A water tower shaped like a giant coffee pot looms over a small Swedish village in Central California.

The remnants of two World's Fairs are here, complete with a 12-story globe, a mini-Manhattan, and a UFO-shaped pavilion.

It should come as no surprise that the world's largest artichoke lies in the town that calls itself the "Artichoke Center of the World."

This municipal playground was co-created by the father of one of the most playful characters ever.

All that remains of a gigantic earth-moving machine.

A tribute to one of the most famous cowboys on TV, and the consumerism that fueled his popularity.

This fast-food outlet is the only space and UFO-themed McDonalds in the world.

The first dish to bounce radio signals off the Moon, it was the forerunner to the U.S. Space Program.

A giant chess set, minus the psychedelic drug trip.

A peculiar mansion built by the troubled heir to the Winchester Rifle Company fortune.

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

Hell on Earth is actually a small town in Michigan where anyone can be mayor for a day.

The legendary statue-hating superintendent of Golden Gate Park is honored with... a statue.

Radioactivity still cause for concern at this urban explorer's paradise.

Alleyway plaque commemorating the death of a fictional character in The Maltese Falcon, not far from the author's home.

In all of the 29 years it was in operation, no prisoners ever escaped successfully... or so they claim.

The "3rd largest" city in California is an empty mirage of suburbia in the middle of nowhere.

Abandoned Air Force base that has fallen into disrepair.

The cluster of boulders near Fort Irwin is covered in military insignia.

The "Fun Spot of the Desert" is now a haunting ruin, and a reminder that putting a water park in a desert is a bad idea.

One of the ghostly stops along Route 66.

This giant temperature attraction created some giant electric bills.

This dormant volcanic crater has been converted from a roiling pit of magma to a pleasant hiking spot.

The ghost town that ended up on Ebay.