DISCOVER THE ULTIMATE AMERICAN ROAD TRIP
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
New York - Illinois
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Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 1: St. Patricks Old Cathedral 1/12
St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral was New York’s first ever cathedral, with a fascinating history dating back to 1809. Spot the moody Gothic architecture inside and out. The religious building also offers movie fans the opportunity to enter a location right out of The Godfather – the baptism scene for the famous film was shot here. Outside the cathedral, the walled graveyard was used for a scene in Martin Scorsese’s movie Mean Streets.
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 2: Sparks Steakhouse 2/12
It’s worth a visit to Spark’s Steakhouse to sample one of its award-winning steak and lobster dishes. But another reason to experience ‘Manhattan’s greatest steakhouse’ is for its more infamous role in gangland history. In 1985, Gambino crime family boss Paul Castellano and underboss Thomas Bilotti were gunned down as they stepped from their Lincoln limousine outside Sparks, on the orders of rival Italian-American gangster John Gotti. (Image credit: Leonard J DeFrancisci)
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 3: Graffiti Wall of Fame 3/12
New York is full of glossy upmarket art galleries to see priceless works of art – but it’s home of some of the best free street art in the world too. The best place to find it is at the ‘Graffiti Wall of Fame’, the walls of the playground of Jackie Robinson Educational Complex in the Upper East Side / East Harlem districts. The Wall of Fame was created in 1980 to provide a canvas for talented graffiti artists from across the city to show off their skills.
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 4: Eastern State Penitentiary 4/12
The early 19th-century jail was once one of the biggest and most expensive public buildings in the world. Visitors including Charles Dickens came from all over the world to see its revolutionary solitary confinement design. Inmates included gangster Al Capone, and the prison has many legends about ghosts and hauntings. The notoriously grim ESP closed in 1971 and is now open for daily tours.
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 5: Mutter Museum 5/12
It’s ghoulish and provocative but the Mutter Museum is also deeply fascinating if you have a taste for the medically macabre. The Museum is part of the College of Physicians but is really a storehouse of abnormal body parts, diseased organs and genetic mutations. Browse gruesome early surgical tools, like a Civil War amputation kit or a collection of 139 skulls. There are even slides of Albert Einstein’s brain on display.
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 6: Pittsburgh Overlook 6/12
The view from Elliott’s Bluff is one of the classic urban American panoramas. The lookout hill overlooks downtown Pittsburgh where the two rivers meet to form the Ohio. From ‘The Point’ as locals call it, Native American tribes would keep watch over the territory for miles around. Today the prime spot for selfies with the skyscraper backdrop is called ‘West End Overlook’. It’s a small park with a big view, particularly at night.
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 7: Monongahela Incline 7/12
Putting the ‘fun’ into ‘funicular’, this is the oldest continuously operating cable car in the States, providing great views of the Smithfield St Bridge and across the river Monongahela. Re-opened after rennovations in November, the funicular connects riverside leisure to the quaint and green Mt Washington neighbourhood. The trip up and down the steep incline offers a quiet few moments to soak up the stunning views – and has the added bonus of being much faster than covering the distance between the two points on foot.
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 8: Ohio State Reformatory 8/12
A visit to the enormous Gothic chateau-like building is a chance to experience the oppressive atmosphere of The Shawshank Redemption, which was filmed here. The monstrous six-storey eastern cell block is the biggest in the world. The grandeur of the Victorian structure was meant to inspire inmates to reform but has more recently inspired a series of paranormal sightings. Today’s visitors can take history tours… or ghost tours. (Image credit: Mike Sharp)
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 9: Helltown 9/12
‘Helltown’ is the new name for a leafy village in Summit County that was formerly known as Boston. It was cleared by the authorities in 1974 to create a national park, but this development was never built and the village became overgrown and derelict. Today it’s an opportunity to explore a ghost town that is full of legends and myths. Hauntings, Satanists, serial killers, huge snakes and toxic chemical spills have all been quoted as the reasons for the abandonment of the village.
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 10: Old Man’s Cave 10/12
Ohio’s Hocking Hills boast a number of beautiful natural rock formations. For many the highlight is Old Man’s Cave. The gorge surrounding the cave is part of many hiking trails leading to the Buckeye State’s other natural wonders. This particular hike is just a mile long, so enjoy the forested hills and rocky cliff faces of Old Man’s Cave – and learn how it got its name at the visitors’ center. (Image credit: Jaknouse)
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 11: Rotary Jail Museum 11/12
The ‘rotary jail’ seemed a good idea at the time. Cells were segments of a giant wheel, which was spun so only one prisoner could get out of the door at a time. Sadly the system often trapped prisoner’s limbs, crushing them immediately, so it was abandoned. The only working rotary jail that still exists is in the small town of Crawfordsville, making it an essential stop on our road trip. (Image credit: Don O'Brien)
Grit, Gangsters and Gasoline
Stop 12: Untouchable Tour 12/12
As a grand finale to the road trip, take a tour of Chicago’s gangster hot spots with this long-standing organised crime outfit. The Untouchable Tours add a touch of mob-style showbiz and black comedy to the darker side of the city. Trace the footsteps of mobsters like Capone and Dillinger as the ‘Gangster bus’ cruises the Windy City, with costumed guides searching out the haunts of hoodlums, the seedy gambling dens, and even the sites of gangland shootouts. (Image credit: southie3)
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