Elevated freight railway turned wildly successful urban park.

The fanciest public restroom in New York City boasts fresh flowers, art, and a classical music soundtrack.

This cemetery has graves dating back to the 17th century, including the city's oldest carved tombstone and an ominous cryptogram.

Lie in a hammock where George Washington stood.

On the Hudson resides one of the largest clocks in the world.

Lady Liberty's first beacon of enlightenment is now displayed in a museum near the statue.

This anonymous businessman sculpted in bronze became an enduring memorial after 9/11, and had been mistaken by rescue workers for a survivor in the rubble.

A mass grave for victims of one of the city’s worst fires.

The Father of the Erie Canal has a magnificent grave marker that redefines the term "final resting place."

A Victorian cemetery in the heart of Brooklyn remains a popular mecca of morbid curiosity.

This sculpture by artist Fritz Keonig survived the 9/11 attacks and now stands as a monument to the victims.

An uber-secure, windowless tower of doom in the center of Manhattan is an NSA spyscraper.

A touching tribute to the "Queen of Soul."

Try not to get slimed in Tribeca.

One of the most enjoyable bits of history at Coney Island and “the most romantic ride in the world.”

A popular European tradition makes its way to the states on one of America's most famous bridges.

This taxidermy scene brings the struggle for survival in the Indian jungle to a quiet corner of a Manhattan museum.

This impressive scene portrays the elusive forest giraffe of Central Africa.

This morbid scene depicts the Darwinian drama of death on the African savannah.

This magnificent herd of stampeding elephants has been frozen in time for over a century.

An eerie diorama that captures the majestic nature of a few prehistoric-looking beasts.

One of the most dazzling dioramas at the American Museum of Natural History is also one of the oldest.

Here be dragons.

Curious crustaceans support an obelisk from ancient Egypt that now stands in modern-day Central Park.