Small-town rural America often gets overlooked. Sure, it may not have the bright lights of the Big Apple or the Las Vegas strip — but that doesn’t mean that it’s without its charm .
Nor is it without its attractions. Have a look and check out these 10+ small towns in America that are known for some truly strange and unique things.
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Alma, Arkansas doesn’t mess around when it comes to spinach.
At one point in time, the Allen Canning Company in Alma was responsible for 65% of the world’s spinach production.
To commemorate this, there’s a picture of Popeye on the town water tower, as well as a Popeye statue. The Alma Spinach Festival is not to be missed, either.
Dudleytown, Connecticut may just be the most haunted place in America.
Dudleytown was founded in the mid-18th century by what many claimed to have been a cursed family.
According to Ray Bendici of Damned Connecticut , “Over the years, there has allegedly been everything from suicides to demonic possessions, and all the hysterical drama in between.”
Welcome to Santa Claus, Arizona — America’s most festive ghost town.
The town was originally founded in 1937 and stood as a popular tourist destination for many years. In 1995, the final remaining gift shops closed their doors for good.
Now all that remains are the tattered signs and graffiti-riddled buildings of what once was.
The world’s largest peanut used to stand in Ashburn, Georgia.
As you can see, the world’s largest peanut had the same kind of 2020 as the rest of the world.
This picture gives a whole new meaning to the term crushed nuts.
Pet lovers will roll over for a chance to stay at the Dog Bark Park Inn, in Cottonwood, Idaho.
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to sleep inside a giant Beagle? Well, now you can find out at the Dog Bark Park Inn !
Room rates start at $158, and as you can probably imagine — they’re pet-friendly.
You’ll have to plan a trip to Igloo City the next time you’re driving through Cantwell, Alaska.
This four-story concrete igloo can be seen from a height upwards of 30,000 feet.
The building was originally intended to serve as a hotel , but since the builders weren’t able to bring it to code — it never opened for business
See the world’s largest bottle of Catsup in Collinsville, Illinois.
What’s the difference between ketchup and catsup you ask? Absolutely nothing. These are just two different spellings of the same beloved burger condiment.
Up until recently, there was even a Collinsville’s Annual Catsup Festival .
Get tropical in the Pineapple Garden Maze, located in Wahiawa, Hawaii.
The Dole Plantation’s pineapple garden maze was declared to be the biggest maze in the world, back in 2008.
It stretches more than 3 acres and has more than 2.5 miles of pathways , made from pineapple trees.
You can see the skeleton of a Merman at the Zwaanendael Museum in Lewes, Delaware.
The Fiji Merman , as it’s known, is really just the body of a fish precariously attached to a monkey skull.
Still, it doesn’t stop the townspeople from visiting the site on a regular basis.
Did you know that Scottsboro, Alabama is the lost luggage capital of the entire world?
The Unclaimed Baggage Center is a gigantic 40,000 square foot warehouse that stores and resells unclaimed baggage.
On average, the UBC gets close to 7,000 new items on a daily basis.
The world’s largest ball of twine can be found in Cawker City, Kansas.
The world’s largest ball of twine keeps on growing. Tourists can arrange to add to the ball ahead of time by calling to make reservations .
As of 2013, the giant ball weighed just shy of 20,000 lbs.
Have you ever heard of Monkey Alcatraz in Homosassa, Florida?
Back in the 1960s, a group of monkeys was brought to Homossa as part of a wildlife attraction — only they quickly became too much to handle.
The developer banished the monkeys to their own small island, and they’ve remained there for more than 45 years.
Walk in the footsteps of dinosaurs in Picketwire Canyon, Colorado.
Vistors to Picketwire Canyon can see 1300 different dino footprints dating back more than 150 million years.
The footprint in the image above belongs to an Allosaurus; a distant relative of Tyrannosaurus-Rex.
Attempt to achieve enlightenment at Arlee, Montana’s Garden of One Thousand Buddhas.
According to Atlas Obscura, “The Garden of One Thousand Buddhas is meant to represent the 1000 Buddhas that it is believed will actually be born in our religious age, and it may take just as many devoted followers to complete the monument.”
While visiting San Luis Obispo, California, be sure to check out Bubblegum Alley.
The iconic gum wall stretches more than 70 feet and stands 15 feet high . The tradition is said to have started shortly after WWII and is continued on to this day.
There’s even an on-site gumball machine in case you happen to forget a stick of your own.
