50 Historical Landmarks That Actually Have Secret Rooms

Just about every historical landmark in the world has a secret of some kind deep within its wall. Join us as we travel around the world exploring the top 50 historical landmarks that actually have secret rooms in them.

From hidden passages to stairways concealed behind shelves and tunnels to escape certain death — or sneak in an unrequited lover — we have them all. You may already know about some of these secret treasures, but others may surprise you. 

The Eiffel Tower is one of the world's most popular landmarks, attracting thousands of visitors each year. When it was first built, people thought it was ugly, but the tower's designer, Gustave Eiffel, loved the design.

The Predjama Castle was built during the Renaissance at the entrance of a cave in Slovenia. It was the residence of the notorious robber baron, Erazem Lueger. If you are able to go see it, it is one of the most famous and remarkable structures you will ever see in your life.

Yes! You did read that correctly! There's a secret room inside the flame of the Statue of Liberty. Unfortunately, you cannot access the room for any reason. In 1916, the Torch Room had to be closed after an explosion (sabotage by German agents during World War I).

The Roman Colosseum attracts millions of tourists every year. Many come to this landmark to see the Flavian Amphitheater, but many don't know that it has a network of underground tunnels called the Hypogeum.

As for records, there's a hidden room behind Abraham Lincoln's head, originally built to store the most secret artifacts and documents of American history. This includes documents such as the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.

Since its unveiling on August 19, 1960, the colossal statue of Leonardo da Vinci has been located at Rome's Fiumicino-Leonardo da Vinci Airport where it still serves as one of the country's historical landmarks. Millions of travelers and tourists have passed by it for decades, but it wasn't until 2007 that the secret was revealed.

One of London's most popular attractions, and the King of England's most famous residences, Buckingham Palace has more secret rooms than the public knows about. Having spent most of his life here, King Charles knows how to get to the far corners of the Palace grounds using the secret rooms and tunnels.

There are roughly 200 miles of tunnels in the Paris Catacombs. In fact, it's the reason it's easy to get lost down there. It contains the remains of more than six million people who reportedly settled there from Parisian cemeteries between the 17th century and 19th century.

The Brooklyn Bridge now has two wine cellars on each side of the East River. When engineers built the bridge, parts of the Brooklyn and Manhattan neighborhoods were demolished to build the two mooring sections of the bridge that connect it to land.

In 1901, steel tycoon Andrew Carnegie gave New York City a $5.2 million (about $100 million today) grant to build a system of 67 public libraries. Carnegie's library was heated by a coal stove and required a janitor or live-in caretaker. 

In 1926, miners across England went on strike to protest an involuntary wage cut of 13% and an increase in working hours per week. This led to a general strike as workers from other industries refused to work in solidarity. It lasted for nine days.

New York City's Washington Square Arch is not a completely solid building. A 72-foot arch includes a hollow upper section with a 17-foot ceiling. The construction of the hollow arch had the advantage of not being top-heavy or costly to build, so they added an attic to the structure.

Beneath the Lincoln Memorial lies the Undercroft, a 43,800-square-foot vault in the basement of this landmark. Despite the fancy name, until recently, it resembled an unfinished basement rather than a secret room.

The U.S. Supreme Court building actually has a basketball court on the building's fifth floor, one floor above where the judges of the Supreme Court hear cases.

Since 2011, anyone willing to pay between $100 and $250 an hour can play tennis at New York City's Grand Central Terminal. Surprisingly, tennis courts have existed in some form at the station for decades.

The Empire State Building officially has only 102 floors, with the Empire State Building's main visitor building's observation deck on the 86th floor. However, there is another observation deck on the 103rd floor. This one is a smaller, more exclusive deck that has no railing barriers except a small stone wall about two feet high.

Vatican City is the scene of dozens of espionage operations. It's ancient and full of mysteries, and for some, it's the city closest to God. But like God, it has dozens of secrets. For one thing, the Vatican has a huge city of the dead under the catacombs you can visit.

The Egyptian Pyramids are one of the Seven Wonders of the World and also have secret rooms. Recently, scientists decided to start scanning the pyramids using technology that can map the interior of the deep caverns of many Pharaohs' final resting places. Much to their surprise, there were even more secret rooms than originally thought.

According to the National Park Service, the Niagara Falls National Heritage Area has three National Historic Landmarks, one of which is the Adams Power Transformer House. What is not advertised on the attendant's website for the falls is that the waterfall area also has a secret cave that reportedly leads to the Adams Power House.

Disney has basically become a famous US landmark over the years. While hardcore Disney fans may believe they know all the secrets of the park, many have never heard of Club 33. This fine dining restaurant is hidden by an unmarked entrance in Disneyland's New Orleans Square.

Salem, Massachusetts, has spooky thrills, and so does the historic home, the House of Seven Gables. It was originally built in 1668, but it is best known for inspiring Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel of the same name. The house is a sprawling seaside colonial home with a big secret.

The mastermind of eccentric designer Jule Gilmer Körner, Körner's Folly is an eclectic house made up of oddly shaped hallways, trapdoors, and warped spaces.

It’s only fitting that William Gillette, the actor that once starred as Sherlock Holmes, had a house built that was full of mystery! In 1913, Gillette built his beloved castle, placing an elaborate mirror system throughout the castle along with a secret staircase, and a hidden room. 

On the other side of the pond of a medieval mansion circa the 14th century, you can find hidden "panic rooms" throughout the interior of Halvington Hall. These hideouts date back to the 16th and 17th centuries when the Pakington family Catholics would hide priests from the Protestant queensmen. 

A Prohibition-era favorite, this historic Toronto home (mansion) was a favorite Prohibition retreat for many American celebrities. The "hill house" was built in 1914 and was turned into a hotel in the 1920s. It has since been used as a filming location for Hollywood movies such as X-Men and Crimson Peak.

Built in 1710 by Captain Jonathan Hunt, the house was designed to be a refuge for his family as he constructed a tunnel under the home so that he and his family could easily escape. Hunt's granddaughter even used the tunnel to have a secret meeting with an illicit lover. 

It is a story many researchers of paranormal activity are familiar with. The widow of William Wirt Winchester, Sarah Winchester, and the Winchester gun fortune heir, purchased a massive San Jose farmhouse, but the home was cursed and even haunted by the souls of those killed by her family's inventions.

The sprawling castle was completed in 1910 for a Portuguese aristocrat and his family. It was later purchased by a wealthy industrialist. It turns out that the new owner had a predisposition for the mystical, and he built two 25-meter towers under the mansion adorned with Templar symbols.

Most people who visit are so fascinated by the primary area of ​​St. Mark's Basilica that they don't even think there might be something more wonderful underneath. Yet, below the sides of the chapels and the presbytery is a much smaller crypt, which for centuries was the repository for the remains of St. Mark.

Deep below the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City lies a secret subway station that leads all the way to Grand Central Station. It was built so that the well-to-do didn't have to mingle with the public.

The hidden railway under Grand Central Station and the Waldorf-Astoria is not the only well-known secret railway. In London, the postal service has an adorable miniature underground railway tunneling system that was once used to transport mail from one side of the city to the other (and all points in between).

The Radio City apartment was built for Samual "Roxy" Rothafel, the first impresario. He brought in many first-class artists, and the entire place became his bachelor pad and party venue.

Capitol Hill is not simply the famous domed building in Washington, D.C. There are also many small structures that tunnel between the offices connecting different buildings, so politicians wouldn't have to walk through the sometimes rough D.C. weather.

Mont Sainte-Odile is a French mountain monastery that dates back to the 6th century. Although, when something like that has existed for that long, people often forget that there are secret passages within the walls of the monastery. According to The Telegraph, books suddenly began disappearing from the monastery's library one day. 

When you travel to the southeast corner of England to visit the ancient Dover Castle, you could be unknowingly standing over a labyrinth of secret tunnels. According to English Heritage, part of the tunnel was built as soldier barracks during the Napoleonic Wars in the early 19th century. But it wasn't until World War II that the tunnel came into its own.

In 1919, secret tunnels with hidden doors and secret rooms were built to prevent Treasury employees from being robbed if they had to walk around with money. By the 1940s, however, all thought had turned to presidential security. 

Many people travel to Italy to explore the art scene, and one Florentine art gallery has a more secretive side that is completely closed to the public. In fact, for a long time, the general public didn't know this secret art gallery existed in Florence. Today, those wishing to see the collection must arrange private group tours.

New Yorker Hotel still has Art Deco tunnels that wind under it. It's directly connected to Penn Station, a convenience the hotel promoted proudly in the 1930s. The New Yorker Hotel Tunnel, featured in Atlas Obscura's Secret Places Summary, once took visitors down 34th Street in New York City.

Many people don't know this, but on the grounds of the Washington Monument is a tiny secret room that contains a tiny monument. That's right. Surveyors use the scale model when evaluating structural changes in this historical landmark.

We’re not talking about the necropolis in the basement. No, we are talking about the hidden tunnel used to usher the Popes away from danger from their enemies. To keep him safe, the Swiss Guard knew they needed a secret, underground approach to keeping their holy man safe.

Ivy Green is the birthplace of Helen Keller and is located in Tuscumbia. The home is open to the public, and you can wander the rooms where “America’s First Lady of Courage” grew up. However, you cannot visit one little-known secret (mostly because they are no longer there, reportedly).

Baranof Castle, known as Castle Hill, is located in Northern Alaska. If you visit this historical landmark, you can trek to the top of the castle to experience the reenactment of Alaska Day, the day Russia gave the territory over to the U.S.

Alcatraz housed many secrets, some so unimaginable that even the most gruesome Hollywood film about the prison couldn't do them justice. One such secret lies deep beneath the island’s lighthouse, a secret control room unknown by most inmates and even some staff.

The Old Swedish Church was built by the first European settlers in the 16th century and is now the longest continuously operating place of worship in the United States. Visit the burial grounds where some of Sweden's first settlers are still buried.

This house in Richfield, Connecticut, has hidden rooms that were once part of the Underground Railroad. When real estate agent Kris Lippi went to view a house she had been hired to sell, she was told the house had secrets, but she wasn't expecting it to hold so much history.

Homeowners of this charming historical house built in 1920 in Dunthorpe, Oregon, were in love with this home even before they knew the secret. One day, while the owner's daughters were playing in the library closet, one put her foot on the wall, and it moved.

According to Jeff Miller, co-founder of Dependable Homebuyers, Baltimore's historic Belvedere Hotel has a secret watering hole. In the Roaring Twenties, the Owl Bar was a (relatively) discreet drinking hotspot.

San Diego real estate agent Flavia Bellis was spying on a hidden room in a historic 1914 San Diego home. "It was very narrow, spanning the entire basement, with a small door with a window in it." During Prohibition, owners of the home used the basement as a makeshift saloon.

The Hotel Monaco is located in the historic district of downtown Portland, Oregon, and offers not only gorgeous and eclectic rooms but also a secret club room accessible only to insiders.