A 12-foot sculpture serves as a constant reminder of the importance of protecting and restoring the Boardman River.   

This enchanting forest trail leads to ethereal abodes and a giant bird's nest.

This tree was warped centuries ago to serve as a botanical wayfaring tool.

For more than 50 years, an iconic sign has greeted visiting “fudgies” to the Traverse City area.

Former self-sufficient mental institution now a planned community.

A subterranean world of tunnels links several buildings of this rare 19th-century asylum.

Though its branches are painted bright colors by generations of locals, the tree is said to be a haunted portal to hell.

The first and only museum dedicated to stained glass and horology opened outside of Chicago in 2017.

Small and slightly hidden, the American Writers Museum is preserving the legacy of America's finest authors.

Honoring Italian greats from Joe DiMaggio to Rocky Marciano.

A long lost multi-cultural music venue used to reside in the bottom floor of Chicago's Flat Iron Building.

The faint remains of a Polish news empire still linger.

A 19th-century horse lover's bequest led to the construction of this unique fountain in Chicago.

This titanic Catholic church in Chicago is also a refuge of the fictional cult-favorite wizard detective Harry Dresden.

Landmark Chicago building narrowly avoided destruction.

Parking lot where a Chicago mayor was inaugurated under very sketchy circumstances.

A one-armed veteran of the Battle of Waterloo lies in a cemetery for one in the middle of a Chicago scrapyard.

Location of the Real World's disastrous, and protested, eleventh season.

Once an ornate movie theater remade by Catholic Charities.

One of Chicago's last seafood smokehouses perfects a dying breed of fishcraft.

Where dioramas can follow you home.

Huge abstract sculptures of the Puerto Rican Flag.

Chicago's Navy Pier on Lake Michigan was a training hub for aircraft carrier pilots during WWII.

"No writer ever gave more to a city and got back less.”