Places Ancientproof Wants to Go

Once the gateway to the utopian dream-village of a Civil War embalmer.

Concrete strongholds stand guard over the Golden Gate.

Across Ring Mountain is a vast collection of Native American petroglyphs unique to the region.

At night, a grove of towering redwood trees growing through the pavement block out all light from the so-called “Dark Park” of Madrone Avenue.

One man's love of natural beauty led to the creation of this hidden granite monument.

Law-protected wreckage serves as a peculiar memorial for an almost forgotten World War II tragedy.

This abandoned boat was left in place thanks to its rotting beauty.

Visitors flock to see this church tower's unintended feature: It happens to resemble a giant chicken from multiple points of view.

The installation’s official name, “You Who Are Getting Obliterated in the Dancing Swarm of Fireflies,” says it all.

A crumbling hospital from the 1850s on Roosevelt Island.

The world’s first penitentiary, meant to be humane, drove men insane.

London's creepiest cemetery was once the site of dueling magicians and mobs of stake-carrying vampire hunters.

The liveliest ghost town in the state.

His discovery kicked off the Gold Rush. One of the hands on this commemorative statue points to the spot where he found the precious metal.

Get a taste of Chamorro cuisine, family-style, at this popular restaurant.

A replica of the first public theater built in California.

A simple plaque remembers a California island massacre that claimed more than 100 lives.

These cinderblock farmhouses were actually World War II radar stations in disguise.

The first patented shaved-ice machine heralded a snowy wonderland of iced treats at a favorite New Orleans summer shack.

This Birdsill Holly fire hydrant is the remnant of a very different type of hydration innovation.

A pink cottage covered in hearts served as a haven and a resting place for LGBTQ activists.

Made of giant chains and hung with shackles, this iron cross honors those unknowns who perished under American slavery.

This historic "City of the Dead" lies prominently in the center of New Orleans' famous Garden District.

A collection of oddities including Dr. Kevorkian's suicide device, the Thanatron.