The most beautiful building in every state

The United States has produced some really cool buildings, and we've found the coolest building in each state.

Defining "coolest" is hard. We evaluated every state on its own terms, and we've found that the architecture across all 50 is as diverse as its population.

In states like California and Massachusetts, "coolest" meant picking buildings that look futuristic and elegant, like something out of a science fiction movie, with architecture that looks like nothing else in the world. In other states, like Maine and the Carolinas, we've found that the coolest buildings are distinctive because of their place in history or the state's culture. And in some cases, like Tennessee, the coolest buildings were simply uniquely American creations, like a piece of Americana in building form.

James Grebey contributed to an earlier version of this story.

ALABAMA: The Alabama Theater was originally built by Paramount as a movie house for their biggest features. Since then, it's become a cultural center in Birmingham, used for everything from plays to pageants.

ALASKA: The University of Alaska Museum of the North is full of exhibits showcasing native cultures, natural wonders, and wildlife from our nation's largest state. It's also a stylish refuge from the cold.

ARIZONA: The Chapel of the Holy Cross in Sedona was finished in 1956, and it juts out majestically from a red stone butte some 200 feet off of the ground.