samjweinberg's User Profile - Atlas Obscura
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Santa Clarita, California

Oak of the Golden Dream

According to legend it was a nap taken under this tree that kicked off the California Gold Rush.
baileymichael Added by baileymichael
Pasadena, California

Vroman's Bookstore

Colorado Boulevard’s historic bookstore, operating since the bustling city of Pasadena was merely some orange groves and a few ostrich farms.
Added by Mordy
Monterey, California

Old Monterey Jail

This remarkably simple jail went over a century without an escape.
Added by Martin
San Francisco, California

Lincoln Park

Shoot for par over the bodies of the dead on this cemetery-cum-golf course.
EricGrundhauser Added by EricGrundhauser
Los Angeles, California

The Happy Foot/Sad Foot Sign

A cult following celebrates the legend that belies this curious podiatrists' office sign which has worked its way into song, literature, animation, and the visual arts.
Elise Added by Elise
Furnace Creek, California

Harmony Borax Works

This crumbling Death Valley mining complex was known for its use of giant, 20-mule team wagons.
EricGrundhauser Added by EricGrundhauser
Los Angeles, California

Brown Derby

Outposts of this restaurant chain were shaped like jaunty chapeaus.
jessicahester1 Added by jessicahester1
Arcata, California

Kinetic Grand Championship

Humboldt's human-powered sculptures race across land and sea for days on end in a wacky quest for dominance.
Casey Added by Casey
Grass Valley, California

Home of Lola Montez

The modest home of the very immodest dancer who cost a king his crown.
Shannon Ohaire Added by Shannon Ohaire
Oakland, California

The Crucible

An art collective teaching the more fiery, metal-y art forms.
Zabitha Added by Zabitha
Pasadena, California

Pasadena City Hall

One of Hollywood’s favorite government buildings.
Added by Mordy
Los Angeles, California

King George Hotel

Where a great scandal unfolded with a famous female revivalist at its center.
Rachel Added by Rachel
Berkeley, California

Free Speech Monument

This subtle Berkeley paving stone actually marks off a lawless tube of air that extends into space.
EricGrundhauser Added by EricGrundhauser
Palm Desert, California

Smiler's Point

This simple highway curve has become a comedic pilgrimage site.
Added by christianisgroovy
Rough and Ready, California

Rough and Ready

The first U.S. town to secede from the Union, only to vote themselves right back in.
Rachel Added by Rachel
Berkeley, California

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Where the alchemists dream of transmuting base metal into gold was actually achieved.
Newbury Park, California

Stagecoach Inn Museum

A basement full of treasures lies beneath this inn that has worn many hats throughout its 140+ years.
Elise Added by Elise
Tecopa, California

Pholisma sonorae aka "Sand Food"

A mysterious and endangered parasitic herb from the California desert.
Santa Cruz, California

Santa Cruz Surfing Museum

Housed in a memorial lighthouse, this museum relays the history of surfing, beginning with the antics of royal Hawaiian teenagers.
Added by Cosmic Joke
San Diego, California

Friendship Park

Every weekend, people gather here for a brief chance to see their loved ones on the other side of the United States–Mexico border.
Kerry Wolfe Added by Kerry Wolfe
Carmel-by-the-Sea, California

Tor House and Hawk Tower

One poet's handmade, anachronistic home.
rebeccaclara Added by rebeccaclara
Bodega Bay, California

Children's Bell Tower

A poignant memorial to a young boy whose death spurred a dramatic increase in organ donations in Italy—dubbed the "Nicholas Effect."
hrnick Added by hrnick
Riverside, California

The Ark of Citrus

The Citrus Variety Collection at UC Riverside contains two trees of each of the 1,000+ varieties of citrus.
Gastropod Added by Gastropod
Riverside, California

The Parent Washington Navel Tree

This California tree is the single source of the state's entire orange industry.
christopherldrozd Added by christopherldrozd