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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.
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1:52:46
The Gilded Age: Full Film
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The woman whose groundbreaking books revolutionized our relationship to the natural world.
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The story of nine young men from Washington who captured gold at the 1936 Olympic Games.
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After attempting to commit the perfect crime, would two boys get the death penalty?
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The Stonewall riots marked a major turning point in the modern gay civil rights movement.
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In the 1950's a Polio outbreak swept the U.S., devastating communities nationwide.
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The man behind the atomic bomb is put on trial for suspected communist ties in 1954.
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51:35
In 1927, the Mississippi River flooded from New Orleans, leaving a million people homeless
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Ronald Reagan left the White House one of the most popular presidents of the 20th century.
Earth Month
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The Dust Bowl brought drought, dust, disease and death to the Midwest for nearly a decade.
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1:50:17
A biography from American Experience's collection of presidential portraits.
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1:50:24
Follow LBJ from rural Texas to his ascendancy to the presidency after the assassination of JFK.