America The Story of Us

Episode 7: Cities

Construction of the Statue of Liberty (CGI)
Construction of the Statue of Liberty (CGI)

Between 1880 and 1930, nearly 24 million new immigrants arrive in America. Many go to work building a new frontier: the modern city, one of America's greatest inventions. The high cost of land in cities like New York and Chicago means the only way to build is up. A new kind of building, the sky scraper, is made possible by steel. Produced on a massive scale by Scottish immigrant Andrew Carnegie, steel production underpins the infrastructure of the modern city. This new urban frontier draws rural migrants and newly arrived immigrant workers. For many, the Statue of Liberty is their first sight of the New World and Ellis Island is the gateway to the American Dream. The lawless city offers opportunities for many, astronomical wealth for a few. In New York, police chief Thomas Byrnes uses his violent new innovation "the third degree" to keep a lid on crime. The millions flocking to urban areas often experience terrible conditions in disease-ridden tenements. Jacob Riis, photographer and reformer, brings their plight to the world with his groundbreaking photographs in the book "How the Other Half Lives." Workers in new high-rise factories become urban martyrs in New York City's Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire, as the city struggles to make these new buildings safe. Powered by steel and electricity, the city begins to be tamed and defined by mass transportation, stunning skylines, electric light...and the innovative, industrious American spirit.

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Upcoming Episodes

Southern troops storm Harpers Ferry after its capture by John Brown
Episode 4: Division
Soldiers in the Second Battle of Bull Run
Episode 5: Civil War
Transcontinental Railroad
Episode 6: Heartland
Construction of the Statue of Liberty
Episode 7: Cities
Spindletop salt mound in southeastern Texas on January 10, 1901
Episode 8: BOOM
Construction of Mount Rushmore
Episode 9: BUST
D-Day, the military invasion at Omaha beach (CGI)
Episode 10: WWII
Buzz Aldrin Standing by Flag on the Moon, 1969
Episode 11: Superpower
World Trade Center Light Memorial
Episode 12: Millennium

Show Schedule


Episodes in the next 2 weeks
  1. Wednesday, Feb 15, 10/9c Rebels: TVPG
  2. Wednesday, Feb 15, 12/11c Westward: TVPG
  3. Wednesday, Feb 15, 2/1c Civil War: TVPG
  4. Wednesday, Feb 15, 4/3c Metropolis: TVPG
View Complete TV Schedule
Rebels:
Wednesday, Feb 15, 10/9c
Westward:
Wednesday, Feb 15, 12/11c
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