Iconic places like Stonehenge and the Great Pyramids of Giza are among the most mysterious locations in the world. However, the United States has its fair share of perplexing, bewildering sites.
As one of the relatively newer nations, people don’t think about prehistoric artifacts and ancient cultures in America often. Despite this mindset, we have many peculiar sites surrounded by mystery and wild theories.
These mysterious spots range from rock formations with ancient inscriptions to secretive government facilities to paranormal lakes. No matter how experts try to solve these mysteries, there are still remaining questions about these strange places.
1. Area 51
Area 51 is one of the most famous and mysterious U.S. locations. The lore surrounding it is extensive. It’s in southern Nevada within what the government calls the Nevada Test and Training Range, a military base. This government facility is supposedly the site of UFO landings, alien dissections, and more.
Believers in alien contact obsess over this site, and people often try to penetrate the facility to discover what secrets lie within. The reality of the wild claims about the facility is hazy, making the location more fascinating.
2. Roanoke Island
Roanoke Island is an island off the coast of North Carolina. It was one of the earliest colonial settlements, where over 100 colonists lived. However, they all disappeared without a trace.
About 115 men, women, and children vanished from this settlement when colonists returned to check their progress. Many theories surround this mystery, from natural disasters to hostile attacks to disease and famine, but we’ll likely never know where the settlers went.
3. Devil’s Tower
Devil’s Tower is a strange rock formation in Crook Country, Wyoming. The unorthodox rock holds a wealth of mysteries. Many Indigenous cultures revere this formation, featuring it in legends and cautionary tales. Several people died attempting to climb it, making it even more sinister.
However, the most puzzling aspect of the rock formation is what it is and how it came to be. There are theories about it forming during a tectonic plate shift or the result of magma surfacing. Many experts are still unsure how this formation occurred naturally.
4. Taos, New Mexico
The Taos hum is an ongoing American mystery with plenty of theories. Taos, New Mexico, is a small town with a persistent, low-humming sound that plagues some residents—but not all.
Some residents hear this hum incessantly, while others say they hear nothing. Experts theorize the hum is spontaneous otoacoustic emissions, while others suggest the hum is merely a shared psychological manifestation. Nevertheless, both theories are unsettling.
5. Poverty Point
Located in Louisiana, Poverty Point is a significant archaeological and historic site and an official UNESCO World Heritage Site. The location has unusual ridges or mounds in the ground, and no one knows for sure what they are or who made them.
Experts estimate they’re more than 3,000 years old and possibly have ritualistic connotations. However, these are only theories. The site itself is fascinating, but the mystery surrounding its origins is even more complex.
6. Upton Chamber
The Upton Chamber is a unique cave in Massachusetts. It’s the largest underground stone chamber in the area, with long tunnels and spacious chambers. Like the Poverty Point mounds, no one quite knows the purpose or origins of the manmade cave.
Some suspect European settlers built it to store things or plan escapes. Other theories involve indigenous groups. It’s the largest of many similar chambers nearby. Is it the ruins of a society? Is it a secret cellar people used to hide valuables? We will likely never know.
7. Berkeley Mystery Walls
The Berkeley Mystery Walls or Easy Bay Walls are puzzling manmade walls in the San Jose and Bay area. The stone walls have a puzzling setup with random curves, angles, circles, and squares.
No one knows who built these walls or why. Theories include aliens, settlers, Indigenous tribes, war, migration, and more. Although these stone walls don’t look particularly interesting, the mystery surrounding them captivates many.
8. The Nevada Triangle
People always talk about the Bermuda Triangle, where planes and ships inexplicably disappear. However, the Nevada Triangle is not as well-known. It’s a region in the Sierra Nevada Mountains where over 2,000 planes have disappeared over 60 years.
With these numbers, the Nevada Triangle claims more lives than the Bermuda Triangle. The triangle is very close to Area 51, so many speculate extraterrestrial encounters cause these planes to go missing. Rescuers can never find the missing people or their aircraft.
9. Dudleytown, Connecticut
For some, Dudleytown, Connecticut, is not a mysterious place. It’s just a place that suffered many tragedies. However, some believe this small, now-abandoned town in Connecticut is woefully cursed.
The long list of strange tragedies that occurred here is disturbing, with many residents losing their minds before their deaths. It sits in the Dark Entry Forest valley, a place known for its paranormal incidents.
10. Lake Lanier
Lake Lanier is a man-made reservoir in Georgia with a dark and mysterious history. People have experienced ghosts, bodies in the water, being pulled beneath the surface, and other terrifying experiences.
Many creepy incidents go without explanation, leading people to believe ghosts haunt Lake Lanier and seek revenge for their wrongful deaths. Between the disappearances, deaths, and paranormal reports surrounding the lake, it’s full of chilling mystery.
11. Blythe Intaglios
The Blythe Intaglios or Blythe Geoglyphs are large figures etched into the ground in various spots near Blythe, California. Experts are unsure who made these figures, some of which are human and others are animals.
People suspect they’re from Indigenous tribes, but this is a loose theory offered by anthropologists and archaeologists. They were only discovered in 1932, so they could be ancient, as most people think, but perhaps they’re an early 20th-century hoax.
12. The Great Serpent Mound
Similar to the Poverty Point mounds, the Great Serpent Mound is a raised ridge in the ground. Rather than concentric half-circles like at Poverty Point, this mound weaves around the landscape and trees.
It resembles a massive snake beneath the ground, hence the Great Serpent moniker. Experts determined the mound is prehistoric, but multiple excavations did not reveal any answers to our many questions.
13. New Haven Green Graves
Another American mystery located in Connecticut is the New Haven Green Graves. Some consider it the oldest cemetery in the country, but there are still many questions surrounding it. People discovered over 130 graves here, including men, women, and children.
Who these people are, how they died, and why they were buried here is a mystery. Some suspect they died from the plague, while others suggest a war took place. The church basement and other nearby locations reveal even more unidentified bodies.
14. Winnemucca Lake
Winnemucca Lake is mysterious for several reasons. The first is that it is home to petroglyphs, a type of prehistoric rock carving. Located in Nevada, these petroglyphs are among the oldest and largest in the country.
While most people believe Indigenous people carved the drawings and inscriptions, no one knows what they mean or why they’re there. The fascination with the carvings on these boulders is endless as people try to determine their purpose.
15. Medicine Wheel
The Medicine Wheel is on Medicine Mountain in Wyoming. It’s a white limestone circular stone structure that looks like a wheel on its side. The design suggests its purpose was spiritual or ritualistic.
The precise design of this has an eerie feeling, adding to the mystery and intrigue of the site. It’s an impressive and powerful landmark. You can visit it today, but some Indigenous tribes currently use it for ceremonies and worship.
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