Mean mother of the road

BEALLSVILLE, Pa. This is supposed to be the face of a nurturing mother but her expression could scare the daylights out of the baby in her bosom.

After withstanding 81 years in the elements, Madonna of the Trail has taken on the appearance of a mean old hag beside the historical National Road in Washington County, Pa. I guess acid rain isn’t good for the complexion.

This is even going to scare you more: She is one of a dozen of these evil statues that were placed along the nation’s first interstate by the Daughters of American Revolution.

Surely she looked a little less rugged when artist August Leimbach’s design was selected for the statues that were cast in crushed granite and marble, and cement and lead ore. Seriously, this Madonna looks as if she is Satan's daughter growling at vehicles that get in her way to the West.

She is in serious need of a makeover at the hands of someone with a good arm and chisel to remove that furrowed brow and the dark circles under her eyes.