Save Our History

New York City's Grand Central Station is spotlighted. Included: the heroic building's blend of architecture and functionality; how it spurred midtown development; the court case that saved it from destruction.

Alfre Woodard hosts a comprehensive study of the secret passage that helped thousands of slaves to freedom prior to emancipation. Included: important "conductors," such as William Still and John Rankin; strategies for escaping and the threat of capture.

The year 2000 list of the nation's 11 most endangered sites, including the history and troubled future of each site.

Recalling the history behind “one of the most revered documents of the country,” as well as efforts by historians to preserve it. Included: how Thomas Jefferson culled portions of the text from other sources.

Special that features letters sent home by the soldiers of World War II. Includes interviews with the men who wrote the correspondence.

A survey of efforts to establish the National World War II Memorial profiles men and women who served abroad and at home. Included: Bob Dole and former Presidents George Bush and Gerald Ford. Narrator: Edward Hermann.

Liberty ship the John W. Brown; schooner Coronet; schooner C.A. Thayer; Chesapeake Bay Oyster Fleet; cruiser USS Olympia.

Historian Stephen Ambrose leads an exclusive tour of the National D-Day Museum in New Orleans. Included: oral histories from WWII veterans and detailed descriptions of the artifacts on display.

DEAR HOME: LETTERS FROM WWI chronicles the experiences of American soldiers and supply clerks, pilots and postal workers from draft day to homecoming, how they clung to pen and paper as their only connection to home, and how the war left them forever changed.

A chronicle of the 200-year history of the White House features tours of many of its famous rooms and reminiscences from former Presidents and First Ladies, including Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, George and Barbara Bush and Gerald Ford. Also: a look at events from the building's construction and John Adams' occupancy in 1800 to the Clinton years and future renovations. Host: Josh Binswanger.

A survey of early American homes, from the post and beam timber frame, the log house, sod house and the adobe home.

Civil War battlefields are rapidly being paved over by spreading commercial and residential real estate developments.

A profile of the nation's 11 most endangered sites, including each site's history and troubled future. Baltimore's "The Senator" Theater; Ford Island, Hawaii; North Dakota Prairie Churches; Purdue Barn, Indiana; Stevens Creek Settlements, Nebraska; Los Caminos Del Rio Heritage Corridor, Texas; Bok Kai Temple, Marysville, California; Carter G. Woodson Home, Washington, DC; Jackson Ward Landmark District, Richmond, Virginia; Cigna Campus, Bloomfield, Connecticut; Telluride Valley Floor, Colorado.

A look at the struggle to preserve the Missouri River includes conservation efforts by historian Stephen Ambrose and environmentalists.

The history of the flag that inspired the National Anthem of the U.S. is recalled. Included: preservation efforts.

Oil inside the sunken hull of the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor threatens to spill into the water and create an environmental disaster.

Thousands of soldiers die in the snowy encampment at Valley Forge, Pa.

Many historic lighthouses are close to being lost forever.

A visit to the 11 most endangered historic places of 2002, as selected by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Included: St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Washington, D.C.; The Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. Host: Josh Binswanger.

Chronicling the combined efforts of archivists at the Smithsonian Institution and the Library of Congress to preserve America's recorded legacy of music and the spoken word. Included: archival recordings by Woody Guthrie and bluesman Leadbelly; and comments by Pete Seeger, B.B. King and David Crosby. Edward Herrmann narrates.

A yacht serves as a floating White House for eight presidents.

Pollution, urban encroachment and tourists threaten Yellowstone National Park.

Eleven historic sites become part of those on the endangered list in the annual alarm.

Experts choose 100 documents that represent milestones in U.S. history.

A history of the preservation efforts at George Washington's Mount Vernon home serves as the backdrop for a study of his accomplishments outside of politics and the military. Included: his success as a businessman, farmer and inventor. Host: Steve Thomas.

The history of the National World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C., from its conception to the dedication on May 29, 2004. Included: Interviews with those responsible for its proposal; fund-raising efforts.

James Madison's Montpelier; the Soldier's Home cottage, presidential retreat of Abraham Lincoln; Longfellow House, George Washington's headquarters. The Longfellow House, Cambridge, Massachusetts (George Washington); Montpelier, Orange, Virginia (James Madison); Soldiers Home Cottage, Washington, DC (Abraham Lincoln).

A chronicle of excavation and preservation efforts at the Jamestown Colony site in Virginia includes a history of this first permanent English settlement in North America, established in 1607. Also: a survey of artifacts and human skeletons found at the site; comments by historians and archaeologists.

People from 35 U.S. cities recall their experiences during the civil-rights movement. The memories are the result of a 2004 project in which journalists and photographers recorded the stories for the Library of Congress.

Steve Thomas visits ghost towns from the American gold-rush era in Montana and California to examine preservation efforts, and innovative technology and methods used by miners. Towns include Garnet and Bannock in Montana; and Bodie, Cal. Also: A tour of the Knight Foundry in Sutter Creek, Cal.

Examining efforts to preserve the hardware of NASA's Apollo space missions, including a Saturn 5 rocket that deteriorated while on display in Houston; the original Mission Control room; a command module; and space suits worn on missions. Among those commenting are former astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Eugene Cernan.

Chronicling the efforts of FBI agents who risk their lives in sting operations to recover stolen historical and cultural objects. Among those commenting is Robert Wittman of the FBI's Art Crime Team. Three of his major cases are recalled using dramatic reenactments.

Recounting the Japanese invasion of Attu Island in the Aleutians. Chronicling efforts to preserve structures in Alaska that were part of the World War II Battle for the Aleutian Islands. Included: an account of the 1943 Battle of Attu. Host: Steve Thomas.

An examination of Thomas Jefferson's architectural achievements focuses on Poplar Forest, his retreat in Bedford County, Va. Also: the Virginia State Capitol; and the University of Virginia. Host: Steve Thomas.

A study of World War II's legendary bomber, the B-25, also follows a restoration project; and includes a reunion of six veterans, who reminisce about their combat missions and go for a nostalgic ride in a B-25. Host: Steve Thomas.

Following the step-by-step restoration of the McCubbins-McCanless House in Salisbury, N.C., a Queen Anne-style Victorian home built in 1891. Host: Steve Thomas.

Chronicling the construction of a replica of the ship Godspeed, which was one of three vessels that carried colonists to the Jamestown colony in Virginia in 1607. The 18-month building process is followed, as is the first run on Penobscot Bay.

Examining forensic anthropologist Jeffrey Schwartz's re-creation of George Washington's physical appearance at three different ages in his life. Schwartz analyzed Washington artifacts and used 3-D technology and foam molds to reconstruct how the first president looked at ages 19, 45 and 57.

A look back at the path of Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman's 1864 Civil War “March to the Sea,” from Atlanta to Savannah; and at the the tactics he used to break the South's infrastructure and morale. Also examined are Sherman's methods of swiftly moving his troops.