Biggest ball of twine, Tourist attraction in Darwin, Minnesota

The biggest ball of twine built by one person stands 12 feet in diameter and weighs 17,400 pounds, wound from baler twine by Francis A. Johnson in Darwin, Minnesota. Its surface shows horizontal bands of dry tan sisal strands, and the ball rests on a concrete floor inside an enclosed gazebo on Main Street.

Francis A. Johnson began rolling the ball in March 1950, wrapping it four hours a day for 29 years. It was completed in 1979 and held the Guinness record for biggest ball of twine from then until 1994. The town later renamed the street leading to it "Weird Alley" in honor of "Weird Al" Yankovic's 1989 song about the ball.

The ball inspired "Weird Al" Yankovic's 1989 song "The Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota"; in 2019 the town renamed the street leading to it "Weird Alley" in his honor. Postcards reading "Greetings from the Twine Ball, wish you were here", a fictitious invention of Yankovic's, are now sold in Darwin as an attraction.

The ball stands in an enclosed gazebo across from the town park on Main Street, so it can be seen but not touched. The volunteer-run museum and gift shop next door is free to visit and holds information on the ball's history. Twine Ball Day falls on the second Saturday in August.

Neighbors and local farmers donated leftover string so Johnson could keep adding to the ball as it grew larger. The increasing weight eventually forced him to use a railroad jack to rotate the mass while winding new layers and keeping the form round.