Nicholas Jackson

Nick is the editor of Atlas Obscura. Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago with a family that considered a six-hour haul to St. Louis a world-class vacation, he took to books and the Internet to dream of more exotic and curious expeditions. His whole life was spent waiting for someone to create the Atlas. In addition to managing the content and contributors on this site, Nick works as a staff editor at The Atlantic and an officer of the International Association for Literary Journalism Studies. Previously, he has written profiles of everyone from Bjork to David Letterman for Encyclopaedia Britannica, covered national politics for Texas Monthly, summarized thousands of breaking news stories for Slate and turned a 26-hour sentence in a South Texas jail cell into an award-winning feature story. Friend him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter.

Stats	30 days	All time
New places added	0	146
Edits to places	0	2721
Comments	0	4

Places I have been to

I have been to The Ozark Spooklight, Exploratorium and Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area

Places I like

I like Congressional Fallout Shelter at the Greenbrier Resort , The Ozark Spooklight, Bouvet Island, Clutter Family Home, The Stanley Hotel, The Old Dutch Church of Sleepy Hollow, Cheesman Park, Monument to Humanity, Kars, Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump and Tree Cathedral

Recent Activity

July 27, 2011 Nicholas Jackson updated the Private Passage

Private Passage

Wine bottle sculpture with a ship's stateroom inside

Named for the former New York Governor Dewitt Clinton, Clinton Cove is a spectacular park in New York, New York. It includes a big green lawn for picnicking, a boathouse holdings canoes and kayaks... »

Unusual Monuments, Strange Statues | Edited by aboychuk and Nicholas Jackson
July 27, 2011 Nicholas Jackson updated the Foamhenge

Foamhenge

Exact replica of the monument made using Styrofoam

You know Stonehenge, the prehistoric monument in the English county of Wiltshire that is constructed with enormous stones. But do you know Foamhenge? It's a full-size replica of Stonehenge made... »

Unusual Monuments, Strange Statues | Edited by A Facebook user and Nicholas Jackson
July 26, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Tomb of Ali at Shakhimardan

Fergana Valley, Uzbekistan

Tomb of Ali at Shakhimardan

Beautiful palace stands tall over the Fergana Valley

On the edge of the Fergana Valley, a region in Central Asia where Taikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan all meet that is packed with enclaves, tiny territories completely surrounded by foreign... »

Memento Mori, Catacombs, Crypts, & Cemeteries, Architectural Oddities, Incredible Ruins | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 26, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Khan's Palace

Fergana Valley, Uzbekistan

Khan's Palace

Final palace complex of the last of 29 Kokand rulers

This huge, magnificent palace complex, built in 1871, was constructed in the traditions of Central Asian architecture. Visitors will find, as one knowledgeable about such things might expect to, a... »

Architectural Oddities, Eccentric Homes | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 25, 2011 Nicholas Jackson updated the Brooklyn Old Trolley Cars

Brooklyn Old Trolley Cars

Four cars from the old system remain on display

The Brooklyn trolley cars went out of service in 1948, but they're still remembered both inside and outside of the city. The Brooklyn Historic Railway Association once owned 16 trolleys throughout... »

Inspired Inventions, Cultures and Civilizations | Edited by aboychuk and Nicholas Jackson
July 25, 2011 Nicholas Jackson updated the House That Moved

Exeter, United Kingdom

House That Moved

Old Tudor home moved on thick iron rails to a new spot

Long famous for its ancient and historic buildings, Exeter has one house that stands out from all of the rest. As the story goes, the move that would be remembered generations later began on... »

Commercial Curiosities, Architectural Oddities, Eccentric Homes | Edited by Byron and Nicholas Jackson
July 24, 2011 Nicholas Jackson updated the Fergana Valley

Fergana Valley, Uzbekistan

Fergana Valley

One of the most ethnically diverse spots on the planet

A geographical territory that is completely surrounded by foreign territory, an enclave is often a place filled with political and cultural complications. For this reason and others, most... »

Cultures and Civilizations , Lost Tribes | Edited by A Facebook user and Nicholas Jackson
July 24, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Burial Spirit Houses

Burial Spirit Houses

Colorful boxes placed over the dead are left to rot and crumble

A combination of Russian Orthodox tradition and Native American practices, the graveyard outside of the St. Nicholas Orthodox Church in Eklutna, Alaska, is filled with more than 100 colorful... »

Memento Mori, Catacombs, Crypts, & Cemeteries | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 24, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Valdez Museum & Historical Archive

Valdez Museum & Historical Archive

Permanent exhibit reminds visitors of the Exxon Valdez

The small town of Valdez in Alaska (it is home to only about 4,000 people) is perhaps best known for the Valdez Marine Terminal, an oil port situated at the southern end of the Alaska Pipeline.... »

Museums and Collections, Unique Collections | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 24, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Tiny Church

Tiny Church

Open day and night, a church with three pews and Bibles

Managed by the Trinity Christian Center, a domed church in off in the distance, the Tiny Church is open day and night, left unlocked for anybody to wander in should they need a quiet, private... »

Architectural Oddities, Curious Places of Worship | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 24, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Boggy Creek Monster

Boggy Creek Monster

Legend of a local monster still haunts this small town

The legend of the Boggy Creek Monster has long captivated the people of Fouke, Arkansas, a little town about 150 miles outside of Little Rock. It is said that Fouke is the first place that this... »

Natural Wonders, Fascinating Fauna | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 24, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Billy Bass Adoption Center

Billy Bass Adoption Center

Where those animatronic singing fish are retired

It's not the only one, but it does claim to be the first of its kind. The Billy Bass Adoption Center, located inside of the Flying Fish restaurant in Little Rock, Arkansas, is a place where... »

Commercial Curiosities, Purveyors of Curiosities | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 24, 2011 Nicholas Jackson updated the Gerbrandy Tower

IJsselstein, Netherlands

Gerbrandy Tower

Tower that turns into world's tallest Christmas tree

A combination free-standing tower and guyed mast, the Gerbrandy Tower is the tallest broadcasting tower in the Netherlands. More impressive, though, is what the tower becomes during the holiday... »

Unusual Monuments, Inspired Inventions, Electrical Oddities | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 24, 2011 Nicholas Jackson updated the Rosslyn Metro Escalator

Rosslyn Metro Escalator

At 207 feet, one of the world's longest continuous escalators

According to Dante Alighieri, past the wall of flames after the 7th terrace of Purgatory, there is an immense stone staircase leading to the Earthly Paradise so big that Dante and his companions... »

Inspired Inventions, Electrical Oddities | Edited by A Facebook user, Nicholas Jackson and 2 others
July 22, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Big Poo

Big Poo

At five meters long, that is one big piece of foam poop

Australia is home to more than just a couple of big things. The big country, it has been said, has a love of similarly-oversized objects. The Big Poo is only one of a loosely related set of about... »

Unusual Monuments, Strange Statues | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 22, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Big Potato

Robertson, Australia

Big Potato

Concrete spud looks like the North American Sebago

Australia is home to more than just a couple of big things. The big country, it has been said, has a love of similarly-oversized objects. The Big Potato is only one of a loosely related set of... »

Unusual Monuments, Strange Statues | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 22, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Big Playable Guitar

Narrandera, Australia

Big Playable Guitar

Record-holding guitar meant to promote country

Australia is home to more than just a couple of big things. The big country, it has been said, has a love of similarly-oversized objects. The Big Playable Guitar is only one of a loosely related... »

Unusual Monuments, Strange Statues | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 22, 2011 Nicholas Jackson updated the Walls of Ston

Walls of Ston

Longest fortress system anywhere in Europe

For hundreds of years, Croats have dealt with hordes invading their lands. During the 19th century, they desperately fought the Ottoman Empire from the south. Today, they face a less violent mass,... »

Architectural Oddities, Incredible Ruins | Edited by atimian, Dylan and others
July 22, 2011 Nicholas Jackson updated the Madara Rider

Madara, Bulgaria

Madara Rider

Rock carving created 1,300 years ago 75 feet off the ground

In the 8th century, climbing something meant scrambling up it with your hands and feet. There were no climbing harnesses, and the first climbing carabiner was a thousand years away. It is... »

Inspired Inventions, Architectural Oddities, Incredible Ruins | Edited by atimian, Dylan and others
July 22, 2011 Nicholas Jackson updated the Big Oyster

Taree, Australia

Big Oyster

Homage to the local produce now serves as a car dealer

Australia is home to more than just a couple of big things. The big country, it has been said, has a love of similarly-oversized objects. The Big Oyster is only one of a loosely related set of... »

Unusual Monuments, Strange Statues | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 20, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Old Naked Joe Mountain

Old Naked Joe Mountain

Peak named for an old man who liked to run in the nude

Tucked among the beautiful Ozarks running through the wilderness of Arkansas, Old Naked Joe Mountain is a peak with a quirky history. A long time ago, a small town at the edge of a national... »

Natural Wonders, Geological Oddities | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 20, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Spreckels Mansion

Spreckels Mansion

27-room home built with the fortune of a sugar magnate

This French Baroque chateau was designed for Adolph and Alma de Bretteville Spreckels by George A. Applegarth, a graduate of the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. In order to build the mansion,... »

Memento Mori, Architectural Oddities, Eccentric Homes | Edited by Nicholas Jackson and rebeccaclara
July 20, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Toad Suck

Toad Suck

Town not known for anything except its strange name

An unincorporated community in the middle of Perry County, Arkansas, Toad Suck is known for nothing more than its name. But the residents of this little sub-town have no problem capitalizing that.... »

Cultures and Civilizations | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 20, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Home-Built Razorback Hog

Home-Built Razorback Hog

Giant papier mache hog sits on private property

Built on top of a trailer, this homemade razorback hog has seen better days. It looks as though the structure was once rolled out for parades - and it appears that all four of its legs were once... »

Unusual Monuments, Strange Statues | Edited by Nicholas Jackson
July 19, 2011 Nicholas Jackson added Tree Surgeon Buried in a Tree

Tree Surgeon Buried in a Tree

Local legend says that someone is buried in the trunk

At the entrance to the Hampton Springs Cemetery in Carthage, Arkansas, there is a tree. Now, there are lots of trees, in this cemetery and in many others - almost every other, probably. But this... »

Natural Wonders, Extraordinary Flora | Edited by Nicholas Jackson