Black Bird Store

The Black Bird Store in Medford, OR, was founded as an army surplus store in 1965 by Lee Hobbs. The giant black bird in front of the store was fashioned after a 10-foot magpie at Yard Birds, a store in Centralia, WA, owned by a friend of Lee’s.

Our 29-foot black bird was designed and built by Lee himself and was constructed of re-bar, hog wire, and fiberglass. The bird can be seen sporting a tank top and shorts for Medford’s Pear Blossom Run, and a Santa hat and candy cane for Christmas. For other occasions, we outfit the bird with other suitable props.

The store is locally owned and operated and has become southern Oregon’s largest family-owned sporting goods store. Some of our staff have been with the store for more than 40 years.