7. Soak in the Cyclorama

Without a doubt, this is the best place to learn about the Battle of Atlanta, the Civil War struggle that shaped our city’s future. The story unfolds in pre-IMAX glory on a 117-year-old, 360-degree, 42-by-358-foot oil painting, purportedly the world’s largest. A three-dimensional diorama was added in 1936; rotating seats and surround sound followed in 1982 after a complete restoration. (Spot the tiny statue of Clark Gable as a dying soldier, added in 1939 to commemorate Gone with the Wind.) The highlight of the surrounding museum is the Texas, the Confederate locomotive made famous in the Great Locomotive Chase of 1862 and now locked in perpetual pursuit of the stolen steam engine General (on display at the Kennesaw Civil War Museum). atlantacyclorama.org; also southernmuseum.org