For centuries, medieval castles – hulking, isolated triumphs of masonry – have held a special place in the Western imagination, evoking at once a sense of history, fantasy, war and romance.

However, the U.S. also has its own unique castles, which attract plenty of visitors every year (and no, not the castle at Disney World). Halfway between L.A. and San Francisco, Hearst Castle is ...

Roughly 8,000-year-old remains unearthed from present-day Tunisia held a surprise: European hunter-gatherer ancestry.