This amazingly preserved Gold Rush town is a historian's dream.

The only home of the famous French impressionist painter open to the public is now a museum and bed and breakfast.

The first U.S. town to secede from the Union, only to vote themselves right back in.

Before it was abandoned and left to rust alongside the road, this riverboat starred in a John Wayne movie.

Pillars made of 700 pieces of luggage climb to the ceiling of Sacramento Airport's baggage claim.

This 15-story mural celebrates the 50th anniversary of the musician's iconic "At Folsom Prison" album.

The last of a gourmet supermarket chain, this store helped spark California's Food Revolution.

Steinbeck's old stomping grounds, immortalized in Cannery Row.

One of the most elaborate displays of Jellyfish is on display at the aquarium.

This odd little museum holds exhibits on everything from blacksmith equipment to hair jewelry.

The last remaining relic of San Francisco's glittering 1915 Panama Pacific Exposition.

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

This concrete tangle of square pipes has stood as a proud thorn in the city's side since the '70s.

San Francisco's newly reopened hands-on science museum.

Its dark depths conceal millions of rare, delicate crystal formations.

This former boomtown "island" is now submerged below Folsom Lake.

This museum looks at the history of one of America's most famous prisons and most beloved albums.

This 19th century hydroelectric powerhouse was the first of its kind.

A working miniature city designed to teach kids about safety and presumably city planning.

I Street Bridge is the heaviest swinging center bridge in the United States.

This 19th century train workshop is a treasure trove of railroad history.

A replica of the first public theater built in California.

The California capital city once stood 10 feet lower than it does today.

The capitol city's oldest existing cemetery.