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The Alamo (01:31:51)
his History Channel presentation of The Alamo, documents one of the most famous battles in American history. Using eyewitness accounts, commentary by historians, informative graphics, and dramatic re-enactments, the program offers a detailed description of the bloody showdown on March 6,1836, between the army of Mexican dictator Santa Anna and a band of Texan volunteers, including the legendary Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie, fighting for their independence at a mission-turned-fort.
Cabeza de Vaca's American Landing (03:18)
Spanish soldiers blown ashore at Texas, including Cabeza de Vaca, were the first Europeans to set foot in the West. They became captives, until Cabeza de Vaca escaped and became a trader.
A Class Apart (60:00)
In the 1954 legal case Hernandez v. Texas, defense lawyers forged a daring strategy—one arguing that Mexican-Americans did not fit into a legal structure which recognized only white and black racial categories. This American Experience episode interweaves the story of that landmark case, which went all the way to the Supreme Court, with the broader narrative of the civil rights movement. Viewers will learn about the heroic post-World War II struggle of Mexican-Americans fighting to dismantle Jim Crow-style discrimination targeted against them.
Marshall, Texas (84:00)
n this program, Bill Moyers returns to his hometown of Marshall, Texas—discovering, in his words, “a new town perched on the memory of one that’s gone.” Today it is hoped and expected that all of Marshall’s citizens, regardless of racial background, share the responsibilities of living and working in a small town. But there was a time in recent history when the opposite was assumed and accepted, when there were two Marshalls—one black, one white. The town was made up of “two worlds,” says Moyers, and yet they were both “waiting for an event.” The time was the 1960s and the event was the Civil Rights movement.
Spindletop Oilfield - January 10, 1901 (02:55)
After 2 months of drilling, the Hamill brothers hear a faint bubbling. The geyser of crude oil shoots almost 200' into the air. Production reaches 80,000 barrels per day. The U.S. instantly becomes the largest oil producer in the world and within a year 500 oil companies are born.
Violence in Northeast Texas (03:16)
Bob Lee leads the charge against Lewis Peacock and the Texas Unionists. Lee refuses to release his black workers and attacks Freedmen's Bureau representatives.
Wildcatters (44:56)
This documentary looks at wildcatters, or Texas oil prospectors, who used unscientific methods to guess where oil fields might be. Pattillo Higgins discovered the Spindletop Hill field near Beaumont. Columbus Marion Joiner located the legendary East Texas Oil Field—also known as the Black Giant. These men risked financial ruin to chase their dreams and were ultimately responsible for petroleum-fueled economic booms during the 20th century.
American History Online covers more than 500 Years of government, political, military, social, and cultural history.
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