This local gem houses the largest collection of pre-Raphaelite paintings outside of the U.K.

This splendid Versailles-inspired mansion has the largest French-style formal gardens in North America.

The bank that helped fund the Mexican-American War and the purchase of Alaska met its downfall after helping Augusto Pinochet launder money.

The 5.5-mile ring of steel posts around the Capitol Building is one of the largest (and most uniform) of its kind in the world.

One critic described it as "middle Mussolini, early Ramses, and late Neiman-Marcus." Another called it an architectural "natural disaster."

Also known as the Founding Church of Scientology.

The first memorial dedicated solely to the Black troops who fought for the Union.

Look closely and you’ll notice that the color changes a third of the way up the tower.

The world's oldest soul food restaurant is also one of its best.

The monument's pointy aluminum tip has been melted down by repeated lightning strikes.

The unique traffic pattern named for an influential urban planner is also known as the Pedestrian Scramble.

Washington's iconic carousel has a nice piece of Civil Rights history.

A lovely aquatic park built by a one-armed Civil War veteran who made a fortune from lotuses.

One of the dwarven trees dates back to 1625 and survived the Hiroshima bombing.

The United States Capitol's former columns still stand.

This edgy museum will whet your appetite for the industrial history of Western New York.

The seat of Buffalo government is a gorgeous Art Deco palace.

Buffalo's abandoned concrete grain elevators are getting a second life.

This two-room factory has been cranking out the musical signifier of zaniness for a century.

This isn't your average roadway—it's actually a National Park and a transportation pioneer.

At Washington's Dulles Airport is a satellite museum (no pun intended) with three quarters of a million square feet of aircraft history.

The absurd creation is a compulsory destination for selfies in Buffalo.

Soaring over the Niagara Whirlpool since 1916.

This small shop walked so America could run on Dunkin'.