bethcrownhart's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Chicago, Illinois

Chicago Water Cribs

These chunky stone towers out in Lake Michigan are the key to Chicago’s drinking water.
Berwyn, Illinois

World's Largest Laundromat

The clothes-washing king doubles as a community center with some unusual features, including an aviary filled with finches.
Peoria, Illinois

Peoria Holocaust Memorial

A collection of 11 million buttons illustrates the human toll of the Holocaust.
Chicago, Illinois

Historic Garfield Station Entrance

The original Garfield station is the oldest station facility on the "L", with the station house dating from 1892.
Bloomington, Illinois

Dorothy's Grave

The carved remains of a 200-year-old oak tree memorialize the namesake of the iconic "Wizard of Oz" character.
Paris, Illinois

'Embassy Row of the Parisian Diaspora'

One of the first historical sites of an alternative universe was installed in the town of Paris, Illinois—which is now home to an annual spelling bee of Kcymaerxthaereal words.
Chicago, Illinois

Alfred Caldwell Lily Pool

Designed by Alfred Caldwel, this landscape showcases his vision of a native garden.
Chicago, Illinois

Chicago Stock Exchange Trading Room

Once at the center of U.S. finance, the historic Trading Room was meticulously recreated piece by piece and rebuilt in the Art Institute.
Gays, Illinois

Two-Story Outhouse

This historic lavatory leftover features two levels of defecation stations completely without context.
Park Ridge, Illinois

Pickwick Theatre

A towering Art Deco movie palace made to look like a Mayan temple.
Chicago, Illinois

Chopin Theatre

Theater has had many different incarnations but has survived the ravages of time.
Fairmont City, Illinois

Illinois Woodhenge

Fresh wooden posts have been added to ancient holes to recreate a primitive henge clock.
Woodstock, Illinois

George Stickney House

This softly rounded mansion was built without corners not to avoid evil spirits, but to make them more comfortable.
Peoria, Illinois

Peoria Scale Model of the Solar System

The world's third-largest scale model of the planets.
Gardner, Illinois

2 Celled Jail

This tiny historic jail along Route 66 is the perfect fit for exactly one criminal and their partner-in-crime.
Chicago, Illinois

Former Site of Selig Polyscope Film Studios

Chicago was once a major hub of film production, but being silent film you don’t hear much about it.
Chicago, Illinois

300 South Wacker Drive

A 400-foot-tall tall map of Chicago makes this once-ignored building stand out.
Lincoln, Illinois

Phone Booth on a Roof

Today this bizarre rooftop phone booth seems like a piece of kitsch but it was once used to spot disastrous storms.
Chicago, Illinois

St. Mary of the Angels

This titanic Catholic church in Chicago is also a refuge of the fictional cult-favorite wizard detective Harry Dresden.
Staunton, Illinois

Henry's Rabbit Ranch

This lagomorph-obsessed Route 66 emporium is home to a giant jackrabbit that sits in a bunny graveyard.
Chicago, Illinois

Jane Addams Hull-House Museum

This historic house museum that celebrates one of the world's most influential social reformers is also one of the most haunted locations in Chicago.
Chicago, Illinois

Noble–Seymour–Crippen House

The oldest house in Chicago certainly doesn't look the part and there are some who say it doesn't deserve its title either.
Chicago, Illinois

Rosenberg Statue

A goddess-topped water fountain in Chicago was created thanks to the dreams of a thirsty newsboy.
Chicago, Illinois

'Ten Thousand Ripples'

Partially submerged Buddha heads freckle Chicago’s neighborhoods.