L. Frank Baum wrote part of the "Wizard of Oz" series in this wooden Victorian beach resort.

An optical illusion found amid a logged redwood forest.

Thirteen pastel palaces in downtown Charleston add a gorgeous splash of color to the city.

Once the most flame resistant building in the country, the South Carolina Historical Society building was almost burnt down in a fire.

Before it was abandoned and left to rust alongside the road, this riverboat starred in a John Wayne movie.

The California capital city once stood 10 feet lower than it does today.

The last of a gourmet supermarket chain, this store helped spark California's Food Revolution.

One of the last full-orchestra recording studios in New York City and an acoustical marvel.

The oldest family-run luncheonette in New York, last renovated in 1948, still serves food and drinks the old-fashioned way.

A plaque immortalizes the spot where the early American spy said his famous last words: "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country."

A pedestrian island in the middle of world-famous Times Square emits a strange (and purposeful) humming noise.

Try not to get slimed in Tribeca.

Stripes of flowers bloom each spring in a 50 acre rainbow of color.

A walk-in working camera obscura produces 360-degree live images of the San Francisco coast.

San Francisco's urban bison herd has persisted in the face of extinction, development, and disease.

Staircase winds down the side of Telegraph Hill through gardens, wild parrots flying overhead.

A New England-style lighthouse along California's beautiful Highway 1 gets a re-do.

This ultra-modern California span is actually a titanic solar clock in disguise built by famed architect Santiago Calatrava.

This fully intact Neoclassical-Greek Revival style firehouse operated until 1938.

The tallest bridge in California was constructed for a project that was eventually cancelled.

At this 1940s-era neighborhood favorite, you can still drink a cherry phosphate.

A replica of the first public theater built in California.

Art Deco stylings conceal the true nature of this bridge.

A mesmerizing disco ball-like sculpture along the Sacramento River Walk.