What’s your fave Route 9 Relic? Tell us and have a chance to star in our video

What's the oldest, oddest, or most unique sign, statue, structure or symbol you know on Route 9 in Ocean, Monmouth or Atlantic County? Tell us, and you might star in a video about it.

Before the Garden State Parkway existed, Route 9 ruled. Many of the imaginative ways that were used to attract tourists and weary travelers still stand. Some served purposes that had nothing to do with tourism. Still, they reached through car windows and lodged in memory banks of people of all ages. ("Why is that there? What is it? What was it?)

We'd like to know your favorite Route 9 Relic, and why it stays in your memory. We'll add it to our growing list for our upcoming video series. One lucky entrant will tell the story of his or her favorite site, in our video series.

Some are trusty landmarks that help you give someone directions ("Turn right after the dinosaur.").Some still active. Some just dot the landscape and remind us of another era. Such as:

• Long Beach Island billboard, Manahawkin
• The Grange, Howell
• Ann Schuld "doll house," Bayville
• Lake Carasaljo, Lakewood
• Renault Winery
• Moon Motel sign, Howell
• Cosmos miniature car, Bayville
• And, still popping up on the shoulder, Alfonse Mariani, "Mr. Walking Billboard".

We're looking for symbols of shore life along Route 9 that predate the big-box stores and strip malls. The older, the better. It can be oddball, dignified, even whimsical, but it absolutely must front Route 9.

Then, we'll dig into their histories and start the series. Who knows how many we can create? That'll be up to you.

Tell us what you know of your favorite relic, and why it's meant something to you through the years. Add a photo if you can. You can even reach us through the WOBM App. Can't wait to hear from you. And  - one of you - get ready for your closeup!