Spokane, Washington: Are there any neat attractions worth checking out if you're road-tripping through the Dallas/Fort Worth area?

Doug Kirby and Ken Smith: Plenty to do and see in Dallas/Ft. Worth. There's the whole JFK-Grassy Knoll experience, after nearly 45 years, still popular with out-of-state gawkers. The Sixth Floor Museum, Texas School Book Depository, 411 Elm Street. The Conspiracy Museum, 110 S. Market St. gives you the straight -- albeit paranoid -- scoop. The World's Second Oldest Continuously Burning Lightbulb is at 131 E. Exchange Ave. #113, Fort Worth, TX. If you're approaching from the west, stop at Bayou Bob's Rattlesnake Ranch, and say helo to Bob and his hundreds of pissed off snakes.
roadsideamerica.com/attract/TXSANbayou.html

More Texas attractions here:
roadsideamerica.com/map/tx.html

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Chicago: I'd like to take my son on a trip that shows him African American history. Suggestions, please?

Doug Kirby and Ken Smith: African American history landmarks really blossomed in the last 20 years, as states and towns have addressed this long neglected part of their heritage. We recommend the National Civil Rights Museum, 450 Mulberry Street, Memphis -- adjacent to where Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. The Great Wax in Blacks Museum in Baltimore, MD is great -- no holds barred when it comes to chronicling the African American experience and accomplishments in wax. In Kansas, the pioneering all-black town of Nicodemus has been turned into a landmark managed by the National Parks Service. Interesting how this town almost made it, but was bypassed by the railroads...

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D.C.: You must get a lot of interesting calls and emails from readers and friends. Are there any myths or misconceptions that keep popping up? Not about y'all, but about roadside america the topic.

Doug Kirby and Ken Smith: Well, there is a line of thought, popularized in the media, in which roadside attractions are seen as all dying off. You might believe this if you define attractions narrowly as just Route 66 places, or weep every time an old Mom and Pop theme park in Florida closes. We see more of a cycle and evolution of places to visit. The dusty town wildlife museum may be gone, but a Cabela's sportsmen outfitter temple moves into your state and packs their store aisles with dead animal displays. For free.

Eventually these new attractions will also change or devolve -- the same taxidermy pieces may end up promoting a futuristic fast food genetics outlet floating over your sleep pod!

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LA: Heading by car to Minnesota for a wedding with my partner. From LA. Help!

Doug Kirby and Ken Smith: Los Angeles to MN sounds great -- best route takes you through Las Vegas, across UT to Denver, across NE and IA. There are many bizarre sights along that path. Vegas - Atomic Testing Museum, Liberace Museum, (and Exotic World, retired strippers Hall of Fame if it's open now); Nebraska - Harold Warp's Pioneer Village, Minden; Strategic Air and Space Museum, Ashland, Iowa - Ax Murder House, Vilisca; Minnesota - Jolly Green Giant Statue, Blue Earth.
Click on states on this map for statues, other unique attractions:
roadsideamerica.com/map.html

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