1

Cypress Gardens (Winter Haven, Florida)

Long before the Disney parks arrived in Florida, another attraction was the most popular, drawing visitors from across the country.

It was Cypress Gardens in Winter Haven, Florida, which opened in 1936 as a botanical garden showcasing the state’s natural beauty. Over time, it became even better known for its water ski shows, something many Americans still remember from family trips in the 60s and 70s. But by the late 70s, things began to shift. The rise of the Disney parks changed tourism expectations, and Cypress Gardens slowly lost its spotlight, ultimately closing in September 2009. But it's not all bad news; parts of the original gardens still survive today, preserved inside LEGOLAND Florida.

2

New York State Pavilion (New York)

At the 1964 New York World’s Fair in Queens, the United States unveiled a brave vision of the future: the New York State Pavilion.

With its "Tent of Tomorrow," three towering observation structures, and a giant map of New York on the ground, it drew crowds throughout 1964 with exhibitions, shows, and concerts. But when the fair closed in 1965, the future it represented started to fade. Without a long-term plan or funding, the pavilion declined, and by 1974**,** it was permanently closed due to structural issues. Today, its rusted towers still stand over Queens, NYC, alongside the empty concrete frame. However, restoration efforts have recently begun, hinting at a possible second life for this future that never was.

3

Six Flags New Orleans (New Orleans, Louisiana)

In the early 2000s, it was one of the most popular amusement parks in the region, but soon after, it was left underwater and abandoned.

We’re talking about Six Flags New Orleans, which opened in May 2000 as Jazzland Theme Park. In 2002, Six Flags took over, rebranding it and improving its roller coasters, rides, and water attractions. Its downfall wasn’t due to lack of visitors or investment; it was something far more powerful: in 2005, Hurricane Katrina flooded the park , causing irreversible damage, so it never reopened. Today, it still stands abandoned, with rusting rides and empty streets that are now a reminder of the storm. But it still gets some use: today, the now-haunting site has been transformed into a frequent filming location for movies, including Jurassic World (2015) and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014).

4

Palisades Amusement Park (Bergen County, New Jersey)

For decades, especially between 1950 and 1970, it was a classic summer destination for families, but today, it’s completely gone.

Palisades Amusement Park opened in 1898 on the cliffs of the Hudson River in New Jersey. And what began as a trolley stop became one of America’s most famous amusement parks, known for its roller coasters, neon lights, and a massive saltwater pool once called "the largest in the world." However, by the 1960s, overcrowding, rising costs, and local pressure pushed it into decline, and it closed permanently on September 12, 1971. Today, high-rise apartments stand where the rides once were.

5

Disney's River Country (Lake Buena Vista, Florida)

Have you heard about Disney’s abandoned park? Disney's River Country opened in 1976 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, inspired by the vibes of classic American summer vacations. It had a rustic atmosphere, with wooden slides, rope swings, and water drawn directly from the nearby lake. It was a total success in the 1980s, but by the late 1990s, things began to change.

Newer water parks with advanced systems and stricter safety standards made River Country feel outdated, and Disney gradually shifted its attention elsewhere. The park closed "temporarily" in 2001, but it never reopened. Today, it still sits in the same place, partially reclaimed by nature, quietly overshadowed by the modern resorts around it.

6

Grossinger’s Catskill Resort Hotel (Liberty, New York)

What was once one of the most popular family resorts in the country is now an extensive, decaying space with peeling wallpaper and collapsing floors.

Grossinger’s Resort Hotel began in the 1910s as a small guesthouse in the Catskill Mountains of Liberty, New York. What started modestly soon grew into one of the region’s most famous destinations, reaching its peak in the 1950s and 1960s with a golf course and both indoor and outdoor pools. It was incredibly popular with urban and suburban families in the tri-state area, and it even inspired the fictional "Kellerman's Mountain Resort" from Dirty Dancing (1987).

But in the late 1960s, American vacation habits began to change. Air travel and cruise vacations attracted families, and younger generations no longer returned to the places their parents had once loved. The resort gradually declined, leading to its permanent closure in 1986.

7

Dogpatch USA (Marble Falls, Arkansas)

Dogpatch USA opened in the Ozarks of Marble Falls, Arkansas, in 1968, taking its name from the fictional town in the popular comic strip Li’l Abner by Al Capp.

Rustic buildings, rides, fishing ponds, and a small amusement area brought the comic world to life. It first attracted curiosity from local visitors, but never reached the popularity its creators had hoped for. Almost from the start, it struggled, in part due to its remote Ozarks location, which made it difficult for most tourists to reach, and its operating costs that surpassed attendance. Over time, the park gradually declined, changing ownership and shrinking in activity, before finally disappearing in the mid-1980s.

8

Ghost Town in the Sky (Maggie Valley, North Carolina)

A Wild West–themed amusement park sitting above the clouds in the Smoky Mountains sounds too good to be true, right? But it was real.

Ghost Town in the Sky opened on May 1, 1961, in Maggie Valley, North Carolina, at the top of Buck Mountain. Visitors rode a chairlift up to a full Old West town with saloons, staged gunfights, and mountain views. For its first two decades, it attracted steady crowds, but by the 1990s, it began to shrink. Rising maintenance costs, difficult access, and unstable ownership pushed it into decline. By the 2000s, the aging infrastructure became unreliable, leading to its first closure in 2002 and final closure in 2009. Today, the park still sits abandoned on the mountain.

9

Geauga Lake (Aurora, Ohio)

In the early 20th century, many Midwestern families had a go-to summer destination: Geauga Lake Park.

Geauga Lake opened in 1887 in Aurora, Ohio, as a simple lakeside resort. By the 1920s, it had grown into a full amusement park with rides, games, and roller coasters –like its classic wooden coaster, the Big Dipper– attracting thousands of visitors each year. Throughout much of the 20th century, it was a must-stop on family road trips. It reached its peak in the 1990s, after major expansions turned it into a large regional attraction, but those same upgrades also drove up costs and complexity. In the end, the expansion that improved it also sealed its fate, leading to its final closure in 2007.

10

Heritage USA (Fort Mill, South Carolina)

Sometimes called "Christian Disneyland," Heritage USA opened in 1978 in Fort Mill, South Carolina, founded by famous televangelists Jim and Tammy Bakker with the idea of building a major Christian-themed resort to rival the big amusement parks.

For a time, it was hugely popular, at one point even ranking as the third most-visited theme park in the U.S., with rides, a water park, hotels, and a large church auditorium. But in 1987, a financial scandal involving Jim Bakker shook public trust, and in 1989, Hurricane Hugo caused further damage. By the end of 1989, the park had effectively shut down, leaving its once-famous 21-story hotel as a hollow reminder of what it had been.

1

Pacific Coast Highway

Image: Joe Pilié

The Pacific Coast Highway , officially known as California State Route 1, runs along the stunning California coastline. This iconic route stretches from Dana Point in Orange County to Leggett in Mendocino County, offering breathtaking views of the Pacific Ocean, rugged cliffs, and charming coastal towns.

Designated by the United States Department of Transportation as an All-American Road , the Pacific Coast Highway also serves as a vital artery for residents in the Greater Los Angeles Area and the San Francisco Bay Area. Unfortunately, the route is also known for its frequent coastal landslides, which often cause sections of the road to be closed or redirected inland, so if you are planning to take this route, be sure to check conditions and plan ahead.

2

Blue Ridge Parkway

Image: Angela Bartosh

For those who love bluish mountains and epic landscapes, this route is a must-visit. Winding through the Appalachian Mountains, the Blue Ridge Parkway connects Shenandoah National Park in Virginia to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina.

This 469-mile drive is renowned for its fall foliage, lush scenery, and panoramic vistas. Whether you plan to hike some of its many trails, explore historic sites, or simply enjoy the views from the comfort of your vehicle, the Blue Ridge Parkway offers a truly rewarding experience. Just be aware that the road is not maintained in winter, and certain sections and high passes may be closed from late fall through early spring.

3

Route 66

Image: Nikolai Justesen

Famously dubbed the "Mother Road" by Steinbeck in The Grapes of Wrath , Route 66 embarks on an epic cross-country journey from Chicago to Santa Monica, stretching a total of 2,448 miles. Immortalized in songs and media, this historic road has achieved legendary status, not only as one of the country’s most celebrated routes but also as a symbol of the United States around the world.

This iconic route takes you through picturesque small towns, vast deserts, and quintessential Americana. Though the original road was supplanted by the Interstate Highway System in 1985, much of the historic route has been preserved as a National Scenic Byway , now known as "Historic Route 66."

4

Great River Road

Image: Mitchell Kmetz

Following the course of the Mississippi River , the Great River Road stretches 2,340 miles through ten states, from Minnesota to Louisiana. The term "Great River Road," however, refers not only to the official network of roadways that follow the river's path but also to a broader region of historical and touristic significance.

Originally extending north into Canada, it once connected with the provinces of Ontario and Manitoba. Notable stops along the route include the Twin Cities, Mark Twain's hometown of Hannibal, Missouri, and the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale, Mississippi.

5

Going-to-the-Sun Road

Image: Tevin Trinh

Located in Montana's Glacier National Park, the Going-to-the-Sun Road is a 50-mile engineering marvel, with sections carved into steep rock faces. This alpine route traverses the Continental Divide through Logan Pass at an elevation of 6,646 feet, offering jaw-dropping views of glaciers, waterfalls, and wildlife.

The road is named after Going-to-the-Sun Mountain, which dominates the eastbound view beyond the high pass. According to a Native American legend, a deity called Sour Spirit descended from the sun to teach the Blackfeet tribe how to hunt, giving the mountain its name.

6

Overseas Highway

Image: Ilse Orsel

Connecting mainland Florida to Key West, the Overseas Highway is a 113-mile journey across a series of bridges and tropical islands. Much of the route was built on the remnants of the Overseas Railroad , which was severely damaged and partially destroyed by the 1935 Labor Day hurricane. In the 1950s, the Overseas Highway was revamped into a major coastal route linking Miami to Key West.

This exotic drive not only offers spectacular views of turquoise waters and coral reefs but also provides the opportunity to spot local wildlife such as American alligators, American crocodiles, and Key deer.

7

Tail of the Dragon

Image: Stephen Cook

Deals Gap , a thrilling mountain pass along the North Carolina–Tennessee state line, is famously known as the Tail of the Dragon due to its astonishing 318 curves in just 11 miles. This legendary stretch of U.S. Route 129 is a global favorite among motorcyclists and sports car enthusiasts, who often come to challenge their vehicles and driving skills on its winding curves.

As the road forms part of the southwestern boundary of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park , the 11-mile stretch remains free from urban development and features numerous scenic overlooks and pull-off points.

8

Hana Highway

Image: Claude Piché

Also known as The Road to Hana, the Hana Highway on Maui, Hawaii, is a 64.4-mile stretch of Hawaii Routes 36 and 360 that traverses through rainforests, cascading waterfalls, and seascapes. As it meanders across the island, the road features over 600 curves , leading to the charming town of Hana, one of the most isolated communities in the state.

Before you get too excited, though, be prepared for a journey that can take nearly three hours. Although the distance may seem short on paper, the highway's winding, narrow nature and its 59 one-lane bridges can significantly extend travel time.

9

Natchez Trace Parkway

Image: Mika Matin

Stretching 444 miles from Natchez, Mississippi, to Nashville, Tennessee, the Natchez Trace Parkway is a journey rich in history and natural beauty. This scenic drive follows the ancient Native American trail of the same name, even preserving sections of the original path.

This historical route offers peaceful landscapes and numerous recreational opportunities for visitors. Notable stops include archaeological treasures like Emerald Mound , several abandoned towns and historic settlements, and the Meriwether Lewis Monument and Grave Site.

10

U.S. Route 50

Image: Paddy Kumar

U.S. Route 50 is a major highway that spans the width of the United States, connecting Ocean City, Maryland, on the East Coast to Sacramento, California, on the West Coast. Stretching 3,073 miles, this route traverses diverse landscapes but is most renowned for its rural desert and mountainous scenery in the western United States.

Particularly notable is its Nevada segment, famously dubbed "The Loneliest Road in America" due to its sparse traffic and lengthy, isolated stretches. Established in 1926 as part of the original U.S. Highway system, US 50 initially extended from Wadsworth, Nevada, to Annapolis, Maryland. The original route incorporated several historic trails, including the Lincoln Highway, Midland Trail, and the National Old Trails Road.

1

Abraham Lincoln

Political life usually comes with a few disappointing election nights. Long before he was memorialized on Mount Rushmore, Abraham Lincoln spent decades collecting setbacks.

He went into business with a partner in Illinois in 1833 by purchasing a general store. Known as the Berry and Lincoln store, the enterprise failed due to poor sales, leaving him in debt for years. He ran for the state legislature and lost. He served in the Illinois militia during the Black Hawk War in 1832 and was demoted from captain to private. Over the following years, he ran for office again and again, including two unsuccessful bids for the U.S. Senate, and lost most of them. Regardless of that, he kept showing up, and in 1860, he won the presidency and went on to guide the country through the Civil War and end slavery. Friends who knew him in his Illinois years later said what stood out most wasn’t his brilliance, but how he never let defeat be the last word.

2

Elvis Presley

Picture a then-unknown Elvis Presley in 1954, long before the jumpsuits, sold-out arenas, and screaming fans. He was only 19 and still trying to figure out where his unusual blend of country, blues, and rhythm and blues belonged.

Elvis had just released his first single and was invited to perform at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, a stage that represented the pinnacle of country music. He sang a rockabilly-tinged version of "Blue Moon of Kentucky," and the traditional Opry crowd, expecting straight bluegrass, gave him little more than polite applause. According to Opry lore, talent director Jim Denny told him afterward that he wasn’t going to make it as a singer and should go back to driving a truck. Elvis was so shaken that he reportedly cried the whole drive home to Memphis. He never performed at the Opry again. But two years later, "Heartbreak Hotel" hit number one, and Elvis Presley became one of the best-selling solo music artists in history, forever known as the King of Rock and Roll.

3

Thomas Edison

Thomas Edison struggled in the classroom. By the age of 12, he was partially deaf and easily distracted , and after only three months, in 1854, Nancy Edison, his mother, took charge of his education at home after a teacher sent him home with a note calling him "too difficult to teach." Much of his learning came at home through reading, experimenting, and satisfying his endless curiosity. As a young man, he also had trouble finding the right fit in the working world. Popular accounts say he was fired from two jobs because employers considered him unproductive. None of that matched what came next: Edison became an extraordinarily prolific inventor and eventually held 1,093 U.S. patents. His work included the phonograph, improvements to electric lighting, and motion-picture technology.

4

Lucille Ball

If you watched I Love Lucy , you know Lucille Ball was capable of turning a simple household mishap into complete comic chaos. But as a teenager, Ball was not yet the performer who commanded a room.

As a young woman, Lucille Ball enrolled at the Johnny Murray Anderson School for the Dramatic Arts in New York in 1926, at the age of 15, hoping to become an actress. Her instructors weren’t exactly encouraging. She was reportedly considered too shy and too timid for the stage and was advised to consider a different line of work entirely. She spent years afterward modeling and taking small, unremarkable film roles, far from stardom. Ball eventually found her footing not in dramatic film but in comedy and television, where her fearless physical humor became her signature. In 1951, she co-created and starred in I Love Lucy with then-husband Desi Arnaz, and it became one of the most successful sitcoms in television history.

5

Henry Ford

Buying a new car today can make it easy to forget how experimental the automobile business once was. Around the turn of the 20th century, companies started and collapsed, and Henry Ford was one of those business owners who had to reinvent himself more than once.

Ford’s first venture, the Detroit Automobile Company, launched in 1899 and folded within two years , undone by vehicles that were too expensive and too slow to build. His backers pushed him out. He tried again with the Henry Ford Company, but it ended the same way, with investors losing patience and Ford losing control of the business bearing his own name. By 1902, he had two failed automakers behind him and no company at all. For the third time, in 1903, Ford started again. This time, he focused on building one dependable, affordable car and figuring out how to produce it faster than anyone thought possible. That car was the Model T, and the assembly line method he built around it didn’t just save Ford Motor Company; it changed how the entire world manufactures goods.

6

Martin Luther King Jr.

It’s weird to think that one of history’s greatest orators struggled in a classroom. But that’s exactly where Martin Luther King Jr.’s path began.

As a first-year student at Crozer Theological Seminary in the late 1940s, King took a course in public speaking and received a grade of C , a modest mark for a young man who hadn’t yet found his voice. He kept working at it throughout seminary, refining the cadence and clarity that would later define his preaching. Within a decade, that same voice was leading the Montgomery bus boycott and delivering the "I Have a Dream" speech to hundreds of thousands of people at the March on Washington in 1963, becoming one of the most recognized voices of the 20th century.

7

Oprah Winfrey

Considering how controlled news anchors’ expressions used to be, Oprah Winfrey’s early career sounds almost like a casting mistake.

In 1976, a 22-year-old Winfrey moved to Baltimore to co-anchor the evening news at WJZ-TV. The fit was rocky from the start. Her delivery was warmer and more emotional than the traditional hard-news style the format called for, and station management eventually pulled her off the anchor desk, with one producer reportedly calling her unfit for television news. It could’ve ended her career in broadcasting entirely. Instead, WJZ moved her to a struggling daytime talk show called People Are Talking . There, freed from reading headlines in a flat, detached tone, Oprah’s natural warmth turned into her greatest asset. The local talk show became the blueprint for The Oprah Winfrey Show , which ran for 25 years and made her one of the most influential media figures in American history.

8

Colonel Harland Sanders

Imagine reaching 65 and deciding that instead of settling into retirement, it’s time to travel around the country trying to convince restaurant owners to serve a recipe. Harland Sanders made exactly that decision.

By his mid-sixties, Sanders had lived through a string of failed jobs and businesses , and the small Kentucky restaurant where he’d perfected his fried chicken recipe closed after a new highway diverted its traffic away. Broke and living on a modest Social Security check, he decided to take his recipe on the road, driving from restaurant to restaurant and offering to share it in exchange for a small cut of sales. As the legend goes, he heard "no" more than a thousand times before a restaurant in Utah finally said yes in 1952. That handshake deal became the first Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise. Within a decade, hundreds of KFC restaurants dotted the country, and the white-suited Colonel Sanders (who died in 1980 at age 90) became one of the most recognizable faces in American food.

9

Stephen King

You’ve probably read Carrie , or watched It , but before he became a household name in modern terror, Stephen King was a young writer trying to get his work published.

In the early 1970s, King was teaching high school in his home state of Maine and writing in his spare time, often in a trailer with his wife and young kids nearby. He wrote a novel about a bullied teenage girl with telekinetic powers, but after around 30 rejection letters from publishers, he gave up on it and threw the manuscript in the trash . His wife, Tabitha, fished the pages back out and encouraged him to finish it, believing in the book even when he didn’t. That story became Carrie , published in 1974. It launched King’s career and eventually sold millions of copies, kicking off a body of work that would make him one of the most successful and prolific authors in American history.

10

Dr. Seuss (Theodor Geisel)

You may think publishing more than 50 books was easy for Dr. Seuss. But back when he was known as Theodor Geisel, his work got rejected dozens of times.

In the 1930s, Geisel wrote and illustrated a whimsical children’s book called And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street. Publisher after publisher turned it down, reportedly around 27 of them, saying it was too different from anything else on the market. As the story goes, Geisel was walking down a New York street, manuscript in hand and ready to give up, when he ran into an old college acquaintance who happened to work at a publishing house and offered to take a look. That chance meeting led to the book’s publication in 1937. It launched Dr. Seuss’s career, which would go on to include classics like The Cat in the Hat and Green Eggs and Ham , beloved by generations of kids and their grandparents alike.

11

Frederick Smith (FedEx)

Today, overnight shipping is so ordinary that a package arriving the next morning (if not on the same day) barely raises an eyebrow. In the 1960s, reliably moving urgent packages overnight across the country was a very different proposition.

In 1965, as an undergraduate at Yale, Smith wrote an economics term paper describing a delivery service that would route urgent packages through one central hub by plane rather than relying on passenger airlines. His professor wasn’t convinced the idea was practical and marked the paper with a C. Smith went on to serve in the Marine Corps in Vietnam, but the idea from that paper never left him. In 1971, he founded Federal Express, built exactly around the hub-and-spoke concept he’d once sketched out for a grade. FedEx now moves millions of packages a day across the globe, and Smith spent the rest of his life running the company he first imagined as a 21-year-old college student.