These chunky stone towers out in Lake Michigan are the key to Chicago’s drinking water.

The clothes-washing king doubles as a community center with some unusual features, including an aviary filled with finches.

A collection of 11 million buttons illustrates the human toll of the Holocaust.

The original Garfield station is the oldest station facility on the "L", with the station house dating from 1892.

The carved remains of a 200-year-old oak tree memorialize the namesake of the iconic "Wizard of Oz" character.

One of the first historical sites of an alternative universe was installed in the town of Paris, Illinois—which is now home to an annual spelling bee of Kcymaerxthaereal words.

Designed by Alfred Caldwel, this landscape showcases his vision of a native garden.

Once at the center of U.S. finance, the historic Trading Room was meticulously recreated piece by piece and rebuilt in the Art Institute.

This historic lavatory leftover features two levels of defecation stations completely without context.

A towering Art Deco movie palace made to look like a Mayan temple.

Theater has had many different incarnations but has survived the ravages of time.

Fresh wooden posts have been added to ancient holes to recreate a primitive henge clock.

This softly rounded mansion was built without corners not to avoid evil spirits, but to make them more comfortable.

The world's third-largest scale model of the planets.

This tiny historic jail along Route 66 is the perfect fit for exactly one criminal and their partner-in-crime.

Chicago was once a major hub of film production, but being silent film you don’t hear much about it.

A 400-foot-tall tall map of Chicago makes this once-ignored building stand out.

Today this bizarre rooftop phone booth seems like a piece of kitsch but it was once used to spot disastrous storms.

This titanic Catholic church in Chicago is also a refuge of the fictional cult-favorite wizard detective Harry Dresden.

This lagomorph-obsessed Route 66 emporium is home to a giant jackrabbit that sits in a bunny graveyard.

This historic house museum that celebrates one of the world's most influential social reformers is also one of the most haunted locations in Chicago.

The oldest house in Chicago certainly doesn't look the part and there are some who say it doesn't deserve its title either.

A goddess-topped water fountain in Chicago was created thanks to the dreams of a thirsty newsboy.

Partially submerged Buddha heads freckle Chicago’s neighborhoods.