An Industrial Revolution-era public work that purified water using nothing but sand.

People escaping slavery may have hidden inside a corpse vault.

A lovely aquatic park built by a one-armed Civil War veteran who made a fortune from lotuses.

Franciscan monks created a facsimile of the Holy Land for North Americans who couldn’t afford the trip overseas.

A shrine to the royal lord of all cacti.

This small park features a monumental fountain wall, providing a great photo opportunity in the middle of Houston.

A park filled with vibrant mosaics created by more than 300 folk artists.

A 90-year-old underground water reservoir offers a more industrial kind of tranquility.

Tucked away down this Baytown alley exists a one-of-a-kind art exhibit of technicolor umbrellas.

A decaying concrete oil tanker served as a disposal location for bootleg hootch.

This huge repository of local history housed in an old J.C.Penney's is home to the largest model train set in Southeast Texas.

This memorial marks the devastating day that Texas City was destroyed in a daisy chain of exploding ships.

In Houston's airport, a cow is properly equipped to jump over the moon.

Giant heads occasionally litter the industrial Houston neighborhood where sculptor David Adickes has his studio.

A private collection of massive steel monsters guarding a Texas pipe works.

At the "Garage Mahal" in Houston, car culture is about more than just driving.

Fantastic collection celebrating the final send-off.

The ruins of an important pilgrimage destination for worshippers of a Maya fertility goddess.

Jail from the 19th century that was built by inmates.

Protected from the elements, these Native American rock paintings have survived approximately 250 years.

Sleep beneath the big screen at this old-school movie theater.

The building features one of the last remaining free-floating spiral grand staircases in the U.S.

Quirky movable sculptures have been racing through the town since 1983.

Bonsai trees that are up to a thousand years old.