Washington, D.C.
Watergate Steps
Decades before the scandal, this staircase on the river was a literal "water gate."
Places stephaniewade56 Wants to Go
757
Places I want to go
Places on this traveler's wishlist.
Washington, D.C.
Abandoned Drawbridge Control Room
The hidden offices underneath Memorial Bridge have been locked up since 1976.
Washington, D.C.
Peirce Mill Spy Station
Cold War intelligence agents monitored communist embassies from an attic in a former pigeon coop.
Washington, D.C.
The Big Chair
A super-sized promotional trick that is now a D.C. landmark.
Washington, D.C.
National Archives Vault
An atomic bomb-proof strongbox protects the U.S. Constitution from terrorists and thieves.
Washington, D.C.
The Mary Surratt Boarding House
The house where John Wilkes Booth conspired with his co-conspirators.
Washington, D.C.
St. Elizabeths Hospital
Government testing at the asylum briefly explored using marijuana as a "truth serum" on Nazi prisoners of war.
Washington, D.C.
Theodore Roosevelt Island
The national park was once a plantation estate.
Permanently Closed
Washington, D.C.
The Unabomber's Cabin
It was once the base for a series of domestic terror attacks.
Washington, D.C.
Rockefeller Mansion in Rock Creek Park
This leafy estate is worth $18 million and is so grand it has two mailing addresses.
Washington, D.C.
Kilroy Was Here
There’s a hidden military meme engraved on the World War II Memorial.
Permanently Closed
Washington, D.C.
Church of Two Worlds
A Spiritualist house of worship where believers communicate with the dead in the spirit world.
Washington, D.C.
Mount Zion Cemetery's Underground Railroad Shelter
People escaping slavery may have hidden inside a corpse vault.
Washington, D.C.
Fort DeRussy
A Civil War fort in the middle of Washington, D.C. has been swallowed by a forest.
Washington, D.C.
Dumbarton Oaks
The Byzantine, pre-Columbian, and medieval art at this stately mansion are some of the most under-appreciated collections in D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Inside the Capitol Dome
The walls of the iconic dome are hollow and have a secret stairway.
Washington, D.C.
Titanic Memorial
This lonely waterfront memorial to the men of the Titanic was erected by the "Women of America."
Washington, D.C.
Tudor Place
A historic estate packed with George Washington's heirlooms, and its own nuclear bunker.
Washington, D.C.
Secret Entrance to the White House
The winding route passes through an enclosed alleyway, two tunnels, and leads to the White House basement.
Washington, D.C.
Foundry Branch Trolley Trestle Ruins
A derelict bit of transportation infrastructure hidden in the woods.
Washington, D.C.
National Building Museum
Fittingly, America's museum of architecture is itself a magnificently designed old building.
Washington, D.C.
The Old Patent Model Museum
During the Industrial Revolution this “Temple of Invention” was full of intricate miniature machines and gadgets.
Washington, D.C.
Lincoln Memorial Undercroft
A cavernous three-story, 43,800-square-foot basement that was forgotten about for 60 years.
Washington, D.C.
FBI Spy House
A painfully obvious spy house sits right across the street from the Russian Embassy.
