Places behindthegossip Wants to Go

A nearly century-old amusement park is quietly decaying in a riverside forest in South Carolina.

A whimsical folk art environment where you can lose yourself in the many colors of joy, beauty, and creativity.

Alexander Hamilton’s creation caused quite a bit of controversy.

Step into a pastel time capsule where candy is truly dandy.

South Philadelphia is home to Keith Haring's only surviving in situ collaborative public mural.

The origin of this mechanical boy was a mystery until he revealed his maker by writing it in perfect cursive.

This charming colonial alleyway is one of the oldest continuously used residential streets in the U.S.

Mural made of 100,000 pieces of hand blown glass, and one of the largest glass murals in the US.

This little-known collection holds everything from "Dracula" notes, to the manuscript of "Ulysses," to the forged works of Shakespeare.

Tour the dark and beloved poet's former cobwebbed basement, which may have inspired "The Black Cat."

A layered tribute to the work of mosaicist Isaiah Zagar.

Philadelphia boasts one of the best — and most often overlooked — traditional Japanese gardens in North America.

America's most famous museum of medical oddities is home to the remains of Albert Einstein's brain.

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

A late-night restaurant empire was launched from this humble storefront.

This hollow steel globe is the second-largest in the world.

An eclectic store sells obscure vinyl recordings of Charles Manson and Jim Jones, along with many other oddities.

One of the few surviving original NASCAR dirt-track speedways.

The time thousands of bags of chips washed ashore in the Outer Banks is memorialized in a local museum.

Don't be surprised if you see a long-necked dinosaur peeking out from among the trees in Northgate Park.

In a pedestrian tunnel on North Carolina State’s campus resides an expressive and artistic free-for-all.

A maritime museum holding the remains of Blackbeard's pirate ship.

A museum dedicated to the legacy of Bob Moog and his pioneering synthesizers.

Divinely-inspired village houses 6,000 dolls, plus strange and lovely outsider art.