The Southern Belle Riverboat operates sightseeing trips along the Tennessee River. The Southern Belle offers a variety of daily cruise options on its 450-passenger vessel built in 1985.
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In the 1920s, Leo Lambert thought Lookout Mountain Cave would make a great tourist attraction. Once used as a hideaway for outlaws, refuge for Native Americans and a hospital during the Civil War, a railroad tunnel built in the early 1900s intersected the cave’s entrance and sealed it from the public. But that didn’t deter Lambert from searching for the cave. In 1928, he led a team of engineers and started digging an elevator shaft to access the cave. Ninety-two days later, Lambert found the cave, but not before digging through more than 400 feet of solid limestone. But when Lambert realized there might be more than just a cave buried beneath Lookout Mountain, he took off down a tight corridor, and 17 hours later, he found what today known is as Ruby Falls.
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The Sunsphere is the centerpiece of World’s Fair Park and is a symbol of Knoxville, Tenn. The tower is one of two buildings that survived the Fair. Substantive redevelopment of the 67-acre Fair did not materialize for many years. Though it was underutilized for most of its post-show life, the tower is today home to an observation deck, an event space and a restaurant and bar.
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Churchill Downs Racetrack in Louisville has been the home of The Kentucky Derby, the longest continually held annual sporting event in the United States, since 1875. Churchill Downs features a series of themed race days during Derby Week, including the Kentucky Oaks, and conducts Thoroughbred horse racing during three race meets in the spring, September and fall. Churchill Downs is located on 175 acres and has a one-mile dirt track, a 7/8-mile turf track and a stabling area. The track provides seating for approximately 60,000 guests, and the stable area has barns for 1,400 horses and a 114-room dormitory for backstretch personnel.
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Shrum Mound was likely built between 800 BC and 100 AD. At approximately 100 feet in diameter and 20 feet tall, Shrum Mound is said to be “one of the last remaining conical burial mounds” in Columbus. The grass-covered mound features a path leading to the top. The mound is located in Campbell Park, named for former Ohio Gov. James E. Campbell who later served as president of the Ohio Archaeological and Historical Society. The mound derives its name from the Shrum family, which in 1928 donated the land where the mound sits to the Ohio Historical Society.
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The Ohio Historical Society operates the Ohio Village living history museum. The 15-acre museum, which opened on July 27, 1974, aims to give a firsthand view of life in Ohio during the Civil War. The village is home to 22 buildings, including a mix of reproductions and historic structures relocated to the site.
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The 23-foot-tall, 24-foot-wide World’s Largest Cuckoo Clock was built in 1972. The clock sits in the heart of the Swiss-themed village of Sugarcreek, Ohio. The town is sometimes called “The Little Switzerland of Ohio.” A cuckoo bird pops out of the clock every 30 minutes, and a small automated band performs Swiss polka music as a couple dances. The Guinness Book of World Records featured the clock on its cover in 1977. It moved to its current location in 2012.
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The Willis Tower observation deck, located on the 103rd floor of the tower, first opened on June 22, 1974. Today, 1.3 million visitors make their way to the deck, today known as Skydeck Chicago, every year. In January 2009, the owners of Willis Tower kicked off a major renovation of the Skydeck. Among the changes was the additon of retractable glass balconies. Known as The Ledge, the balconies can be extended approximately 4 feetfrom the facade of building and allow visitors to look through the glass floor to the street 1,353 feet below. The balconies officially opened on July 2, 2009.
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Perched on the 94th floor of John Hancock Center is 360 Chicago. The observatory, 1,000 feet above The Magnificent Mile, gives visitors the chance to see four states — Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin — and as far away as 55 miles. On a clear day, anyway. The John Hancock Center is the fourth-tallest building in the city and the seventh-tallest nationwide. To reach the top, guests board elevators that travel 1,800 feet per minute, completing the trip to the 94th floor in a mere 40 seconds.
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