Christopher Gorrie

The Caspian Sea is the largest inland body of water on Earth, yet despite its name and its size, geographers classify it as a lake rather than a sea. The distinction typically comes down to one main test: a sea connects to the world ocean, while a lake sits in a closed basin with no natural outlet to it.

The first Pepsi was mixed at a New Bern drugstore in the 1890s, and the spot is still marked downtown. Since 2007, the Edenton waterfront has held the last screw-pile lighthouse on the North Carolina sounds. A wooden toy horse has served as Tryon's official mascot since 1928, keeping the same downtown corner. White squirrels are common enough in Brevard that the town protects them by ordinance, while the state's official Fourth of July celebration has belonged to Southport since the 1790s.

In small-town Kansas, the welcome usually starts before you’ve finished parking. Lindsborg’s Svensk Hyllningsfest fills Main Street with costumed dancers, folk music, and Swedish food every other October. Wamego anchors its downtown around the Oz Museum, which holds over 2,000 artifacts including original 1939 movie memorabilia and L. Frank Baum first editions. Atchison’s Amelia Earhart Festival sends an air show over the Missouri River every July to honor the town’s most famous resident.