Peachoid Water Tower

I accidentally stumbled on this while I was driving to Cow Pens National Battlefield. Having watched some House of Cards episodes though, when I saw this thing I knew I had to stop… The Peachoid is REAL!!! The Unilocaler who left the tip about driving to the Fatz on Peachoid Rd was quite helpful because I was wondering where I might be able to walk around some and get a good shot of this marvel. This was a great way to end my first day in this area and left me feeling what a peachy day it was even though I had to wake up at 4:30 AM to catch a flight out here.

I love this thing. Took several pictures with it. Very cool.

It was worth the stop! Not much of my friends can say they have been to the Peachoid! Highly suggest spending at least 20 minutes walking around and reading the plaques!

Look! Up in the sky! It’s an a$$! It’s a peach! It’s a big a$$ peach!
If you’ve driven down 85 into SC, you’ve seen it. The Peachoid is a pretty cool landmark, although I’m sure it’s been the butt of many jokes. For me, it means you’re close to the Outlet Center at Gaffney and you’ve entered the land of Peaches, Cheap Gas and Hardcore Fireworks! For some reason I feel like saying «Yee Haw!».

Its a big butt in the sky with a huge FATZ sign right before it. On those 4 hour drives from Charlotte to Atlanta, its nice to have a little chuckle.

Yup. It’s a peach colored ass. If you are driving on I-​85, you can’t miss it. It makes me smile every time.

I am a NC native and I remember when the tower was built. As they were painting it… the first coat was flesh colored. it indeed did look like a giant butt (especially with that little mark at the end looking like a tiny turd). We, as kids, used to laugh and laugh and laugh at it. At the time, we had no idea what it was going to be because they didn’t have the leaf on it or anything. So, to this day, I remember riding to Gaffney to shop at the stores and just giggling in the back of the station wagon with my sister at this Peach. Good times. (I do miss the actual peach trees that used to surround it, though).

I passed by the Peachoid on my way to Atlanta without realizing it was along the way. After watching House of Cards on Netflix, I was thrilled to see the Peachoid in person. If you’re a fan of the series, I’d highly recommend driving through Gaffney for a pit-​stop and trying to snag a photo of the tower. It actually looks pretty cool in person, and it’s fun to see the reference first hand.

So, I hate to admit I didn’t just stumble across the Peachoid while travelling along I-​85, no I actually sought this thing out after visiting the Cowpens battlefield west of Gaffney. I checked Unilocal for local things to do, and somehow this made the top of the list (that should tell you something about the area).
This peach was surprisingly hard to find. Sure, we could see it peeking out from behind the trees from a good distance away, but we just couldn’t figure out how to get there. Finally I set my map location to the FATZ restaurant next door (oh, that name…) and we were able to find it.
I parked in the FATZ parking lot and tried to get my 3 kids out of the car to explore the peach. My 13-​year-​old daughter hid in the back seat the whole time out of pure shame at her nerdy family. So, the trip wasn’t a total waste.
We got some great pictures. It was good for a laugh and definitely something you don’t see everyday (unless I suppose you commute past here…)

Most water towers are blah, not marked and boring. This one isn’t. My kids say it looks like a huge butt in the air. Years ago back in the 80’s there were a lot of peach trees nearby to continue the theme but sadly now there’s nothing but a flea market.
Anyway while you’re driving by you can stop in the FATZ Café parking lot for an up close and personal view.

When you’re driving 6 hours solid on I-​85, the Peachoid Water Tower is a welcome distraction, even if only for a moment. When driving on 85 south, the huge orange peach peeks out from behind the trees before you see it in its full glory; making for an excellent snapshot if you’re not driving.

Weird, amazing, iconic. A must see off of I-​85 South

I read about the Peachoid before the fact & shared the knowledge with my family. When they saw the Peachoid in person, they just giggled. It does in fact look like a butt. We now call it the Giant Peach Butt. :) Nothing special here but worth a picture of a roadside America attraction.

Well… Yep. Just like others have mentioned. It’s a magnificently huge ass, disguised as a water tower… disguised as a peach (or the other way around) taking up most of your view in Gaffney.
I’m sure it has many utilitarian uses for the community, but to the lay person or regular commuter, it’s just a huge ass you can see for miles on a day with decent visibility.

That was a fun project in days gone by. I assisted Peter paint the darn thing. Scary fun.

You’ve gotta love the Peachoid. It’s an icon, a landmark, and a work of art.

Let’s be fair, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with this peach as a peach. Sure it can occasionally look like a large butt mooning passers on the freeway, but come on, it’s a big fruit with a split in the middle, what exactly do they think it should look like.
While I can’t say that there’s a lot to do around it or under it (unless you count FATZ or the Prime Outlet Mall), it’s certainly a site to behold if you have to pass though the area.

The Great State of South Carolina. First in giant novelty peaches, last in education. I can’t help but marvel at a community that would hoist this monstrosity while society crumbled around it. That takes a special kind of vision.
Every time I pass this landmark, I think of T. S. Eliot and The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock. With his crippling insecurities but utter devotion to appearance, I think the protagonist speaks to the monument in more than one way. I particularly like to think about Eliot’s use of the peach as a juicy, sexual metaphor and Prufrock’s fear of it dripping down his chin. I don’t think the Peachoid’s architects expected me to view their construction as a giant metaphorical vagina, but there you have it.

Look, up ahead, it’s a… well, it’s a giant ass, up on a pole.
If you look from certain angles, the water tower does look decidedly like a peach, the apparent symbol of Gaffney, while from others it looks like a monstrous ass, mounted on its perch like a humongous ass lollipop, ready to deliver a very un-​sweet taste sensation to all comers.
There is not much more to Gaffney itself other than an «outlet» mall and some farm stands typically oriented to peach goods (presumably more profitable than the selling of ass goods). The mall itself has apparently been inspired by the giant ass, and is simply a bunch of stores using the outlet name to lure in unsuspecting travelers along I-​85 in search of bargains.
These people will pick up «ass”-loads of products, pile it in their vehicles, and head off into the night, never able to return their purchases since they bought them in transit, and their local Gap does not take returns bought from an outlet.
Perhaps the stores are under the protection of the giant ass, and it is indeed a better symbol than the peach. After all, whoever heard of buying a peach-​load of product at an outlet mall?

Giant Peach Ass!
The Peachoid’s name alone is worth five stars. My old band put it in our video and it reminds me of great times on the road. It’s my beacon letting me know I’m close to arriving in Charlotte.
Stop in at least once and see it up close!