7 Strange Landmarks in the US ...

By Neecey

7 Strange Landmarks in the US ...

When you think of US attractions, the incredible cities, national parks, theme parks, historical monuments and iconic buildings and constructions come to mind, however, strange US landmarks probably don’t enter your thoughts. But, they are there and actually probably more numerous than you might imagine. Want to know some? Read on then for some strange US landmarks.

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1

Salton Sea, California

Salton Sea, California Set in California’s largest desert is the one of the strangest of strange US landmarks, the Salton Sea. Actually a lake produced by the 1905 flooding of the Colorado River, the Salton Sea is artificial, with salty waters and a surface that’s 220 feet below sea level. When the flooding occurred, 1500 workers moved a half million tons of rock to redirect the Colorado River, but with no outlet, the Sea now sits near Salvation Mountain, another strange site, created by Leonard Knight, a folk artist. The hand-mixed adobe and concrete hill, doused with acrylic paint and the motto “God Never Fails,” stands 100 feet high on the lake’s eastern edge.

2

Roswell, New Mexico

Roswell, New Mexico The mysterious UFO sightings of Roswell, New Mexico make it one of the strange US landmarks in the southwest. With its strangeness dating back to 1947 when an odd object crash-landed at an area ranch, the mystery was exacerbated by the US military’s efforts to hush the incident up. Naturally, people assumed aliens had landed, and curiosity didn’t end at the local level – the incident acquired international fame. The locals latched onto this and have wrapped Roswell in mystery ever since, planting round white heads over the street lamps downtown, and establishing the International UFO Museum & Research Center, which exhibits crazy artworks and outlines the Roswell cover-up.

3

Lucy the Margate Elephant, New Jersey

Lucy the Margate Elephant, New Jersey South of Atlantic City, a pleasant afternoon drive through the area’s beach communities will stop you in its tracks with this strange US landmark. Oddly created with the intention of appealing to land buyers, Lucy the Margate Elephant was built in 1881. Standing 65 feet tall, the elephant’s wooden construction is now noted on the National Register of Historic Places. Over the course of Lucy’s long life, she’s been used as a beach cottage, a private mansion, a hotel and a tavern; but now, intrigued tourists can come tour the wooden elephant’s interior.

4

Cadillac Ranch, Texas

Cadillac Ranch, Texas A wealthy eccentric built this ranch of Cadillacs – whose vintages range from 1949 to 1963 – in 1974 just outside Amarillo, moving them further along in 1997, due to town policies. Now ranged along the I-40 between exits 60 and 62, the Cadillac Ranch pays homage to the golden age of car travel and Route 66. Visitors are welcome to engage with the art installations, adding to them by drawing or spray-painting on the vehicles. If you’re interested in car harvesting, only 18 miles down the road, you can also visit Bug Ranch, where stripped-down VWs are planted firmly in the soil – tick off seeing two strange US landmarks in one trip.

5

Lucas, Kansas

Lucas, Kansas Art produced outside of culturally bound tradition has become known as ‘outsider art,’ and is a craze in the small town of Lucas, Kansas. Reaching back to the 1907 renaissance, the eccentric Samuel Dinsmoor birthed this art form by loading gigantic concrete sculptures into his yard, all of which embrace his philosophies. You can peek into his Garden of Eden for free, but in order to hear some strange stories about the man (as well as to view his remains in a glass-lidded coffin), you must pay a small price of admission.

Famous Quotes

Meaning is not what you start with but what you end up with.

Peter Elbow
6

Coral Castle, Florida

Coral Castle, Florida Lost love resulted in this homage in Homestead, which was created by Ed Leedskalnin, an immigrant from Latvia. Excavating more than 2.2 million tons of coral rock, Ed built his coral castle, a beautiful bit of engineering by a beautiful and sad soul. The heartbroken man did not use any mortar and constructed the castle at night. Some folks believe that the coral castle has strange electromagnetic properties.

7

World’s Largest Ball of Twine, Minnesota

World’s Largest Ball of Twine, Minnesota Oh, boy – if you want to view a great big ball of twine, then this one’s for you! Though there have been disputes on whether or not this ball indeed holds the current record as the biggest, it is the original big ball of twine. Located in Darwin, Minnesota, this twine ball built by a man with too much time on his hands, Francis Johnson, is the “Largest Built by One Person.” Clocking in at 17,400 pounds, the ball took over 29 years to build, and you can start your own twine crusade by picking up a “twine ball starter kit” at the museum gift shop alongside this strangest of strange US landmarks.

Hands up then! Who’s visited any of these strange US landmarks?

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