phoenixpurple429's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Washington, D.C.

FDR's Swimming Pool

There's an old indoor swimming pool hidden directly underneath the White House Press Briefing Room.
Washington, D.C.

Clara Barton Missing Soldiers Office Museum

Before founding the American Red Cross, Clara Barton had a tremendous humanitarian impact by locating thousands of missing soldiers.
Washington, D.C.

White House Helipad

Disks are rolled out onto the south lawn to absorb the impact of Marine One's wheels like giant coffee coasters.
Washington, D.C.

Washington City Canal Outfall

A portal into the bricked up canal that runs through the heart of Washington D.C.
Washington, D.C.

Watergate Fountain

The word "Watergate" will forever be associated with the infamous scandal in 1972, but this fountain is famous in its own right.
Washington, D.C.

Treasury Department Cash Vault

Where the U.S. government kept its actual treasure, before Fort Knox.
Washington, D.C.

National Museum of Crime and Punishment

America's Most Wanted's set resides in this tribute to the history of crime and punishment.
Washington, D.C.

Watergate Gas Station

This seemingly out-of-place gas station by the Watergate hotel was once described as the most expensive gas station in the world.
Washington, D.C.

The Preamble in License Plates

The preamble to the U.S. Constitution written entirely from vanity license plates hangs in the Smithsonian museum.
Washington, D.C.

U.S. Mint Coin Store

Coins and medals straight from the mint await visitors to this shop in the nation's capital.
Washington, D.C.

Riggs Library

A wondrous old library overlooking the nation's capital.
Washington, D.C.

Palace of Wonders

Bar full of oddities, specimens, artifacts and homages to the great dime museums of the past.
Wellsboro, Pennsylvania

Pine Creek Gorge

This lush forest valley was once mined for lumber to the extent that it was once nicknamed "The Pennsylvania Desert."
Washington, D.C.

The Dupont Underground

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

French Azilum

A planned settlement in Pennsylvania once housed the aristocratic refugees of the French Revolution.
Washington, D.C.

Laogai Museum

The first museum in the U.S. to address human rights issues in China.
Washington, D.C.

Arizona Avenue Trestle

The span is crooked and made from two older recycled bridges.
Washington, D.C.

FBI Spy House

A painfully obvious spy house sits right across the street from the Russian Embassy.
Washington, D.C.

USNO Master Clock

The most accurate timepiece in the world.
Washington, D.C.

Hall of Fake Presidents

Where you can hail your favorite fictional commanders-in-chief.
Washington, D.C.

Darth Vader Grotesque

The sci-fi villain is a little-known inhabitant of the U.S. capital's largest cathedral.
Washington, D.C.

Eritrean Cultural Civic Center

Daily lunch spot for many of Washington, D.C.'s cab drivers.
Washington, D.C.

American University Experiment Station

The school tested mustard gas for the U.S. Army during World War I.
Washington, D.C.

Museum of Unnatural History

Giftshop catering to cryptozoologists and anyone with a sense of humor.