Photos: Missvain · CC0 · Mliu92 · CC BY-SA 3.0 (2, 3, 4, 5)
A drive or a BART ride to a small town where cemetery gates line the main road, with the graves of Joe DiMaggio, Wyatt Earp and Phineas Gage among them.
Why it's unique
San Francisco banned burials in 1900 and later moved its cemeteries, so a small town south of the city now holds 17 of them, including one for pets. The town's motto is "It's Great to Be Alive in Colma".
The research found no other town quite like it but did not test the claim far, so it is held to the state. Sources vary on the ratio of dead to living, so no figure is claimed.
Before you go
Most gates close by 5pm. Go to Cypress Lawn for the mausoleum at the top of the hill: enter from the south side, drive past the main lot to the first building, and see the stained glass in late sun. Phineas Gage, the man with the iron rod through his head, is at Cypress Lawn too.
Fans leave baseballs for DiMaggio at Holy Cross, and Wyatt Earp lies in the Jewish cemetery Hills of Eternity beside his wife. Pet's Rest has a Saint Bernard mural. Cypress Lawn runs themed trolley tours a few times a year, booked through its events page.
