These ruins have been linked to a sherbet factory that exploded, but the story may be entirely fictional.

The world's second largest single-dish radio telescope, once used to contact E.T.

This castle-like building in Manhattan helped destigmatize cancer in the 19th century.

This Seattle joint serves food inside an old train car once used by FDR.

The highest point in Washington state is a volcano covered in glaciers.

A wall of chewing gum moonlights as collective art.

One small town in the Pacific Northwest transformed itself into a Bavarian-themed tourist destination.

This famous bridge twisted itself into oblivion, but not for the reason you might think.

Common all over Japan, kōbans are small community police boxes, and now one is guarding one of L.A.’s megamalls.

First LEED-certified gas station in the United States.

A faux European lane smack dab in downtown L.A.

Fake rail crossings mark the site of an influential doctor's demise.

A Looff creation in Santa Monica best described as “a California-Byzantine-Moorish-style fantasy.”

Steinbeck's old stomping grounds, immortalized in Cannery Row.

A second generation sun-powered marvel lights up the night.

Wild West history in Hollywood style.

An historic and oft-filmed spot for musclebound iron pumpers on the Pacific coast.

Once the largest windmill outside of Holland, with enormous 114 foot sails.

This stretch of beach along California's central coast is a busy highway for the largest seal in the northern hemisphere.

The dramatic upward-curving roof is one of the most iconic examples of Googie architecture that still stands today.

The quiet canyon has a tumultuous history involving a doomsday cult.

An alley covered with 20 years of bubble gum.

The interior of the Overlook Hotel in "The Shining" was based on this Yosemite original.

The unbelievably opulent home built for an infamous newspaperman.