As part of an effort to make Helper a tourist destination, the citizens thought it appropriate to have a more visible means of acknowledging the history of coal in the area, thus "Big John". Big John is 18 feet tall, made of fiberglass by International Fiberglass (a boat maker) in Venice, CA in 1964. As the plaque notes, he not only commemorates the role of coal in the area, but also the lives of all of those who have died in the mines.