clairepolarbear's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Mount Moriah Cemetery

An abandoned cemetery lies in ruins as the surrounding forest swallows it whole.
Washington, D.C.

Palace of Wonders

Bar full of oddities, specimens, artifacts and homages to the great dime museums of the past.
Washington, D.C.

Hoff's Harmonica Case Collection

More than 500 unique and specially designed cases collected by D.C.'s "Harmonica Case Man."
Washington, D.C.

Tivoli's Astounding Magic Supply

The district's only illusionarium supports free writing programs for local students with every purchase.
Washington, D.C.

United Brick Corporation Ruins

Once the supplier for noteworthy projects like the National Cathedral, this old brickworks now lies abandoned.
Washington, D.C.

Abandoned Drawbridge Control Room

The hidden offices underneath Memorial Bridge have been locked up since 1976.
Washington, D.C.

Church of Two Worlds

A Spiritualist house of worship where believers communicate with the dead in the spirit world.
Washington, D.C.

Ruins of the McMillan Sand Filtration Site

An Industrial Revolution-era public work that purified water using nothing but sand.
Washington, D.C.

Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens

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

National Bonsai Museum

One of the dwarven trees dates back to 1625 and survived the Hiroshima bombing.
Washington, D.C.

The Dupont Underground

Long-abandoned trolley tunnels just a mile away from the White House are turning into an art space.
Fredericksburg, Virginia

Abandoned National Slavery Museum

An overgrown garden stands as a grim marker of an unrealized dream.
Staunton, Virginia

Abandoned DeJarnette Sanitarium

A former mental hospital founded in the 1930s by a eugenicist who advocated for the forced sterilization of patients.
Stafford, Virginia

Hogan's Alley

The FBI's urban training course may have the highest fake crime rate in the world.
Faber, Virginia

The Monroe Institute

Take an otherworldly journey in a school dedicated to out-of-body experiences.
Natural Bridge, Virginia

Hidden J.R.R. Tolkien Quote

Lines from a walking song are etched into a rock in Natural Bridge State Park.
Richmond, Virginia

Ruins of Belle Isle

A small Richmond island dotted with the remnants of hundreds of years of history.
Radford, Virginia

St. Albans Sanatorium

Paranormal investigators claim this abandoned asylum is the most haunted spot in the eastern U.S.
Gloucester Courthouse, Virginia

The Rosewell Plantation Ruins

This once-palatial plantation may have been the site where a draft of the Declaration of Independence was written.
Chicago, Illinois

Wicker Park Secret Agent Supply Co.

This shop for all your super spy needs hides an educational secret.
San Francisco, California

Musée Mécanique

A collection of 20th-century automata, penny arcade games, and musical contraptions.
Park Ridge, Illinois

American Science & Surplus

A science teacher's dream.
Montague, Massachusetts

Black Jungle Terrarium Supply

Small shop offering mail-order rare and exotic plants.
Berkeley, California

Tail of the Yak

Handmade treasures from around the world.