Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States Illinois Urbana 'The American Football House'

'The American Football House'

The house is an iconic pilgrimage site for fans of the Illinois-based emo band.

Urbana, Illinois

Added By
Nate Pedersen
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
The American Football House.   Sean Neumann/used with permission
The American Football House.   Sean Neumann/used with permission
The American Football House.   Sean Neumann/used with permission
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

For emo music fans coming of age in the late 1990s, few bands were more beloved—and few album covers more iconic— than the Urbana, Illinois-based band American Football and its self-titled debut album released in 1999. The house on the cover of the album, where members of the band lived at the time, became one of the only visuals associated with the elusive and short-lived but deeply beloved band, which broke up the following year.

The trio, led by guitarist/vocalist Mike Kinsella, reassembled and released a second album in 2016. Its cover art also featured what had affectionately become known as "The American Football House."

Today, a steady stream of "emo tourists" wander by and take photographs of the house, a potent nostalgic reminder of the heyday of emo music in the late 1990s. Chalk marks on the sidewalk mark places where tourists have been best able to recreate the iconic photograph from the cover of the first album.

Related Tags

Houses Music Music History Homes

Community Contributors

Added By

Nate Pedersen

Published

January 15, 2020

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/jm5837/emo-tourism-how-the-american-football-house-became-the-one-of-musics-biggest-landmarks
  • https://www.facebook.com/pages/American-Football-House/583845905281162
'The American Football House'
704 W High St
Urbana, Illinois, 61801
United States
40.109975, -88.216575
Get Directions

Nearby Places

John Milton Gregory's Grave

Urbana, Illinois

miles away

The Morrow Plots

Urbana, Illinois

miles away

Sons and Daughters of Deucalion and Pyrrha

Urbana, Illinois

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Urbana

Urbana

Illinois

Places 5
Stories 1

Nearby Places

John Milton Gregory's Grave

Urbana, Illinois

miles away

The Morrow Plots

Urbana, Illinois

miles away

Sons and Daughters of Deucalion and Pyrrha

Urbana, Illinois

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Urbana

Urbana

Illinois

Places 5
Stories 1

Related Places

  • Blind Boone House.

    Columbia, Missouri

    Blind Boone House

    The modest, restored home of the legendary ragtime musician John William "Blind" Boone.

  • The newly repainted house

    Hibbing, Minnesota

    Bob Dylan's Childhood Home

    Where one of America's greatest songwriters lived before he was Bob Dylan.

  • Birthplace of Buddy Guy

    Lettsworth, Louisiana

    Birthplace of Buddy Guy

    The childhood home of the legendary blues guitarist and singer.

  • The house’s fine exterior.

    Savannah, Georgia

    Johnny Mercer’s Childhood Home

    The humble beginnings of one of America’s greatest songsmiths.

  • View from S Lowe St

    Hazlehurst, Mississippi

    Robert Johnson House

    A blues musician so talented that people said he must have traded his soul to the devil was born in this house.

  • Hendrix’s bedroom.

    London, England

    Handel & Hendrix in London

    The next-door homes of two very different musicians, George Frideric Handel and Jimi Hendrix.

  • Mercury House.

    Zanzibar, Tanzania

    Mercury House

    Freddie Mercury's childhood home is now a monument to the iconic Queen rockstar.

  • The house is in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, in North Carolina.

    Tryon, North Carolina

    Nina Simone's Childhood Home

    The wooden house where the jazz great learned to play the piano.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.