0:00:02 > 0:00:08I have crossed the Atlantic to ride the railroads of America
0:00:08 > 0:00:10with a new travelling companion.
0:00:10 > 0:00:12HORN HONKS
0:00:12 > 0:00:16Published in 1879, my Appletons' General Guide
0:00:16 > 0:00:20will steer me to everything that's novel,
0:00:20 > 0:00:26beautiful, memorable or curious in the United States.
0:00:26 > 0:00:28Amen.
0:00:29 > 0:00:33As I cross the continent, I'll discover America's Gilded Age,
0:00:33 > 0:00:37when powerful tycoons launched a railway boom...
0:00:37 > 0:00:40BELL RINGS ..that tied the nation together
0:00:40 > 0:00:43and carved out its future as a superpower.
0:01:09 > 0:01:12As I continue my journey south of the Mason-Dixon Line,
0:01:12 > 0:01:17I'd like to explore an early example of the USA's highest virtue -
0:01:17 > 0:01:20that is to say, philanthropy -
0:01:20 > 0:01:22and while on the subject of origins,
0:01:22 > 0:01:25with its talk of "rockets' red glare"
0:01:25 > 0:01:27and "bombs bursting in air",
0:01:27 > 0:01:30what is the American national anthem about?
0:01:35 > 0:01:39On this journey, I began in the cradle of independence,
0:01:39 > 0:01:43Philadelphia, and continued through the key American Civil War
0:01:43 > 0:01:46battlefield of Gettysburg.
0:01:46 > 0:01:48I'm turning south to Baltimore in Maryland,
0:01:48 > 0:01:53before taking in the nation's capital, Washington DC.
0:01:53 > 0:01:55I'll then continue on to Richmond, Virginia,
0:01:55 > 0:01:57finishing in Jamestown,
0:01:57 > 0:02:01the first permanent English settlement in North America.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05Today, I'm exploring Baltimore via the city's rail networks,
0:02:05 > 0:02:09starting with the first passenger railroad in the United States,
0:02:09 > 0:02:14and crossing town to the city's most famous institution.
0:02:14 > 0:02:17After taking a drive through the gritty streets of East Baltimore,
0:02:17 > 0:02:21I'll end at the spot where the American national anthem was born.
0:02:23 > 0:02:28'Along the way, I'll discover the origin of America's railroads.'
0:02:28 > 0:02:31They had known of this thing called a "railroad" in England,
0:02:31 > 0:02:32and they decided to basically
0:02:32 > 0:02:35do the next best thing to inventing it yourself - is steal that.
0:02:35 > 0:02:37We're cousins, after all.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42I'll find out about life on the wrong side of the tracks...
0:02:42 > 0:02:47I'd been to close to 200 funerals by the time I graduated high school.
0:02:47 > 0:02:50..and sink my claws into a local delicacy.
0:02:50 > 0:02:52Can you give me any idea what's in that sauce?
0:02:52 > 0:02:54Absolutely not. That's a secret recipe.
0:02:54 > 0:02:56THEY LAUGH
0:03:03 > 0:03:07My next stop will be Baltimore, which Appletons' tells me
0:03:07 > 0:03:09"is the chief city of Maryland
0:03:09 > 0:03:12"and one of the most important in the United States.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15"The present site of Baltimore was chosen in 1729,
0:03:15 > 0:03:19"and its name was given in honour of Lord Baltimore,
0:03:19 > 0:03:21"the proprietor of Maryland."
0:03:21 > 0:03:25Now, I didn't know that, and the state of Maryland was named
0:03:25 > 0:03:27after the wife of King Charles I,
0:03:27 > 0:03:29so, one way and another,
0:03:29 > 0:03:34British aristocracy and royalty have left an important mark
0:03:34 > 0:03:36on the world's greatest republic.
0:03:41 > 0:03:45I'm arriving in this city on an Amtrak service -
0:03:45 > 0:03:48America's principle passenger rail operator -
0:03:48 > 0:03:53which, in the 1970s, inherited a network spanning the entire country.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56That network owes much to the city of Baltimore,
0:03:56 > 0:03:59the birthplace of the passenger railroad.
0:04:06 > 0:04:10Baltimore Penn Station really is a treat for the weary traveller,
0:04:10 > 0:04:13with these superb glass domes in its ceiling.
0:04:13 > 0:04:18It was built more than a century ago and decorated with Tiffany glass.
0:04:18 > 0:04:19Fantastic!
0:04:24 > 0:04:29Baltimore's fortunes have for ever been tied to its location,
0:04:29 > 0:04:33sitting on a deep natural harbour of Chesapeake Bay
0:04:33 > 0:04:35which leads into the Atlantic Ocean.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39In the early 19th century, the city grew to be
0:04:39 > 0:04:43one of the largest seaports on the eastern seaboard,
0:04:43 > 0:04:47and when the railroad linked to Baltimore to the expanding Midwest,
0:04:47 > 0:04:51it multiplied as a centre of industry and commerce.
0:04:51 > 0:04:55For 20 years, in the mid-19th century,
0:04:55 > 0:04:58it was the second-largest city in North America.
0:05:07 > 0:05:09My guidebook tells me that,
0:05:09 > 0:05:13"Two lines of European steamers now start from Baltimore's harbour,
0:05:13 > 0:05:16"and through her, two great arteries of traffic -
0:05:16 > 0:05:20"the Baltimore and Ohio and the Northern Central Railroads.
0:05:20 > 0:05:23"The city is successfully competing for the trade
0:05:23 > 0:05:26"of the north and north-west."
0:05:26 > 0:05:28As the United States expanded to the west,
0:05:28 > 0:05:32some statesmen feared that the country was becoming too big
0:05:32 > 0:05:34and would fall apart,
0:05:34 > 0:05:37but the railroads seemed to offer the solution.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46As settlers spread westward, connections with those
0:05:46 > 0:05:50remote territories became increasingly important.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53One railroad originating in Baltimore rose to the challenge.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59I've arranged a meeting with David Shackelford,
0:05:59 > 0:06:03chief curator of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum.
0:06:05 > 0:06:06- Dave, hello.- How are you?
0:06:06 > 0:06:08We meet in a spectacular roundhouse.
0:06:08 > 0:06:11I mean, I assume it's an old turntable,
0:06:11 > 0:06:12but built on the grand scale.
0:06:12 > 0:06:14Oh, grand scale, indeed.
0:06:14 > 0:06:17I mean, this is truly a crown jewel in Baltimore's railroad history,
0:06:17 > 0:06:20and this particular roundhouse was built in 1884
0:06:20 > 0:06:23and was designed as a passenger-car roundhouse.
0:06:23 > 0:06:27Now, what was the origin of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad?
0:06:27 > 0:06:29The origin dates back to the 1820s
0:06:29 > 0:06:32and it's a pretty significant period in Baltimore's history
0:06:32 > 0:06:34because it's a rival seaport,
0:06:34 > 0:06:38so it's battling against New York, Boston, Charlestown, Philadelphia,
0:06:38 > 0:06:40and basically it's all about commerce -
0:06:40 > 0:06:43moving things from the interior of the United States
0:06:43 > 0:06:44to the port and then out.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47So they had known of this thing called a "railroad" in England,
0:06:47 > 0:06:49and they decided to basically do the next best thing
0:06:49 > 0:06:52to invents it yourself is steal that,
0:06:52 > 0:06:55bring it to the United States and basically build their own railroad.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58So the Baltimore and Ohio is actually charted in the 1820s,
0:06:58 > 0:07:01before the Liverpool to Manchester Railway is opened,
0:07:01 > 0:07:03which is reckoned to be the first intercity railway,
0:07:03 > 0:07:06but I take it that it's not open before that point.
0:07:06 > 0:07:09Construction begins July 4, 1828,
0:07:09 > 0:07:12and it would actually begin service in 1830,
0:07:12 > 0:07:15so, at that point, it's kind of interesting,
0:07:15 > 0:07:18because there's only 23 miles of rail in the entire country,
0:07:18 > 0:07:20and 13 miles would run from Baltimore to
0:07:20 > 0:07:22a little town named Ellicott's Mills, Maryland,
0:07:22 > 0:07:24so, in the grand scheme,
0:07:24 > 0:07:2723 miles would grow to hundreds of thousands of miles.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32With 3 million from investors,
0:07:32 > 0:07:36the B&O Railroad expanded gradually at first,
0:07:36 > 0:07:40but, by the time of my guidebook, it had spread across the Midwest,
0:07:40 > 0:07:43all the way to the Mississippi River.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47The first commercial rail route, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad,
0:07:47 > 0:07:51laid the foundations for what was to become, in the 19th century,
0:07:51 > 0:07:54America's most important industry.
0:07:54 > 0:07:58Sadly, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad does not exist today.
0:07:58 > 0:07:59What happened?
0:07:59 > 0:08:02Very similar to what happened to a lot of railroads
0:08:02 > 0:08:04in the late 1950s, '60s and '70s,
0:08:04 > 0:08:05and for a variety of reasons,
0:08:05 > 0:08:09which include a late transition from steam engine to diesel.
0:08:09 > 0:08:12There was overregulation from the government
0:08:12 > 0:08:15and basically it's the increase in the trucking and airline industry
0:08:15 > 0:08:18that really take a major bite out of freight.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20TRAIN WHISTLES
0:08:20 > 0:08:22Could I see some of the highlights of your collection?
0:08:22 > 0:08:24- I'd love to show you around. - Thank you.
0:08:26 > 0:08:31The first railways used wooden tracks and horse-drawn carts.
0:08:31 > 0:08:33When steam engines replaced horses,
0:08:33 > 0:08:38passenger carriages still drew on stagecoach design.
0:08:38 > 0:08:42The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad originally imported its locomotives
0:08:42 > 0:08:47from Great Britain, until Peter Cooper designed and built
0:08:47 > 0:08:51America's first steam locomotive, the Tom Thumb.
0:08:51 > 0:08:54It's one of the many engines at the museum.
0:08:56 > 0:09:00So, this is an extraordinarily early locomotive. When does that date to?
0:09:00 > 0:09:04Yeah, this locomotive dates back to the earliest days of the B&O - 1832.
0:09:04 > 0:09:08And that's, you know, contemporary with Stephenson's Rocket.
0:09:08 > 0:09:10This looks nothing like it.
0:09:10 > 0:09:11And that was intentional.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14The problem with the B&O track was it had sharp curves
0:09:14 > 0:09:16and steep grades,
0:09:16 > 0:09:18and so they decided initially to use horses,
0:09:18 > 0:09:21and then eventually they would come up with these shorter,
0:09:21 > 0:09:23narrower and squatter engine designs,
0:09:23 > 0:09:27but from that would grow the modern American steam engine.
0:09:27 > 0:09:29And, just judging by sight,
0:09:29 > 0:09:33it looks like the track gauge is the same as Britain - 4'8½.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36Yes, it is, and that was one of the technology transfers or "thefts"
0:09:36 > 0:09:38that we like to refer to, is that when they came back,
0:09:38 > 0:09:43they decided pretty early on to maintain that 4'8½ gauge.
0:09:43 > 0:09:45We're cousins, after all.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56The rapid growth of the railroads created great wealth
0:09:56 > 0:10:00for investors and prosperity for the city of Baltimore.
0:10:03 > 0:10:07I'm hopping onto the single line of the Baltimore Metro System.
0:10:07 > 0:10:09Originally built in the 1970s,
0:10:09 > 0:10:15it was later extended to a hugely important Baltimore institution -
0:10:15 > 0:10:18the Johns Hopkins Hospital, to which I'm headed.
0:10:25 > 0:10:27My guidebook tells me that,
0:10:27 > 0:10:30"the Johns Hopkins University was endowed with over 3 million
0:10:30 > 0:10:35"by Johns Hopkins, a wealthy citizen who died in 1873,
0:10:35 > 0:10:40"bequeathing an immense property to charitable purposes.
0:10:40 > 0:10:44"The Johns Hopkins Hospital was endowed with over 2 million."
0:10:44 > 0:10:46I'm on my way to the hospital
0:10:46 > 0:10:50to witness this philanthropy on a grand scale.
0:10:59 > 0:11:01During the later 19th century,
0:11:01 > 0:11:03new millionaires emerged,
0:11:03 > 0:11:07who made their names in retail, steel and the railroads,
0:11:07 > 0:11:11and many of them used their fortunes to benefit philanthropic causes.
0:11:15 > 0:11:17'I'm meeting Ronald Petersen,
0:11:17 > 0:11:20President of the Johns Hopkins Hospital.'
0:11:21 > 0:11:22Hello, Ron, I'm Michael.
0:11:22 > 0:11:25- Hello, Michael. How are you? - Very good to see you.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28- What a spectacular place to meet. - Yes, it is, indeed.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31I've been reading about the spectacular philanthropy
0:11:31 > 0:11:33of Johns Hopkins. Who was he?
0:11:33 > 0:11:36Well, he was a very interesting individual -
0:11:36 > 0:11:40a Quaker, merchant, banker, financier,
0:11:40 > 0:11:44who was an early investor in the B&O Railroad.
0:11:44 > 0:11:48In fact, he was on the board and amassed a great deal of stock.
0:11:48 > 0:11:50I think he was the largest stockholder,
0:11:50 > 0:11:54and he ended up giving away all of his wealth,
0:11:54 > 0:11:59some 7 million, in 1873.
0:11:59 > 0:12:02He endowed a university and a hospital -
0:12:02 > 0:12:04an interesting combination.
0:12:04 > 0:12:06Well, he had this vision that,
0:12:06 > 0:12:11if it would be possible to collate a first-class university
0:12:11 > 0:12:13with a first-class hospital,
0:12:13 > 0:12:16then something special might be done for humankind.
0:12:18 > 0:12:23By 1893, both the university and hospital had been built.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27The founders hired four of the most impressive young physicians
0:12:27 > 0:12:32of the time, offering them rare and tempting research opportunities.
0:12:32 > 0:12:35Today, it's an internationally renowned institution,
0:12:35 > 0:12:41occupying 30 buildings and employing around 41,000 people,
0:12:41 > 0:12:44including 2,700 doctors.
0:12:44 > 0:12:47I'm meeting Dr Edward McCarthy,
0:12:47 > 0:12:51a Professor of Pathology and Orthopaedic Surgery.
0:12:51 > 0:12:56So, Ed, was there a Pathology department at the beginning,
0:12:56 > 0:13:00at the core of the hospital, as endowed by Johns Hopkins?
0:13:00 > 0:13:03Yes, the Pathology department was the original foundation
0:13:03 > 0:13:06of the hospital, founded by William Welch.
0:13:06 > 0:13:10The laboratory... His laboratory was the first building on this campus,
0:13:10 > 0:13:12and his mission was to get real strong science,
0:13:12 > 0:13:14real strong pathology,
0:13:14 > 0:13:16and medicine was built on top of that.
0:13:16 > 0:13:18And what is it that you pathologists do?
0:13:18 > 0:13:20You look at bones, you look at organs,
0:13:20 > 0:13:22you look at tissue - what are you doing?
0:13:22 > 0:13:27Well, the role of the pathologist is to, number one, make a diagnosis,
0:13:27 > 0:13:32and above all, we are the teachers of other doctors,
0:13:32 > 0:13:34informing them what their patient has,
0:13:34 > 0:13:36what they should do about it
0:13:36 > 0:13:38and what the prognosis of that particular disease is.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41Would it be possible to have a look at what you're up to?
0:13:41 > 0:13:42- Sure. Good.- Thank you.
0:13:45 > 0:13:50In their 123-year history, the Johns Hopkins institutions
0:13:50 > 0:13:54have made some of the most far-reaching advances in medicine.
0:13:54 > 0:13:59They were the first in America to develop kidney dialysis and CPR,
0:13:59 > 0:14:03the first to introduce rubber gloves during surgery,
0:14:03 > 0:14:06and the first to admit female students.
0:14:07 > 0:14:10So, Michael, this is Dr Armin Kharrazian.
0:14:10 > 0:14:11He is a pathology resident...
0:14:11 > 0:14:13- How do you do?- Nice to meet you. How are you?
0:14:13 > 0:14:16..and he's looking at a thyroid gland right here.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18That is a thyroid gland?
0:14:18 > 0:14:20Yeah, so we have a thyroid gland. It was taken out yesterday.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22I'll continue measuring the thyroid
0:14:22 > 0:14:25and then after that they'll get processed in our lab
0:14:25 > 0:14:26and we'll look under the microscope,
0:14:26 > 0:14:28for any cancer or any other sort of disease in it.
0:14:28 > 0:14:30As you look at that from the exterior,
0:14:30 > 0:14:32is there anything self-evidently wrong with it?
0:14:32 > 0:14:34Yeah, so, this one actually looks pretty good.
0:14:34 > 0:14:37You can't really tell until we look under the microscope,
0:14:37 > 0:14:40but it's probably a benign or a noncancerous process
0:14:40 > 0:14:43- going on in there.- But, nonetheless, the thyroid had to come out.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45It had to come out. Yeah, exactly.
0:14:45 > 0:14:47And every time you do that, you're learning more and more.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50- Of course.- Armin, thank you so much. - Thank you.- Great to talk to you.
0:14:53 > 0:14:56Health care is today the largest employer in Baltimore,
0:14:56 > 0:15:01where the Johns Hopkins institutions constitute a major industry.
0:15:13 > 0:15:17To end my day, I'm visiting another Baltimore landmark.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20Established in 1782,
0:15:20 > 0:15:24Lexington Market is one of the oldest in the country.
0:15:24 > 0:15:26I'm tempted by the local cuisine.
0:15:32 > 0:15:34I've arranged a cooking lesson with Demi
0:15:34 > 0:15:36at Faidley's Seafood,
0:15:36 > 0:15:39a family business founded in 1886,
0:15:39 > 0:15:42where they make an award-winning crab cake.
0:15:44 > 0:15:47What makes crab cakes special in Baltimore?
0:15:47 > 0:15:49- Oh, our crab meat.- Yeah.
0:15:49 > 0:15:53- The Maryland crab, it's the best crab in the world.- Why?
0:15:53 > 0:15:58Because of the Chesapeake Bay, the brackish water, they are very sweet.
0:15:58 > 0:16:02They're called "blue", are they? Are they actually blue in any way?
0:16:02 > 0:16:05Yes, they are. When they're live, they are a blue crab.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07This one happens to be soft,
0:16:07 > 0:16:10if it was a hard crab, he'd be biting me,
0:16:10 > 0:16:12and so that's the colour,
0:16:12 > 0:16:15- and then, when they're cooked, they turn orange.- Wow.
0:16:15 > 0:16:19OK, and so, you can eat them out of the shell
0:16:19 > 0:16:22or this can of meat happens to be of Maryland crab meat,
0:16:22 > 0:16:24but it's only the swimmer fin.
0:16:24 > 0:16:27It's the biggest piece. It's the jumbo lump.
0:16:27 > 0:16:29- Yes.- It's absolutely wonderful.
0:16:29 > 0:16:30It's only from the swimmer fin,
0:16:30 > 0:16:34so it takes about 60 crabs to make a pound of crab meat.
0:16:34 > 0:16:37Goodness. Demi, may I help you to make some crab cakes?
0:16:37 > 0:16:40Absolutely. We add just a few ingredients.
0:16:40 > 0:16:42We're going to start with this Maryland crab meat.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45We're going to sprinkle a little bit of oat-based seasoning
0:16:45 > 0:16:46over the top of the meat
0:16:46 > 0:16:50and then we're going to toss in some crushed premium saltines,
0:16:50 > 0:16:52and they're hand-crushed,
0:16:52 > 0:16:57and I don't mean small pieces, but fairly dime-sized pieces.
0:16:57 > 0:17:00'The crackers bind the crab cake together
0:17:00 > 0:17:04'by absorbing the final ingredient - the family's home-made sauce.'
0:17:05 > 0:17:08- Can you give me any idea what's in that sauce?- Absolutely not.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11That's a secret recipe.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17So, we fold this sauce with the cracker,
0:17:17 > 0:17:19and we're going to form it into a cake,
0:17:19 > 0:17:24and the large cake size was actually the size of my mother's hands.
0:17:24 > 0:17:26That's the perfect Maryland crab cake.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28I would make one a different size, I guess, wouldn't I?
0:17:28 > 0:17:32- Yeah, yours are a little bit bigger. OK.- Let's have a go.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35- So you put the crab on the bottom of your hand like that.- Gently.
0:17:35 > 0:17:38- And gently pack it together. - And very gently pack it together.
0:17:38 > 0:17:43And you can see - feel how delicate it is in your hand. Good job.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46A little sloppy, but...
0:17:46 > 0:17:47I'll fix it for you.
0:17:47 > 0:17:49- Oh, well fixed. Look at that. - There you go.
0:17:49 > 0:17:51All fixed.
0:17:51 > 0:17:55'The crab cakes are then baked in the oven for just five minutes.'
0:17:55 > 0:17:57- Thank you.- That's perfect.- Wow.
0:18:02 > 0:18:05Oh, the taste of the crab and that hint of the sauce. Lovely.
0:18:05 > 0:18:10Beautiful, beautiful Maryland crab.
0:18:10 > 0:18:12That's... That's perfection.
0:18:23 > 0:18:27It's the second day of my stay in Baltimore.
0:18:27 > 0:18:30I want to get under the skin of the city.
0:18:30 > 0:18:34From the 17th until the 19th century, Maryland was a slave state,
0:18:34 > 0:18:37and its proximity to the Mason-Dixon Line
0:18:37 > 0:18:42attracted slaves on the run escaping to the free North.
0:18:42 > 0:18:47In 1870, five years after the end of the American Civil War,
0:18:47 > 0:18:53free African-Americans made up 17% of Baltimore's population.
0:18:53 > 0:18:57Today, the majority of the population of Baltimore is black,
0:18:57 > 0:19:00and recently, the city has been blighted by riots
0:19:00 > 0:19:05and accusations against the police of racism and brutality.
0:19:05 > 0:19:06I wonder, what is the connection
0:19:06 > 0:19:09between the condition of the black community today
0:19:09 > 0:19:13and America's dark history of the Civil War and slavery?
0:19:18 > 0:19:20- D, hello. I'm Michael. - How are you doing, Mike?
0:19:20 > 0:19:22- D, nice to meet you. - Good to see you.
0:19:22 > 0:19:25- Are you going to take me for a ride? - Yeah, let's go.- Thank you.
0:19:25 > 0:19:28'D Watkins, a one-time drug dealer,
0:19:28 > 0:19:31'is now a university professor and writer.
0:19:31 > 0:19:34'He's going to show me the neighbourhood of East Baltimore
0:19:34 > 0:19:36'where he grew up.'
0:19:49 > 0:19:53Yeah, so this is my old block, right here - Castle Street.
0:19:53 > 0:19:55What was your neighbourhood like when you were a kid?
0:19:55 > 0:19:57I grew up in the height of the crack era.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00You almost had to develop an instinct to survive.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03I'd been to close to 200 funerals by the time...
0:20:03 > 0:20:05by the time I graduated high school.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07How did you start out in life?
0:20:07 > 0:20:08I started out on the streets.
0:20:08 > 0:20:12Erm, I was a good kid, a good student, things like that,
0:20:12 > 0:20:14then my older brother was murdered,
0:20:14 > 0:20:17and I followed in his footsteps and went onto the streets for a while,
0:20:17 > 0:20:20erm, selling drugs and things like that.
0:20:20 > 0:20:21When you were selling drugs,
0:20:21 > 0:20:24was that profitable and was it dangerous?
0:20:24 > 0:20:26Both. When you live in a place like Baltimore,
0:20:26 > 0:20:31where an 97% of the people born in poverty die in poverty,
0:20:31 > 0:20:33everybody's looking for an escape.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36Some people escape by using it and some people escape by selling it.
0:20:36 > 0:20:39I was just fortunate enough to make some money
0:20:39 > 0:20:42and afford myself some opportunities.
0:20:42 > 0:20:44The problems you're telling me about,
0:20:44 > 0:20:47- are they confined to the black community?- Yes.
0:20:47 > 0:20:50Johns Hopkins University just completed a study that shows
0:20:50 > 0:20:55a poor black person with some college has less of a chance
0:20:55 > 0:21:01of getting a job than a poor white person who's done jail time,
0:21:01 > 0:21:04so the system is way lopsided.
0:21:04 > 0:21:05Give me an historical context.
0:21:05 > 0:21:09What is the connection between the condition of the black community
0:21:09 > 0:21:11of Baltimore today, and slavery?
0:21:11 > 0:21:13What's the connection?
0:21:13 > 0:21:18Well, you have a 270-some-year gap in education.
0:21:18 > 0:21:20You know, slaves couldn't go to school. Slaves couldn't read.
0:21:20 > 0:21:22Slaves couldn't take part in the American dream.
0:21:22 > 0:21:26They wasn't even able to be in control of their own bodies,
0:21:26 > 0:21:30let alone be able to get an opportunity to...
0:21:30 > 0:21:33to create a life for themselves in this country.
0:21:34 > 0:21:36'After getting his first degree,
0:21:36 > 0:21:39'D went on to get a masters in teaching
0:21:39 > 0:21:42'from the Johns Hopkins School of Education.
0:21:42 > 0:21:45'Today, as an author and university professor,
0:21:45 > 0:21:48'he's using his experience to inspire the next generation.'
0:21:51 > 0:21:54I'm a writer. I work with young people. I train young journalists,
0:21:54 > 0:21:57and my focus is literacy, teaching people how to read
0:21:57 > 0:21:58and helping people become thinkers.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01I know another guy who does financial literacy.
0:22:01 > 0:22:03He teaches people what to do with their money.
0:22:03 > 0:22:05I know another guy who is into fitness.
0:22:05 > 0:22:07He has young kids running up and down the block, you know,
0:22:07 > 0:22:11making sure they're not, you know, injecting themselves with poison,
0:22:11 > 0:22:13and that they're healthy,
0:22:13 > 0:22:15so all of these different moving parts
0:22:15 > 0:22:16are needed to make real change,
0:22:16 > 0:22:18and figuring out ways where we can...we can...
0:22:18 > 0:22:21we can build with each other, support each other,
0:22:21 > 0:22:24share ideas and things like that, is what's needed.
0:22:34 > 0:22:37BELL RINGS Baltimore's Light Rail network
0:22:37 > 0:22:40runs along the city's streets
0:22:40 > 0:22:43towards my final destination, Fort McHenry.
0:22:49 > 0:22:51BELL RINGS
0:22:51 > 0:22:56Completed in 1803, the star-shaped fortification
0:22:56 > 0:22:59occupies a headland at the mouth of the inner harbour.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02Throughout the 19th century, it was the cornerstone of Baltimore's
0:23:02 > 0:23:06defences, and the site of a very significant battle.
0:23:08 > 0:23:10My guidebook tells me that
0:23:10 > 0:23:15"the entrance to Baltimore Harbour is defended by Fort McHenry,
0:23:15 > 0:23:19"which was unsuccessfully bombarded by the British fleet
0:23:19 > 0:23:22"in the War of 1812."
0:23:22 > 0:23:24In the short time that I've been in America,
0:23:24 > 0:23:28I've discovered that Americans have a much clearer memory of this war
0:23:28 > 0:23:30than the British do,
0:23:30 > 0:23:31and that could be because,
0:23:31 > 0:23:34just before the British forces reached this point,
0:23:34 > 0:23:36they'd burnt down the White House.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49'I'm meeting Fort McHenry Park Ranger Scott Sheads.'
0:23:54 > 0:23:57Scott, why were the United States and United Kingdom
0:23:57 > 0:24:00at war with each other between 1812 and 1814?
0:24:00 > 0:24:04Well, some 37 years after the American Revolution,
0:24:04 > 0:24:08which gave us our independence from Great Britain,
0:24:08 > 0:24:10we had the Napoleonic Wars.
0:24:10 > 0:24:14England and France caught in a global struggle, worldwide,
0:24:14 > 0:24:17and the young America is caught up in this,
0:24:17 > 0:24:21and so, both England and France have put economic blockades against us,
0:24:21 > 0:24:25and so, in 1812, we declare war on Great Britain.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28We certainly don't have the means or the money to
0:24:28 > 0:24:31cross the Atlantic Ocean and invade England,
0:24:31 > 0:24:33but we can invade Canada.
0:24:33 > 0:24:37That's just up the road here, and so, if we can invade Canada,
0:24:37 > 0:24:41we might be able to have England lessen the sanctions against us.
0:24:41 > 0:24:43But it was a disaster.
0:24:43 > 0:24:46The American forces were no match for the powerful
0:24:46 > 0:24:48and experienced British Army,
0:24:48 > 0:24:51who went on to mount further attacks.
0:24:51 > 0:24:53So, in August of 1814,
0:24:53 > 0:24:5650 British warships, 5,000 British troops,
0:24:56 > 0:25:00march on Washington DC and defeat the American army,
0:25:00 > 0:25:03twice their size, enter the nation's capital and burn the White House,
0:25:03 > 0:25:06the President's house, the Capitol and other government buildings.
0:25:06 > 0:25:09The glow of Washington is so powerful
0:25:09 > 0:25:11that citizens here in Baltimore, 40 miles away,
0:25:11 > 0:25:14could see the glow of Washington burning on the horizon,
0:25:14 > 0:25:17and they knew Baltimore would be next.
0:25:17 > 0:25:19And it was.
0:25:19 > 0:25:20Not quite three weeks later,
0:25:20 > 0:25:25British warships moved up the Patapsco River towards Fort McHenry.
0:25:25 > 0:25:29The Battle for Baltimore raged for over 25 hours,
0:25:29 > 0:25:35but a 1,000-strong force of citizens and soldiers held firm.
0:25:35 > 0:25:39So, on that morning, September 14, at dawn's early light,
0:25:39 > 0:25:42four young fifer and drummer boys come out,
0:25:42 > 0:25:46and with them, they bring a large American flag,
0:25:46 > 0:25:48and as the flag is hoisted,
0:25:48 > 0:25:50those young fifer and drummer boys
0:25:50 > 0:25:54play the national song of America - the Yankee Doodle.
0:25:54 > 0:25:56MUSIC: Yankee Doodle
0:25:56 > 0:26:01And the tune is heard by a young American on a ship in the harbour -
0:26:01 > 0:26:03Francis Scott Key.
0:26:03 > 0:26:05And from that vantage point,
0:26:05 > 0:26:08he sees the flag going up for the first time,
0:26:08 > 0:26:12and knows that the Americans have achieved a victory,
0:26:12 > 0:26:14and so, in those few moments,
0:26:14 > 0:26:19he is inspired to write four stanzas that will become known as
0:26:19 > 0:26:22the national anthem of the United States.
0:26:22 > 0:26:26- HE RECITES:- "Oh, say, can you see, by the dawn's early light,
0:26:26 > 0:26:31"what so proudly we held at the twilight's last gleaming?
0:26:31 > 0:26:34"And the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
0:26:34 > 0:26:39"gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
0:26:39 > 0:26:43"Oh, say, does that star-spangled banner yet wave
0:26:43 > 0:26:45"over the land of the free
0:26:45 > 0:26:47- "and the home of the brave?" - MUSIC: Star-Spangled Banner
0:26:47 > 0:26:52Scott, I've so often heard the words of the Star-Spangled Banner.
0:26:52 > 0:26:56I found them obscure and difficult to understand, but, of course,
0:26:56 > 0:26:59coming here, now, it's all unravelled.
0:26:59 > 0:27:01It's all absolutely clear.
0:27:11 > 0:27:17Heroism at Fort McHenry inspired the Star-Spangled Banner anthem,
0:27:17 > 0:27:19and when you hear an American crowd sing it,
0:27:19 > 0:27:23their fervour and patriotism are impressive.
0:27:23 > 0:27:25As the United States expanded,
0:27:25 > 0:27:28the railways knitted together this vast country,
0:27:28 > 0:27:30and, after the Civil War,
0:27:30 > 0:27:33they helped to unify it across the Mason-Dixon Line,
0:27:33 > 0:27:35but here in Baltimore,
0:27:35 > 0:27:40you sense that there are two nations divided by a boundary of privilege.
0:27:40 > 0:27:44One is predominantly white, the other predominantly black,
0:27:44 > 0:27:47and no amount of singing about victory over the British
0:27:47 > 0:27:51two centuries ago is going to bring them together.
0:27:51 > 0:27:55The United States remains a work in progress.
0:27:59 > 0:28:03'Next time, I'll pick up my spending money.'
0:28:03 > 0:28:06This bundle is 80,000.
0:28:06 > 0:28:10I've never held anything like that much money in my life.
0:28:10 > 0:28:14'I'll visit the newsroom that revealed the Watergate scandal...'
0:28:14 > 0:28:17It went from this break-in all the way to the White House.
0:28:17 > 0:28:21'..before discovering how Abraham Lincoln met his end.'
0:28:21 > 0:28:22And, from just a few inches,
0:28:22 > 0:28:25fired a shot that hit him right behind the left ear.