American Countryside

Over a century ago, it was common to have one room school houses to educate rural children through the 8th grade.  However, one community in...

The western frontier was noted to have many trading posts, but the one you'll find here has over a century worth of history and it's...

It's one of the largest lakes in the state of Minnesota, and it became the place of settlement for a Native American tribe who followed...

He was probably the most valuable hog of his day.  His worth was measured in extraordinary sums of money, yet his owner would not sell...

He was a champion in the show ring and his fame grew far beyond farm country.  In fact, he was so well known, he had...

For over seven decades, this bridge was a record setter, the highest suspension bridge in the world.  It continues to draw visitors from around the...

Thousands of people still drive to this location to be amazed by the natural beauty of this place.  It makes you wonder what the first...

In the Great Depression era, Quincy, Florida was a town of nearly 4000 residents.  Although times were tough, the advice of one local banker helped...

Cheyenne, Wyoming was one of the towns known as “hell on wheels” for its wild railroad boomtown beginnings. You can still find some of that...

Unless you live in central Nebraska or are perhaps a history buff of the 1870s, you've probably near heard of Fort Hartsuff.  However, a trip...

Just south of Burwell, Nebraska you'll find a fort that is quite interesting to visit.  While there were no major battles or skirmishes here, what...

Perhaps it's fitting that you have to go a bit out of the way to find the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum.  This well known site...

Some sailors and airman have long feared the Bermuda Triangle for the mysterious fate of some who have passed there.  Whitefish Point is a bit...

On a roadmap, it's simply listed as “Whitefish Point.”  That place name has little significance to most, but for those living in northern Michigan, it's...

If I mention the town of South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, sports fans will know there is one iconic event that takes place there every summer.  It's...

Today we take for granted that just about every young boy or girl in the country could probably sign up to play t-ball or baseball...

A stop in Atlanta, Illinois holds a lot to see and do in a place that isn't very large.  They've done a great job of...

You probably would not think a company making fiberglass boats would have a big impact on a major highway.  But a trip to this small...

This island has some of the best views of San Francisco Bay and the city itself…yet most people didn't want to live here.   In fact,...

At one time it was one of the nation's most important forts…but that's not how people would know it today.  The story of one very...

Imagine you unearthed the bones of an animal and had little idea of what you found. Now imagine making up a tale about the creature...

Since the late 1800s people have been coming to this small, but unusual place on the side of a mountain in north central Pennsylvania.  The...

In north central Pennsylvania you'll find a geological anomaly that is hard to believe.  It's a specific place that grows colder and the countryside gets...

Life in this fort could be monotonous.  Life outside this fort in the nearby town could get you killed.  It's a place were a fort...

As rail lines were built west across Nebraska, there were sometimes conflicts between native Americans and those construction crews.  The town of Sidney, Nebraska owes...

How many ice cream sundaes can a person dish up in one day?  Perhaps there is a record somewhere, but what Misty Marsh accomplished was...

Along Interstate 80 in western Nebraska you'll find the small town of Potter.  Many people zip by the place on the four lane highway, but...

If you wanted to travel from coast to coast by rail in 1870, you might consider a trip that took you through Omaha, or another...

Where was the final spike driven to complete the transcontinental railroad?  Promontory, Utah is often declared to be the location, but this town says it...

I recently visited a very interesting store in southwestern Wyoming.  You'll find quite a price range – everything from twenty-five cents to over $20,000.  So...

The soft stone of southwestern Wyoming preserves the story of what this area looked like eons ago.  It is unique geology that draws people here…

It's the largest natural lake wholly within the state of California – a beautiful spot that take some effort to reach, but you are rewarded...

Many of us had a lunchbox when we were growing up.  Debbie did as well, but when her mom tossed hers, she needed to get...

A witness can be a very important part of building a case.  And in this case, the witness is not a person, but rather two...

In a swamp in rural Arkansas you'll find a point that literally impacts life and property in several midwestern states.  Today the site sits is...

There are about 530 million acres in the Louisiana Purchase that the United State acquired from France in 1803.  The process of surveying that ground...

Certain jobs have their own vocabulary, which is understandable to those who work there but gibberish to everyone else.  This is one such place…

In the northwest corner of the state of Washington you will find Olympic National Park.  It's beautiful scenery encompasses most of the Olympic peninsula of...

Thomas Jefferson helped write the Declaration of Independence, but he wasn't happy with the final product. Why was Jefferson grinding his teeth and not talking...

Thomas Jefferson took an important role in writing our declaration of independence, but most people don't know he wasn't even supposed to be in Philadelphia...

It's a sate park like none other – a place where your entrance fee allows you the chance to find something far more valuable that...

The Arkansas state license plate has a picture of a diamond on it.  That is mostly due to a famous crater that was full of...

When you think of state where you can find volcanoes you probably aren't thinking of this spot.  However, it's this place that started a diamond...

It remains the worth disaster in U.S. maritime history.  Add to the tragedy the fact that many of the dead were young soldiers being transported...

It was the early morning hours of April 27th, 1865.  The steamboat Sultana was overcrowded, bearing a load of souls over five times it's capacity. ...

As the Civil War drew to a close in April of 1865, there was a massive job to return prisoners of war back to their...

In 1912 he was proclaimed the world's greatest athlete and some of his Olympic records from that year still stood two decades later.  He was...

When you think of historically great collegiate football programs, names like Notre Dame, Penn State and Alabama might come to mind.  Most people don't name...

Imagine you had invented a new type of rifle that could be helpful to the U.S. military.  How would you go about selling your device? ...

In the 1880s, stagecoaches brought dozens of people each day to a boom town called Tombstone.  But it was a cycle of boom and bust...

When this man set out to find his fortune he was told he'd need to dig his grave when he got there.  He decided to...