Up Next
Back to Show
American Experience
Coal Towns, from The Mine Wars
West Virginia coal operators built small, company-owned towns for their miners to live in. The coal towns were almost always unincorporated; there were no elected officials, no independent police forces. Owners hired private detective agencies to watch over their workforce. Company towns were also untethered from the free market competition owners usually championed.
Support Provided By
52:54
The untold story of the people who fought tirelessly to save women from cervical cancer.
1:52:39
The lively but neglected history of the women who changed the world while flying it.
52:51
The story of the German American Bund, a pro-Nazi group active across the US in the 1930s.
Unlock with PBS Passport
51:46
Explore the culture war that erupted over the spectacular rise of disco music.
1:47:20
The story of a Mississippi town’s effort to integrate its public schools in 1970.
1:52:38
Revisit 1970s Boston, when court-mandated school integration unleashed racial unrest.
1:36:51
Casa Susanna was a refuge for transgender women and cross-dressing men in the 1950s-60s.
52:22
Unsung scientist Mária Telkes dedicated her career to harnessing the power of the sun.
Unlock with PBS Passport
1:22:39
Discover the story of the 1969 showdown between President Nixon and the antiwar movement.
1:52:49
The Blinding of Isaac Woodard with Spanish subtitles.
1:52:23
How a horrific incident of racial violence became catalyst for the civil rights movement.
1:52:47
Part Two examines the mounting dispute over strategies and reveals the pervasive racism.