San Jacinto Monument - Houston

Steve’s take

Taller than the Washington Monument — and Texans will never let you forget it. San Jacinto marks the spot where Texas won its independence from Mexico in 1836, and the observation deck at the top gives you a view of the Houston Ship Channel that smells like progress and petroleum. The Battleship Texas is right next door. Your kids get a battleship and a monument. Texas gets to remind everyone that everything here is bigger.