In all of the 29 years it was in operation, no prisoners ever escaped successfully... or so they claim.

This giant iron playfully pays tribute to an early 20th-century architectural trend.

An early life spent in this "Old Kentucky Home" inspired the writings of North Carolina's most famous novelist.

Classy up your Big Mac with bow-tied servers and chandeliers at the world's fanciest McDonald's.

The enormous 250-room Vanderbilt mansion conceals hidden doors and secret passageways.

The highest point in North Carolina and the United States east of the Mississippi River, Mount Mitchell is named after argumentative explorer Elisha Mitchell.

A 315-foot spire jutting out from the Blue Ridge Mountains makes for breathtaking views.

You can find America's highest suspension footbridge at Grandfather Mountain in North Carolina.

The record holder for the world’s largest peach.

A curious collection of oddities including a lock of Alexander Hamilton's hair and Harry Houdini's ouija board.

A Nessie-like monster supposedly lurks in this lake.

Formerly the most gerrymandered district in the U.S., it twisted and turned along racial borders.

I-95's Tijuana-style celebration of kitsch at the Carolina border.

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

This too-low North Carolina railroad trestle is still a notorious big rig executioner.

A six-foot pair of socks hangs from a drawer of the world's largest bureau.

This North Carolina store preserves a historic moment in America's movement for racial equality.

This fallen red oak tree has been transformed into a piece of trailside art.

This woodland architectural installation acts as a camera obscura for the heavens.

A water pumping station disguised as a residential home to assuage concerned neighbors now tricks most passersby.

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

Eighteenth century house of the mysterious "Father of Raleigh."

A giant concrete churn carries the legacy of American resilience, unity, and greed.

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