The NAACP and Its Architects

American Experience

History Series / 15 Seasons

American Experience, TV's most-watched history series, brings to life the compelling stories from our past that inform our understanding of the world today.

Watch Latest: S37 E1

1h 52m / TV-14

"Come West and Be Cured"

1m 42s

Starting in the 1840s, health-seekers fanned out across the United States in search for “the cure.” The pure Western air, they were told, would make them strong and well again. Together with pioneers and explorers, consumptives played an integral role in settling the West. Premieres February 10 on PBS American Experience.

Annie Oakley's Moving Picture

28s

In 1894, the famous gunslinger, Annie Oakley came to Edison’s Black Maria studio in West Orange, New Jersey. Edison wanted to see if his kinetograph – a primitive version of a movie camera – was sensitive enough to capture the smoke from Oakley’s gun. The experiment was a success, as you can see in this short, silent film of “Little Sureshot” demonstrating her marksmanship.

The Climate Cure

1m 43s

Railroad companies advertised their station stops as havens for consumptives. Towns like Los Angeles, Denver and Pasadena grew as more health-seekers traveled west along the railroads. But promoters gave little thought to what would happen if climate was not a cure-all. Premieres February 10 on PBS American Experience.

The Stigma of Tuberculosis

1m 32s

As the scientific knowledge of tuberculosis progressed, so too did the prejudice towards people with the disease. Once it was learned that TB was not in fact hereditary, but was transmitted through person-to-person contact, those who suffered from the disease were ostracized from society. Premieres February 10 on PBS American Experience.

The Forgotten Plague, Chapter 1

8m 49s

By the dawn of the 19th century, tuberculosis had killed one in seven of all people that had ever lived. Doctors believed it was hereditary, but had begun to observe that fresh air and outdoor living could sometimes change the course of the illness. Physician and TB patient Edward Trudeau was convinced the clean mountain air was like medicine for the lungs.

The Forgotten Plague Preview

30s

By the dawn of the 19th century tuberculosis had killed one in seven of all the people who had ever lived. The battle against the deadly bacteria had a profound and lasting impact on the US, shaping medical and scientific pursuits, social habits, economic development, western expansion, and government policy. Premieres February 10 on PBS American Experience.

The Big Burn Preview

30s

In the summer of 1910, hundreds of wildfires raged across the Northern Rockies. By the time it was all over, more than three million acres had burned and at least 78 firefighters were dead. It was the largest fire in American history, and it assured the future of the still-new United States Forest Service.

The Big Burn, Chapter 1

7m 59s

In the summer of 1910, hundreds of wildfires raged across the Northern Rockies. By the time it was all over, more than three million acres had burned and at least 78 firefighters were dead. It was the largest fire in American history, and it assured the future of the still-new United States Forest Service. The Big Burn premieres February 3 on American Experience PBS.

"Hire Everybody You Can Find"

1m 45s

In the summer of 1910, the Forest Service had less than 500 rangers nationwide. With hundreds of fires already burning, the organization set out to hire more men; in some instances, they even let out felons from local jails to help battle the blazes. "The Big Burn" premieres February 3 on PBS American Experience

Gifford Pinchot's Vision

2m 35s

At the turn of the 20th century, Gifford Pinchot was the nation’s preeminent forester. When his good friend, Theodore Roosevelt became president in 1901, the two men created plans and programs for protecting America’s forests. "The Big Burn" premieres February 3 on PBS American Experience.

Fire as the Enemy

2m 54s

Chief Forester Gifford Pinchot saw fighting forest fires as being essential to the new Forest Service’s mission. Fire could wipe out entire forests and Pinchot’s rangers were the nation’s only defense against it. "The Big Burn" premieres February 3 on PBS American Experience.

The Heroes of the Big Burn

2m 19s

After the Big Burn, Pinchot publicizes the selfless actions of the fire fighters who lost their lives in the blaze. The men who gave their lives to defend America’s public lands were regaled as heroes in the press, and an outpouring of public support helps ensure the survival and growth of the U.S. Forest Service. "The Big Burn" premieres February 3 on PBS American Experience.

America's Timber

2m 58s

In the early 1900s, timber was an essential industrial product in the US. Gifford Pinchot and President Theodore Roosevelt worried that unless America’s forests were protected and regulated, the nation’s forests would soon disappear. "The Big Burn" premieres February 3 on PBS American Experience.

Edison's Electric Light

2m 27s

On New Year’s Eve, 1879, Thomas Edison unveiled his newest invention: the electric light. Reporters came from all over the U.S. to see Edison’s Menlo Park lab lit up with his incandescent bulbs. “Edison” premieres January 27, 2015 on PBS American Experience.

Beyond the Doc: Edison's Inventions

2m 40s

Thomas Edison is famous for inventions like the lightbulb, the phonograph and the kinetograph. But with over a thousand U.S. patents to his name, these famous breakthroughs are just the beginning. Go Beyond the Doc to learn about Edison's lesser-known inventions.

Edison Preview

30s

Premiering January 27, 2015 on PBS American Experience. Thomas Edison achieved glory as the genius behind such revolutionary inventions as sound recording, motion pictures, and electric light. The holder of more patents than any other inventor in history, "The Wizard of Menlo Park" was also intensely competitive and was often neglectful in his private life.

Edison, Chapter 1

9m 22s

By the 1920s, Thomas Edison was a prolific inventor and quite possibly the most famous man in the world. But before he invented the phonograph, the lightbulb or the kinetoscope, he was a young boy working as a telegraph operator. He soon began tinkering with the telegraphic equipment and experimenting with his own improvements. "Edison" premieres January 27 on American Experience PBS.

The Black Maria

2m 39s

In 1894, Thomas Edison filmed sharpshooter Annie Oakley in his Black Maria studio. He was testing a new device called the kinetograph, an electrically powered camera capable of capturing motion. “Edison” premieres January 27, 2015 on PBS American Experience.

The Kinetoscope

3m 32s

In the 1890s, Thomas Edison worked with his assistant and part-time photographer, William Dickson to create a motion picture camera. They created a series of short films that could be viewed on a coin-operated, peephole viewing cabinet called a kinetoscope. “Edison” premieres January 27, 2015 on PBS American Experience.

Edison and Competition

3m 4s

Alexander Graham Bell demonstrated his new invention, the telephone, at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park. The always-competitive Thomas Edison then worked with his team to develop a device that trumped Bell’s, the carbon-button transmitter, just a few months later. “Edison” premieres January 27, 2015 on PBS American Experience.

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