Prison made famous by The Shawshank Redemption has been out of commission since 1990.

This posh mansion began as a family's estate and ended as the site of a murder ripped from the pages of a pulp novel.

Population: 1.

This prison-turned-museum is a remnant of the Old West's grizzly, violent past.

This Yellowstone geyser may not shoot as high as the nearby Old Faithful, but it erupts for considerably longer.

A bizarre house filled with an astounding array of collections.

Elaborate hand-carved wooden clocks two brothers made in their spare time are on display at this handsome little museum.

The tunnel that runs beneath this former inn was once a hiding place for enslaved people seeking freedom.

The first declared National Monument in the United States.

Thanks to a loophole in property ownership, this alleyway has become a cacophonous street gallery.

South Dakota's oldest operating brewery is housed inside a historic firehouse.

Every president in history is immortalized in bronze in downtown Rapid City.

The 25th President's marble casket can be visited in this classical Ohio tomb.

Mausoleums, astronomy, and animatronic dinosaurs at this memorial to an assassinated American president.

Beyond the usual stories that attend old prisons, this one has deep bloody undercurrents.

Rows of 19th-century brick ovens used to process coal into coke form the center of a wooded park.

There is beauty and history in the ruins of this former company town.

A storybook church made from a mesmerizing medley of multi-colored stones.

This abandoned amusement park was built on a site with a dark history.

Home with Gothic windows featured in a famous painting.

A tribute to the twin ideals of religion and patriotism, built by a Catholic priest from rocks, glass, and innumerable found items.

Tirelessly maintained by a Wisconsin man named JFK.

A curious sculpture garden and museum in Cochrane, Wisconsin.

The menacing creature had a tremendous influence on the local culture before being exposed as a hoax.