Home to a vast and influential collection of Shakespeareana.

Before Nixon, "watergate" meant canals.

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

Light bulbs, scrap wood, and tinfoil comprise this homemade throne of the gods.

The national park was once a plantation estate.

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

The house where John Wilkes Booth conspired with his co-conspirators.

Largest Roman Catholic church in North America.

This imposing Masonic temple a mile from the White House was the first public library in Washington, D.C.

The first purpose-built art gallery in the United States is once again open as a center of craft arts.

The Byzantine, pre-Columbian, and medieval art at this stately mansion are some of the most under-appreciated collections in D.C.

A nostalgic bibliographic gem.

Fittingly, America's museum of architecture is itself a magnificently designed old building.

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

The site of the climactic scene from the classic horror film is now a historic landmark.

A century-old hotspot for jazz, frequented by everyone from Charlie Chaplin to Al Capone.

At Chicago's revered Field Museum, visitors are invited to learn about and literally explore DNA.

In Chicago, a pizza-enthusiast has opened a museum dedicated to the history of pizza.

These pretty kitties killed and ate as many as 135 railway workers.

This historic hotel invented the chocolate brownie.

A hot dog stand where the heads are just as hot as the dogs.

Nonprofit art center that promotes outsider, intuitive, and self-taught art.

A gothic church spire sits atop this skyscraper, the tallest church in the world.

The twin towers in this Chicago fountain use 50 foot tall video screens to spit on people.