My Visit to the Fabulous Fremont Troll

My reading of this iconic Seattle landmark.

A picture of me visiting the Fremont Troll.

A strange and iconic 18-foot tall concrete giant found under the George Washington Memorial Bridge in Fremont, Washington.

The Fremont Troll is a strange and iconic 18-foot tall concrete giant found under the George Washington Memorial Bridge in Fremont, Washington. The troll is crawling out of the ground with their arms supporting them. In one hand, the troll clutches a Volkswagen Bug, while the other hand pushes into the ground. The way the troll is holding the Volkswagen Bug is as if they just stole it from the busy roadway above the bridge and are prepared to crush it or throw it. The troll has facial hair covering one eye, but the other eye is visible and dauntingly staring straight ahead. The troll’s massive nose was the first thing that caught my attention in addition to the gleam in the troll’s eye. It is hard to point out the troll’s facial expression, but they appear to have a neutral expression or their mouth is slightly open as if they are grunting. With all of this, the troll is an intimidating, car-crushing beast living under the bridge. Surrounding the troll, the underside of the bridge is filled with spots of graffiti and other tourists who were also visiting the statue around the same time.

The troll is an intimidating, car-crushing beast living under the bridge.

My interpretation of this monument is that the troll is protecting the city of Fremont from industry and overpopulation. Fremont feels isolated from the city of Seattle, despite neighboring the Puget Sound and U-District. This is evident with Fremont’s small-town energy, filled with hole-in-the-wall shops and restaurants. The city has a quirky, small-town appeal instead of the feel of an industrial city. In this way, I came to the conclusion that the troll is protecting Fremont’s small-town energy and pushing away industry and overpopulation. This is seen in how the troll is clutching a Volkswagen Bug. The Bug represents industry. The troll stole the Bug from the roadway above to discourage industry and people from flooding into Fremont. The Troll wants Fremont to remain a quirky small-town, so it defends Fremont from industry and overpopulation, which dominate the surrounding Seattle area.

The troll is protecting the city of Fremont from industry and overpopulation.

After researching the Troll, I also learned that the Troll was an attempt to turn a dump yard into a landmark to discourage drug usage, especially the usage of needles, under the bridge. This can be seen with how tourists are consistently visiting the troll, discouraging drug usage in the area with high tourist traffic.

Tourists at the Troll

After visiting the Troll, I came to the bigger conclusion that the physical existence of statues makes them places of attraction or simply places people pass by every day. Their message demands attention by their presence. When it comes to the Fremont Troll, the Troll's existence transformed the area under the bridge from a dump yard to a main attraction in the Seattle Area. The Troll’s permanence also deems it a Seattle landmark to Fremont’s quirky, small-town atmosphere. This is in stark contrast to the technology-driven industry and overpopulation of its neighboring city of Seattle. Whether people simply pass by or intentionally go to visit the troll, the troll's physical existence consistently creates a sense of humor and safety for small-town Fremont that would not exist in the troll's absence.

Statues have the power of being, for the most part, permanent landmarks and places of attraction.

Choosing to display a massive, concrete statue of a troll under a busy bridge creates an iconic landmark, which, in turn, discourages suspicious behavior and adds to the charm of quirky Fremont. I believe the creator’s choice to place the Fremont Troll directly under a busy roadway (proximity) while crushing a car further emphasizes the Troll’s purpose of discouraging industry and overpopulation.

My Drawing of the Troll