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

Peirce Mill Spy Station

Cold War intelligence agents monitored communist embassies from an attic in a former pigeon coop.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

The Big Chair

A super-sized promotional trick that is now a D.C. landmark.
Added by sjs89
Washington, D.C.

Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

Largest Roman Catholic church in North America.
AllisonEng Added by AllisonEng
Washington, D.C.

The Old Patent Model Museum

During the Industrial Revolution this “Temple of Invention” was full of intricate miniature machines and gadgets.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Washington, D.C.

The Capitol Stones

Enormous piles of historically significant stones, dumped by Congress in a forest, and abandoned for 60 years.
Washington, D.C.

Catacombs of Washington, D.C.

Franciscan monks created a facsimile of the Holy Land for North Americans who couldn’t afford the trip overseas.
Elliot Carter Added by Elliot Carter
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

America's Oldest Operating Theater

In the early 1800s, surgery was also a show.
Dylan Added by Dylan
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Eastern State Penitentiary

World's first "penitentiary," meant to be humane, drove men insane.
Dylan Added by Dylan
New York, New York

Macy's Wooden Escalators

A bit of retro transportation flair preserved in the world's largest department store.
Molly McBride Jacobson Added by Molly McBride Jacobson
New York, New York

Chinatown's Bloody Angle

Avoid gangster interaction while window-shopping.
Oliver Hong Added by Oliver Hong
New York, New York

Lower East Side Toy Company (The Back Room)

Become a prohibition rebel.
Oliver Hong Added by Oliver Hong
New York, New York

Museum of Sex

A semi-scholarly approach to sex.
Added by Henry
New York, New York

The High Line

Elevated freight railway turned wildly successful urban park.
Added by Henry
New York, New York

Obscura Antiques and Oddities

Tucked in the back of this amazing antique store is an important piece of medical history.
Dylan Added by Dylan
Alexandria, Virginia

Stabler-Leadbeater Apothecary Museum

An original apothecary from 1792.
Dylan Added by Dylan
Alexandria, Virginia

Torpedo Factory Art Center

A former major munitions plant that has been converted into a sprawling art space.
Added by valcalma
Baltimore, Maryland

The American Visionary Art Museum

A museum dedicated to exhibiting remarkable outsider art.
Seth Teicher Added by Seth Teicher
Baltimore, Maryland

The Horse You Came In On Saloon

A 200-year-old bar with a cheeky name claims to have served Edgar Allan Poe his final drink.
satxwdavis Added by satxwdavis
Baltimore, Maryland

Edgar Allan Poe's Grave

The trials and tribulations of marking Poe's grave.
Added by pozz4123
Baltimore, Maryland

Phoenix Shot Tower

Once America's tallest structure, now a Baltimore landmark.
Molly McBride Jacobson Added by Molly McBride Jacobson
Baltimore, Maryland

Bazaar

Crammed into a Baltimore row house is an oddities shop that sells everything from skulls to dead insects.
bazaar Added by bazaar
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Mütter Museum

America's most famous museum of medical oddities is home to the remains of Albert Einstein's brain.
Added by mbison
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Rocky Statue

Yo, Adrian!
josephwbeck Added by josephwbeck
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Gettysburg Cyclorama

A dramatic, 360-degree recreation of Pickett's Charge in the Civil War.
Annetta Black Added by Annetta Black