the intention of doing a little anyway advertising “alternative” to his companies. And it did well, at least from a promotional point of view, given that 13 years later we are also writing about it in Italy. The story of the car parked on the island, moreover, quickly received widespread media coverage in the USA, especially thanks to the internet, which encouraged many curious people to visit the place. It quickly became such an iconic place that Volvo Island was born on Google Maps as “tourist attraction” just three years after the daring parking: this year they are well 10 years than to the coordinates 41.35474, -88.79789 in Rutland Township you can find Volvo Island on the Google App.

The island has become such a famous meme that, at the time of this writing, it’s well into it 485 reviews with a vote of 4.9 out of 5 stars. Many are clearly ironic, between people who say they found God there and those who point out that that island is the safest place in the United States. There is also no shortage of classic “advice” for family trips and the like. Curiously, on Street View, you can also see a more recent Volvo model immersed in the water.

In short, if Mr. Scott only wanted to gain a little publicity, 13 years later we can candidly say that he has fully succeeded in his aim, obtaining unexpected global visibility. Probably even around Gothenburg they thank you. It must be said that over time the man thought of protecting the car in some way by preventing access, always out of concern for some reckless swimming. He even thought about placing advertising posters on the bodywork of the car, but then gave up because altering his S80 would have risked ruining what made “Volvo Island” iconic.