Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for U.S. travel
A Massive Presidential Library
By Linda Tancs
One of the most-visited presidential libraries, the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum documents the life of the 16th U.S. president, Abraham Lincoln, and the course of the American Civil War. Spanning an entire city block in downtown Springfield, Illinois, the state-of-the-art facility features cutting-edge exhibits, special effects theaters and displays of original Lincoln-era artifacts. The facility is open daily and visits are self-guided.
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The Stalacpipe Organ
By Linda Tancs
One of the largest caves in the eastern United States, Luray Caverns in Virginia features vast underground rooms connected by natural corridors and paved walkways adorned with vibrant rock formations. Its greatest boast, though, is the Great Stalacpipe Organ, a unique instrument that creates symphonic music from stalactites. Invented in 1954 by Leland Sprinkle, a mathematician and electronics engineer, it’s recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s largest natural underground musical instrument. It spans over 3 acres of the caverns and is a lithophone, meaning it produces sound by striking objects (in this case, stalactites) with rubber-tipped mallets.
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Shaker Village
By Linda Tancs
Emerging from a split with the Quakers in England in the mid-1700s, the Shakers were a Protestant Christian sect that established communities in the United States. Their practices and heritage are preserved at Hancock Shaker Village, a living history museum in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts. Located in Pittsfield, the National Landmark is the largest Shaker museum in the eastern United States. It features 20 historic buildings, extensive gardens and an impressive collection of Shaker artifacts. The village is open from April through December although guided tours are available for groups year-round by advance reservation.
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The American Experience in Corning
By Linda Tancs
Corning, New York, is known for its rich history in glassmaking, an industry chronicled at its famous museum of glass. But Corning is also the site of the Rockwell Museum, which reflects the American experience through American paintings, drawings, sculptures and photography as well as in artistic objects of material culture. The Smithsonian-affiliated facility on Cedar Street is housed in the Richardsonian Romanesque former city hall building.
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Niagara of the West
By Linda Tancs
Often referred to as the Niagara of the West, Shoshone Falls is a scenic waterfall on the Snake River in Twin Falls, Idaho. At 212 feet tall, it surpasses the height of Niagara Falls on the border between the U.S. and Canada. The best time to visit the 900-foot-wide attraction is when the snowpack begins to melt, typically in March and April.
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Perfect Symmetry in Annapolis
By Linda Tancs
The Hammond-Harwood House is a five part Anglo-Palladian mansion in Annapolis, Maryland, that features some of the best woodcarving and plasterwork in America. Prized for symmetry and proportion rarely found in 18th-century structures, the National Historic Landmark built in 1774 is the final work of architect William Buckland. Architecture buffs will enjoy the in-depth, two-hour tour. That’s in addition to the regular guided tour of the house and its collections of early American fine and decorative arts, the garden, and old kitchen.
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The Gilded Age in St. Augustine
By Linda Tancs
The historic Hotel Alcazar building in downtown St. Augustine, Florida, is an 1887 Spanish Renaissance Revival-style building listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Once a Gilded Age resort hotel commissioned by Standard Oil executive Henry Flagler, it’s now home to the Lightner Museum, founded by Chicago publisher, collector and professional hobbyist Otto C. Lightner. He created the museum to share his extensive and eclectic collection with the public, ranging from ornate Gilded Age furniture and American Brilliant Era cut glass to vintage typewriters and whimsical curiosities. Located on King Street, the facility is open daily.
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The Spite House
By Linda Tancs
An iconic part of the architecture in Alexandria, Virginia, Spite House is the skinniest historic home in America at a mere seven feet wide and 325 square feet. Typically referred to as an alley house or a tiny house, the home earned its moniker because of the builder’s intentions. Seeking to block loiterers and carriages squeezing their way through the alley next to his house, John Hollensbury built the structure in 1830. A popular tourist attraction, you’ll find it at 523 Queen Street.
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Arcade History in New Hampshire
By Linda Tancs
The American Classic Arcade Museum in Laconia, New Hampshire, features hundreds of vintage arcade games. From Asteroids to Zaxxon, it’s likely that your favorite game is there. Their collection includes some of the rarest games on earth, including Star Trek (cockpit version), the outer space game Flower and Computer Space, the first commercially available coin-operated video game. All games require a token purchase to play. Admission is free.
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Art and Science in South Dakota
By Linda Tancs
The Kirby Science Discovery Center Washington Pavilion in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is home to the arts, entertainment and science. The center has over 100 interactive, family-friendly exhibits covering everything from exploring space, learning about tornadoes, digging for dinosaur bones and discovering how water moves and changes. It includes one of the most advanced planetarium systems in the United States. You’ll also find performing and visual arts opportunities there, like Broadway shows, concerts and eight spacious art galleries, the state’s largest art museum. The facility is located in the heart of downtown.
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