Tehachapi Loop (Tehachapi, California)
A feat of engineering ingenuity used to raise or lower trains in elevation over a short distance, the Tehachapi Loop was completed in 1876 and virtually unchanged is still used today. The 0.73 mile (1.17 …
Roadside Attractions
Winnsboro Town Clock (Winnsboro, South Carolina)
Around the world there are places more steeped in history that Winnsboro, South Carolina. And there are unique aspects of thousands of cities that make them more unique and historically more important. There is one …
The Blue Whale of Catoosa (Catoosa, Oklahoma)
Built slightly after the heyday of American Roadside Attractions, the Blue Whale of Catoosa has nonetheless become one of the most popular and recognizable sites along Historic Route 66. Built in 1972 by Hugh Davis …
Tadich Grill (San Francisco, California)
In 1849, during the height of the California Gold Rush, a Croatian immigrant opened the New World Coffee Saloon on Commercial Street. Like the Original Starbucks in Seattle, the coffee saloon it soon eclipsed its …
The Joker Stairs (The Bronx, New York)
An otherwise unspectacular and once humble staircase sandwiched between apartment buildings that connects Shakespeare and Anderson Avenues has become an unmistakable tourist attraction in the Highbridge neighborhood of the Bronx. Officially known as “step streets”, …
London Bridge (Lake Havasu City, Arizona)
The 1831 London Bridge was the last project of engineer John Rennie and was completed by his son, also named John Rennie (often called John Rennie the Younger). Prior to its life in sunny Arizona, the bridge spanned …
Kindred Spirits (Midleton, Ireland)
Commemorating a selfless act by the Choctaw people of the United States in 1847, a time of great need to the People of Ireland, Kindred Spirits is a stainless steel sculpture located in Balick Park …
Grave of Fred The Dog (Rockford, Alabama)
In 1993 when a dirty and slightly more than disheveled dog made his way to the town of Rockford, Alabama, it could have ended in a number of ways. The local dog catcher could have …
R.E.M. Murmur Railroad Trestle (Athens, Georgia)
An otherwise ordinary railroad trestle in Athens, Georgia that should have been destroyed decades ago has become an important landmark and tourist attraction thanks to being featured on the back cover of the 1983 R.E.M. …
Storelgen (Stor-Elvdal, Norway)
Storelgen, more commonly known as the Big Elk, is despite its 34 feet of height, not the world’s largest sculpture of a moose. Though it briefly held that title, it is currently outpaced by only …