Back to Show
American Experience
The Task Ahead
Engineer Theodore Judah solved the great riddle of the Pacific Railroad when he reached Donner Pass. Judah immediately recognized the location as ideal for constructing a line through the Sierra Nevada. Judah's plans called for bridging rivers and ravines, carving 20-foot wide shelves out of sheer mountain faces and driving 18 tunnels -- one more than a 1000 feet long -- through solid granite.
Support Provided By
52:54
The untold story of the people who fought tirelessly to save women from cervical cancer.
52:51
The story of the German American Bund, a pro-Nazi group active across the US in the 1930s.
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.
Unlock with PBS Passport
1:22:39
Discover the story of the 1969 showdown between President Nixon and the antiwar movement.
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.
1:52:42
The fiery campaign that led to passage of the 19th Amendment, granting women the vote.