Promotional Sign (Painting on Plywood)

Promotional Sign (Painting on Plywood) Norwegian-American Oljanna Cunneen, c. 1984 Plywood, paint Gift of Mount Horeb Area Chamber of Commerce MHAHS 2003.116.0003

Who best to greet visitors to the “Troll Capital of the World” than a smiling, one-toothed, white haired troll? Painted on plywood by Oljanna Cunneen, this double sided, four toed troll served as a promotional piece along Main Street. With a crowned girl tucked into his hair and a bird perched on his hands, this dapper fellow reflects both Cunneen’s sense of humor and her tireless promotion of the area’s Norwegian-American identify. More than a dozen of these plywood cutouts once adorned Mount Horeb’s Main Street, dubbed the “Trollway” in the mid- to late-1980s.