Located in the woods of New Hampshire, no one knows who constructed these stone walls. What archeologists have determined is that the walls are over 4,000 years old, making them in all probability, the oldest man-made construction still in existence in the United States. The stone walls form a maze and chambers. Those who built the stone walls appear to have knowledgeable about astronomy and the site can still be used to determine solar and lunar events. Visitors can tour the site by hiking a half mile on a trail.
The Western Wall, also known as the Kotel, is located in Israel and is an important location for all Jewish people. One of the traditions when people visit the wall is to write notes to God to place between the stones that make up the wall. Built over 2,000 years ago, visitors from around the world, both Jewish and non-Jewish alike, view the area as a holy spot. The wall receives millions of visitors each year. The stones make up the western support of the Temple Mount.
Perhaps the most famous of stone walls, The Great Wall of China, is the longest man-made structure in the world. It's also the only man-made object viewable from space. At the peak of construction, close to 2 million people labored to create the wall. Construction was started in 221 B.C and lasted all the way to the 1500s. Every 200 yards, a watch-tower was constructed, and when the wall was completed, it finished at over 1,500 miles long. The Great Wall of China remains a popular tourist destination with people spending anywhere from several days hiking the wall, to a few hours simply exploring its glory.
Any visitor to the states of New England is likely to notice that the rural landscape is dotted with remnants of stone walls. Settlers of early America built the majority of these walls to serve as borders to their farms. By the 1880s, many of these farms had been abandoned and over the years, woodlands grew around many of them. Visitors to many state and local parks in New England may find these relics of America's past as they hike deep into the woods.
