Ryan's Walk

In 1879 Cleveland lit Public Square with Charles Brush’s electric arc lamps, one of the first electric street lighting systems anywhere.

Wish you were here! — Ryan

In 1900 Chicago reversed the flow of its own river so it would run away from Lake Michigan instead of into it.

Wish you were here! — Ryan

The Gateway Arch is exactly as wide as it is tall: 630 feet both ways.

Wish you were here! — Ryan

Kansas City calls itself the City of Fountains and claims more than 200 of them.

Wish you were here! — Ryan

The world’s first parking meter was installed in Oklahoma City in 1935.

Wish you were here! — Ryan

Just west of Amarillo, ten Cadillacs are buried nose-down in a field at Cadillac Ranch, and visitors are encouraged to spray-paint them.

Wish you were here! — Ryan

Founded in 1610, Santa Fe is the oldest state capital in the U.S. — and at about 7,000 feet, the highest.

Wish you were here! — Ryan

Every October the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta launches hundreds of hot-air balloons at once — the largest balloon festival in the world.

Wish you were here! — Ryan

Many of Phoenix’s modern canals follow routes first dug by the Hohokam people more than a thousand years ago.

Wish you were here! — Ryan

The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway has the world’s largest rotating tram cars. They slowly spin as they climb from the desert floor to about 8,500 feet.

Wish you were here! — Ryan

Every surface of a Rose Parade float has to be covered in natural materials — flowers, seeds, bark — so volunteers glue on millions of petals and seeds by hand in the days before New Year’s.

Wish you were here! — Ryan