Embark on a cinematic journey through time with our travel-style guide to the ten best historical dramas based in the United States. From the misty Appalachian frontier to the mid-century boardrooms of New York, discover the rich histories depicted on screen along with the real-world filming locations you can visit today.
For the passionate traveler, a map is more than lines on a page, it is a gateway to another world. Yet some of the most profound journeys require navigating not just distance, but time. The landscape of the United States is deeply layered with history, and nothing brings these distinct eras alive quite like the transportive power of historical cinema. If you are looking to map your next physical pilgrimage or simply escape into the American tapestry, these ten definitive screen dramas serve as your perfect cultural itinerary.
The Last of the Mohicans (1992) — The Appalachian Frontier, 1757
Filming Location: Blue Ridge Mountains, North Carolina
Before America was a nation, it was a vast, untamed wilderness. Michael Mann’s masterpiece transports you straight into the misty, old-growth forests of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Though set in upstate New York, it was filmed entirely around Asheville, Lake James, and Chimney Rock, North Carolina. The production beautifully captures the brutal friction between imperial forces and indigenous nations, making it an essential watch before hiking the historic trails of the East Coast.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yaQeVnN6pUc
John Adams (2008) — Colonial New England & Philadelphia
Filming Location: Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia & Hungary
This sweeping HBO miniseries strips away the sterile marble of the Founding Fathers to reveal the muddy, tense reality of early American democracy. To replicate 18th-century Boston and Philadelphia, the production utilised the pristine, historic streets of Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia, alongside set builds in Europe. Watching it feels like walking the cobblestones of the Freedom Trail as a fragile new world is argued into existence.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ex_1hxSZXgg
12 Years a Slave (2013) — The Antebellum South
Filming Location: New Orleans & Historic Plantations, Louisiana
An essential, uncompromising journey into the geography of the pre-Civil War South. Steve McQueen’s brilliant film grounds itself heavily in the oppressive heat and moss-draped bayous of Louisiana, filming on location at historic properties like the Felicity and Magnolia Plantations. It stands as a vital cultural monument, ensuring that anyone exploring the region confronts the true, heartbreaking human cost built into the soil.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jSYOrCuJEI
Glory (1989) — Civil War Georgia & New England
Filming Location: Savannah & Jekyll Island, Georgia
Following the heroic 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, this cinematic triumph captures the raw emotion of the Civil War. While portraying Massachusetts and South Carolina, the film was primarily shot around Savannah, Georgia, with the tragic, climactic assault on Fort Wagner staged on the historic beaches of Jekyll Island. The film breathes profound life into the battlefields and monuments scattered across the American South.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OS-OE1EcHI
Deadwood (2004–2006) — The Black Hills, South Dakota
Filming Location: Melody Ranch in Santa Clarita, California
Forget the sanitised Hollywood Westerns. This gritty, Shakespearean series maps the chaotic birth of a gold-rush town on Native American land. While set in South Dakota, the entire lawless camp was meticulously constructed at the historic Melody Ranch in California. It serves as an intoxicating narrative backdrop for anyone planning a real-world road trip through the dramatic, gold-laden peaks of the actual Black Hills. The series was also turned into a film in 2019 by HBO.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ix61iFpceM4
The Gilded Age (2022–Present) — Newport & New York City
Filming Location: Newport, Rhode Island & Troy, New York
A dazzling itinerary for lovers of high society and architecture. This series chronicles the explosive industrial wealth of the late 19th century. To recreate old New York, production filmed extensively inside the extravagant, preserved 'summer cottages' of Newport, Rhode Island, and used the historic 19th-century streetscapes of Troy, New York, creating a visual architectural walking tour.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKj1cMz3yfI
Boardwalk Empire (2010–2014) — Atlantic City, New Jersey
Filming Location: Brooklyn & Queens, New York
This lavish production resurrects the neon-lit, salt-air decadence of the 1920s Jersey Shore during Prohibition. Ironically, because modern Atlantic City had changed too much, the massive, historic boardwalk set was built from scratch in Brooklyn, with further filming across Queens and Staten Island. It charts how a seaside resort town became a criminal capital, providing an addictive historical layer to the region.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRpqQsdU-dg
Band of Brothers (2001) — Georgia to the European Front
Filming Location: Hatfield & Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
While the story is anchored in the American spirit, beginning at Camp Toccoa, Georgia, the legendary miniseries was filmed almost entirely in England. A massive airfield in Hatfield was transformed into various European villages and training grounds. It tracks the intense bond of ordinary American citizens forged in the fires of World War II, mapping a generational journey that redefined the United States' place in the global order.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKRBAFlN5ww
Mad Men (2007–2015) — Madison Avenue, New York
Filming Location: Los Angeles, California
The ultimate mid-century vintage tour. While set inside the smoke-filled boardrooms of a Manhattan advertising agency, this masterclass in production design was filmed primarily on soundstages and locations across Los Angeles. The series acts as a flawless cultural roadmap of the 1960s, tracing the exact line where the rigid conformity of post-war America collided with the vibrant counter-culture movement.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTMk-xy2dTY
Bridge of Spies (2015) — Cold War New York & Washington
Filming Location: Brooklyn, New York & Berlin, Germany
Steven Spielberg's atmospheric thriller captures the quiet, paranoid tension of the 1950s Cold War. The production shot authentically on the streets of Brooklyn, including DUMBO and Astoria, before moving to Berlin to shoot at the historic Glienicke Bridge (the actual "Bridge of Spies"). It perfectly evokes a shadow-filled era of subway commutes and back-alley diplomacy, mapping the psychological landscape of a divided nuclear world.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JnC2LIJdR0
Always looking for new films to discover? Find your next watch in these articles:
- A Bridgerton fan? This lavish period drama takes you straight into late 19th-century New York
- In the USA, this disaster thriller is enjoying one of Netflix’s best launches ever (it has amassed 37 million views in 3 days!)
- In the USA, you will devour this series starring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren which expands the Yellowstone universe
