During the Industrial Revolution this “Temple of Invention” was full of intricate miniature machines and gadgets.

The "lovely red Vega" of the legendary record-settling pilot.

Home to items never before seen by the public.

An obscure public service from the U.S. government that redeems burnt, moldy, and soiled old greenbacks.

This unique museum cafeteria showcases the history and regional diversity of African American cuisine.

Perhaps the most scandalous statue of America's first president.

A derelict bit of infrastructure from the canal that once ran through D.C. is landlocked in the heart of the city.

This mysterious structure by the Washington Monument is a flood barrier designed to protect the White House against rising waters.

The beloved statue at the National Academy of Sciences is oh so inviting to sit on.

On the Fourth of July this area will transform into a Pompeii-like storm of falling embers and ash.

This vertical pinnacle in China was the inspiration for the floating mountains in the movie “Avatar.”

The only National Monument ever to go missing for nearly 50 years then resurface in a dump.

It was once the base for a series of domestic terror attacks.

An echo chamber with a waterfall wrapped around its base at the Embassy of Canada in Washington, D.C.

Go take a picture with the inventor of the daguerreotype photographic process.

This unassuming passageway played a key role in one of the most important events in U.S. history.

Internet rumors, often involving Icelandic singer Bjork, have abounded regarding this isolated outcrop of rock.

Today this former Nazi concentration camp stands as a poignant memorial to the victims of fascism, and a warning from history.

In the mid-20th century, a tamale-slinging juke joint attracted a diverse clientele in the Mississippi Delta.

Ride the subways of yesteryear.

Abandoned power station once home to a squatter community, now being developed into an arts center.

In its day this historic fort held 100 cannons pointed in almost every direction to protect New York.

America's oldest Eastern European synagogue provided the immigrants of crowded Lower East Side tenements a space of sanctuary.

New York City's smallest piece of private property.