Making sense of a deadly inferno in Wisconsin

Was the Great Chicago Fire on the night of Oct. 8, 1871, really caused by one of Kate O'Leary's cows knocking over a lantern? One hundred...

Minnesota: Kicking back in a lakeside cabin

Sometimes I tell outsiders that all Minnesotans are issued a lake cabin at birth. Not true, but we do come rather close: I once read that...

Things to do in Indianapolis (besides drive 200 mph)

Like speed, greed kills. And a civil war between two racing factions of open-wheel racing threw this town's grand event into a near-lethal...

Race — don't walk — to Indianapolis

My recent trip to Indianapolis seemed nearly flawless — save for the drippy rain, save for the continuously bad directions from the...

Off the grid in Amish country

I scrambled out of bed at dawn's first light, dashed to the barn to milk a cow, stopped by the chicken coop to collect fresh-from-the-hen...

Best seats for Cubs games may be outside Wrigley Field

Although there are 30 major league ballparks to visit, there are actually 31 destinations where you can see a live major league game.

Baseball tours are a hit with fans

"Road trip!"

Play where Ralphie and Randy lived in 'A Christmas Story'

The occasional car crawls down 11th Street, its driver and passengers looking for a parking space not too far from their destination, a...

Oklahoma National Stock Yards turn 100

Although they're huddled close, the tens of thousands of cattle are remarkably quiet.

Willa Cather's spirit comes alive in Nebraska

We entered Red Cloud from the east, just as novelist Willa Cather and her family did in 1884, when she was just 11 years old. The Cathers...

Dude ranches: Roping, riding and karaoke

Nearly two decades have passed since tough-as- nails trail boss Curly Washburn hurled insults at the three "City Slickers" who invaded his...

Best state fairs in the U.S.

Jim Kopel has been a big fan of state fairs since he was 10, when he exhibited his Chester White pigs at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines....

Wisconsin cheese makers who take the prize

Driving along Skinner Hollow Road, through hilly woodlands and across a tranquil stream, a motorist is about as likely to meet a milk...

Do fence me in

Sitting along a lonely stretch of highway in the Texas Panhandle, McLean isn't so small that you'd miss this hamlet in the blink of an eye.

On the trail of the Pony Express

Reporting from Sacramento, Salt Lake City and St. Joseph, Mo.

'American Gothic's' Grant Wood lived here

Iowa's soil nurtured the artist who created the classic painting, and the state hasn't forgotten its native son.

'The Wizard of Oz' back home in Oconomowoc, Wis.

Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood rightfully boasts about the scores of legendary film stars who have walked through the front doors to...

John Dillinger tours look at his life and crimes

Several Chicago-area tourist attractions prepare for the barrage of visitors that the new Johnny Depp film is expected to bring.

Illinois celebrates Lincoln's 200th birthday

The Land of Lincoln is throwing a year-long party for its favorite son. Especially in Springfield, where the future president found his...