taylorabranson's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Eureka Springs, Arkansas

Thorncrown Chapel

This futuristically sylvan church is a glass-enclosed marvel of modern architecture.
Whittier, Alaska

Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel

Running under an entire mountain, the longest highway tunnel in North America is kept fresh using portal fans and jet fans.
Braddock, Pennsylvania

Carrie Furnaces

These disused steel furnaces are now haunting ruins that may one day be a national park.
Kananaskis, Alberta

The Vault

What was to be the world's most secure Cold War document vault ended up as just a few shallow caves.
Chicago, Illinois

U-505

The unluckiest U-boat in the entire German fleet is now on display in a Chicago museum.
Watrous, New Mexico

Fort Union National Monument

The ruins of this abandoned fort now stand as a picturesque reminder of America's march West.
Mills, New Mexico

Kiowa National Grassland

Adobe ruins punctuate the beauty of an 800 foot canyon carved by the Canadian River.
El Prado, New Mexico

Earthships

These aggressively sustainable art homes look like something out of 1970's science fiction.
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum

Sitting in the arguable birthplace of the Wild West, this museum holds the largest collection of bronco busting bric-a-brac in the world.
Aspen, Colorado

Ashcroft Townsite

Silver in the hills led to the speedy creation of this boom town and a lack of it saw the town abandoned nearly as quickly.
Genola, Utah

Tintic Standard Reduction Mill

The remains of this early 20th century refinery loom on a mountainside like a graffiti-covered fortress.
South Bend, Indiana

East Race Waterway

The first artificial white water river course in North America cuts right through an Indiana city.
Waxahachie, Texas

Desertron: The Superconducting Super Collider

A Texas-sized particle collider that was abandoned due to its Texas-sized budget.
Minden, Nebraska

Harold Warp's Pioneer Village

This replica small town lets visitors take a stroll through the story of progress in the U.S. via thousands of Americana artifacts.
Saint Paul, Minnesota

Old Muskego Church

A Norwegian church that was built before Wisconsin was even a state has been entirely moved to a nicer spot.
Pacifica, California

Nike Missile Site SF-51

Another of California's unused Cold War missile defense complexes has become a graffiti gallery.
Pacifica, California

McCloskey Castle

Abortion, prohibition, religion, war, and fear all play a part in the history of this idiosyncratic Pacifica castle.
Wellsboro, Pennsylvania

Pine Creek Gorge

This lush forest valley was once mined for lumber to the extent that it was once nicknamed "The Pennsylvania Desert."
Cañon City, Colorado

Royal Gorge Bridge

The highest bridge in America was built for an almost unnervingly small amount of money.
Two Harbors, Minnesota

Split Rock Lighthouse

This picturesque cliffside beacon no longer calls to sailors but shines once a year in honor of a famous shipwreck.
Laurel, Maryland

Forest Haven Asylum

This abandoned asylum was once a state of the art facility before devolving into one of the most deadly mental institutions in American history.
Elmira, New York

Mark Twain's Study

The wooden octagon in which Huckleberry Finn and A Connecticut Yankee were born can still be visited in upstate New York.
Cougar, Washington

Ape Canyon

This scenic gorge is named after one of the most famous Bigfoot attacks in pseudohistory.
Vicksburg, Mississippi

U.S.S. Cairo

This iron and wood Civil War city-ship was the first vessel to be sunk by an electrically detonated torpedo.