These 7 Weird New York Museums Are Worth A Trip From Anywhere

Cattaraugus was one of the nation's first big railroad towns, and with the railroad came a need for blades to clear the land. Many cutlery companies popped up in the area. Fittingly, the city is now home to the American Museum of Cutlery, a collection of dozens of knives. Many of the knives have interesting local ties to the area and were carried in war by soldiers who grew up in Cattaraugus. This is the only knife museum in the western hemisphere not affiliated with a particular manufacturer.

The Mmmuseum is unique in that it is a history museum focusing on modern day. The museum is small, located in an elevator shaft, and has an ever-revolving display of artifacts. The items on display are as varied as the Big Apple itself. You may find ISIS coinage, receipts from last meals purchased for inmates on death row, or the shoe thrown at President George W. Bush by an Iraqi journalist. There's even a peephole so you can view the exhibits at any time, day or night (and an audio guide is available via telephone). The Mmmuseum's founders stress the goal of education and enlightenment through everyday objects. You can check out more on the Mmmuseum's website.

Coney Island was once the biggest amusement area in the United States. The little island, (now a peninsula: much of the creek was filled in in the 1920s), was once home to several large amusement parks. Dream Land, Luna Park, Steeplechase Park, and Sea Lion Park all attracted thousands of visitors a year. The area began to decline in the mid-1900s, but is now experiencing somewhat of a revival. A non-profit, Coney Island USA, seeks to recapture the area's glory days with a collection of memorabilia from the time period at the Coney Island Museum.

The Corning Museum of Art is truly an incredible experience. It's loaded down with over 50,000 pieces of glass-blown art, and even offers classes where you can learn to blow glass yourself. There are regular demonstrations in the amphitheater where you can watch professional glass blowers hone their craft. This is a surprisingly fascinating place!

This one's more commonly known by its colloquial name, the "Brain Museum." There are more than 100 human brains on display here, ranging from the typical to ones ravaged by Alzheimer's or aneurysms. Surprisingly, this is the only museum in the United States devoted solely to brains!

This one is a unique combination of religion and nature! Torah Animal World displays stuffed specimens of every animal mentioned in the Torah. For those keeping count, it's well over 1,000 animals total. They range from insects and farm animals, to wildlife such as wolves and lions. This is such a fascinating place!

This one's actually a museum and factory all in one. It's the only metal kazoo factory in all of North America. Fans of the buzzy instrument are sure to be delighted by all the kazoos on display. There's loads of information about how they are created and you can even see some of the first kazoos ever made. The first kazoos to hit the mainstream debuted at the 1852 Georgia World's Fair.