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In the early 20th century, the average American medicine cabinet was a would-be poisoner's treasure chest: radioactive radium in health tonics, thallium in depilatory creams, morphine in teething medicine and potassium cyanide in cleaning supplies. While the tools of the murderer's trade multiplied as the pace of industrial innovation increased, the scientific knowledge (and political will) to detect and prevent the crimes lagged. This changed in...
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One of the greatest architectural and engineering achievements of its time, New York's Pennsylvania Station opened to the public in 1910. Designed by renowned architect Charles McKim, the station was a massive civil engineering project, covering nearly eight acres and requiring the construction of 16 miles of underground tunnels. Alexander Cassatt, president of the Pennsylvania Railroad, gambled millions of dollars to link the nation's biggest railroad...
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By the time he died in 1931, Thomas Alva Edison was one of the most famous men in the world. The holder of more patents than any other inventor in history, Edison had achieved glory as the genius behind such revolutionary inventions as sound recording, motion pictures, and electric light. Born on the threshold of America's burgeoning industrial empire, Edison's curiosity led him to its cutting edge.
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Inspired by Timothy Egan's best-selling book, The Big Burn is the dramatic story of an unimaginable wildfire that swept across the Northern Rockies in the summer of 1910. The fire devoured more than three million acres in 36 hours, confronting the fledgling U.S. Forest Service with a catastrophe that would define the agency and the nation's fire policy for the rest of the 20th century and beyond.
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American Experience volume 2
Description
Explore the complex life and enduring legacy of the creative genius as he made films such as Cinderella and Mary Poppins and realized his dream project, Disneyland.
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American Experience volume 1
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Explore the complex life and enduring legacy of the iconic filmmaker from his early days creating Mickey Mouse through the making of Snow White, the first full-length animated film.
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How does an inner city African American kid with a self-proclaimed violent temper, become a world renowned brain surgeon, an inspiring role model for disadvantaged youth, a medical innovator and achieve success... against all odds? In 2001, CNN and Time Magazine named Ben Carson one of the nation's 20 foremost physicians and scientists. His mother was his most influential inspiration, changing Ben from worst to first. He gained respect as he soared...
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In 2008, the United States witnessed a milestone: Barack Obama, a first-term senator from Illinois, became the first African American to be nominated for the presidency by a major political party. His subsequent election suggested that American society had finally surpassed some of the racial divisions that had plagued the country. But racial inequality persists and issues such as financial disparities between African Americans and other groups and...
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One of the most important chapters in American history, the civil rights era represents the path of recognition, acceptance, and lauding of one of America's greatest assets: its black American citizenry. This resource guides readers through the key events, successes, and trials of the civil rights movement, from the Montgomery bus boycott to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Though significant racial challenges...
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This extensive guide details the political and economic forces that affected the expansion of slavery and how slaves, freed black Americans, and white liberal politicians fought for the freedom of slaves and for the basic rights of dignity and protection that they had not previously enjoyed under the law. The book sheds light on the collective and sometimes little-known contributions of African Americans to their own freedom and traces the economic...
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Away from the bustling nightlife of 1920s Harlem, a literary and cultural rebirth was taking place among African American writers, artists, and performers. Producing works that reflected the racial realities of the era between the end of the Civil War and the beginnings of the civil rights movement, these cultural luminaries helped define a new black consciousness. Readers will learn how the Great Migration and changing opportunities for African Americans...
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Starting in the 1870s, Jim Crow laws began to appear across the South. Their aim was to enforce racial segregation, consolidating power in the hands of whites. This book examines the impact of these laws and other challenges that African Americans faced between the Reconstruction period and World War I. Topics discussed include the rise of groups promoting white supremacy, laws designed to quash African-American voting, Plessey v. Ferguson, the success...
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In this illuminating text, the origins of the slave trade in Africa and the effects of the practice of slavery on the political and economic history of the United States are explored. King Cotton, the slave hierarchy on southern plantations, the relationship of the slaveholders and slaves, the slave codes that regulated the absolute control of slaves, the ensuing slave rebellions, and the abolitionist movement and those who spoke out against the atrocities...
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American Experience volume 3
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Chart the ways in which the bloodiest battle in American history, and the ensuing peace, forever changed a president and a nation. In the fall of 1918, the deadly flu swept through cities at home and at the front. When the tide of war turned, the Germans wanted a cease-fire on Wilson's terms. On November 11, 1918, the war was over, but for Wilson, the last fight remained. He negotiated the terms of the peace treaty and won the world over to his League...
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American Experience volume 1
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Explore America's tortured, nearly three-year journey to war. In August 1914, a war unprecedented in size and violence broke out on the European continent. Ever the idealistic diplomat, Wilson vowed to keep his country out of "the Great War." His neutrality was supported but reports from Europe began to challenge America's delicate position. From behind the battle lines came reports detailing German atrocities in Belgium and France: history's first...
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American Experience volume 2
Description
Chart America's entry into the conflict, examining the breathtaking speed of mobilization and the profound transformations required if America was to play a central role in the Great War. In 1917, the U.S. was deeply divided about going to war. Wilson hired former journalist George Creel to lead an unprecedented propaganda campaign to support the war. But for those who resisted the patriotic fervor, the consequences could be severe. Repressive legislation...
57) The Feud
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Discover the real story behind the most famous family conflict in U.S. history - the battle between the Hatfields and McCoys. More than a tale of two warring families, the film goes beyond the myth to show the forces that ignited the feud.
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Beginning with an examination of West African food traditions during the era of the transatlantic slave trade and ending with a discussion of black vegan activism in the twenty-first century, Getting What We Need Ourselves: How Food Has Shaped African American Life tells a multi-faceted food story that goes beyond the well-known narrative of southern-derived "soul food" as the predominant form of black food expression. While this book considers the...
59) Sealab
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Sealab tells the little-known story of the daring program that tested the limits of human endurance and revolutionized undersea exploration.
60) The Poison Squad
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The Poison Squad tells the story of government chemist Dr. Harvey Wiley. The film charts the path of the forgotten man who laid the groundwork for U.S. consumer protection laws, and ultimately the creation of the FDA.
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