0:00:02 > 0:00:06I have crossed the Atlantic to ride the railroads of America...
0:00:08 > 0:00:10..with a new travelling companion.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14Published in 1879,
0:00:14 > 0:00:18my Appletons' General Guide will steer me to everything
0:00:18 > 0:00:20that's novel,
0:00:20 > 0:00:22beautiful,
0:00:22 > 0:00:26memorable or curious in the United States.
0:00:26 > 0:00:27- CHOIR:- Amen!
0:00:29 > 0:00:33As I cross the continent, I will discover America's Gilded Age,
0:00:33 > 0:00:37when powerful tycoons launched a railway boom
0:00:37 > 0:00:40that tied the nation together
0:00:40 > 0:00:44and carved out its future as a superpower.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11I'm continuing my journey through the so-called Empire State,
0:01:11 > 0:01:15from New York City, following the Hudson River to Poughkeepsie
0:01:15 > 0:01:19and the New York state capital of Albany.
0:01:19 > 0:01:22From there, I'll head west to the Great Lakes
0:01:22 > 0:01:25to take in Rochester and Buffalo
0:01:25 > 0:01:29and I'll finish my journey on the Canadian border at Niagara Falls.
0:01:38 > 0:01:40I'm exploring New York City,
0:01:40 > 0:01:44travelling around Manhattan Island using the subway.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52Today I'll find out about the hardships
0:01:52 > 0:01:56faced by tenement dwellers on the Lower East Side,
0:01:56 > 0:02:00discover an elevated railroad relic, the High Line Park,
0:02:00 > 0:02:05visit Ellis Island, the gateway to America for millions,
0:02:05 > 0:02:09and end my journey at the new World Trade Center.
0:02:16 > 0:02:19Along the way, I get into a scrap on the Lower East Side.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23I used to be in politics myself, actually. I didn't buy any votes.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26- Didn't buy any votes. - Well, neither did I, did I now?
0:02:26 > 0:02:28We don't buy votes.
0:02:28 > 0:02:33I try to grasp the scale of European emigration to America.
0:02:33 > 0:02:37This hall was designed to process 4,000 people
0:02:37 > 0:02:39and sometimes, at its peak,
0:02:39 > 0:02:42it processed as many as three times that per day.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46And I get a poignant glimpse of the future for transport in Manhattan.
0:02:46 > 0:02:50The sun will shine directly into this building
0:02:50 > 0:02:53at the moment the last tower fell. We call that the wedge of light.
0:02:58 > 0:03:00During the late 19th century,
0:03:00 > 0:03:03the American railroad industry grew rapidly.
0:03:03 > 0:03:05In 1860,
0:03:05 > 0:03:09there were just 30,000 miles of tracks across the continent.
0:03:09 > 0:03:15By 1900, 200,000 miles of railroad connected the states
0:03:15 > 0:03:17and tied the nation together.
0:03:17 > 0:03:20But profits from the booming new business
0:03:20 > 0:03:24were concentrated in very few hands.
0:03:25 > 0:03:30New York City was the starting point for many wanting a new life.
0:03:30 > 0:03:31SIREN
0:03:39 > 0:03:43I'm taking the subway to the Lower East Side,
0:03:43 > 0:03:47a part of town definitely not mentioned in my guide book.
0:03:49 > 0:03:53In a gilded age that began around the time of my Appletons' Guide,
0:03:53 > 0:03:58tycoons who'd made their fortunes from railroads, steel and banking
0:03:58 > 0:04:02dined and danced and smoked their cigars
0:04:02 > 0:04:05by the light of countless chandeliers
0:04:05 > 0:04:08and travelled in private railway cars
0:04:08 > 0:04:11but how did the other half live?
0:04:18 > 0:04:21In the last decades of the 19th century,
0:04:21 > 0:04:26the city's population grew from 1 million to 3.5 million.
0:04:26 > 0:04:31Thousands of immigrants crowded into insanitary buildings
0:04:31 > 0:04:33in Lower Manhattan.
0:04:36 > 0:04:38To get an idea of those conditions,
0:04:38 > 0:04:43I'm meeting Annie Polland at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum.
0:04:46 > 0:04:49- Annie, hello.- Hi. Welcome.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52- I find you in this rather gruesome tenement.- Yes.
0:04:52 > 0:04:55How many people would have lived in a place like this?
0:04:55 > 0:04:58Around 1870, about 80 people lived in a tenement,
0:04:58 > 0:05:02so about four to five people per apartment.
0:05:02 > 0:05:05- One room or several rooms? - Three small rooms.
0:05:05 > 0:05:08They called them railroad apartments because there was no hallway
0:05:08 > 0:05:12within the actual apartment, so one room led to another.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15There was no running water in the building at this time.
0:05:15 > 0:05:19All running water was outside so, if you needed water to clean,
0:05:19 > 0:05:22to wash, you're going to go down the stairs,
0:05:22 > 0:05:24out into what was called the rear yard.
0:05:24 > 0:05:27And then next to the water faucet, basically,
0:05:27 > 0:05:29is about four outdoor toilets.
0:05:29 > 0:05:32And, presumably, people were carrying their waste
0:05:32 > 0:05:34- down from their apartments. - Absolutely.
0:05:34 > 0:05:38Have we any ideas how many New Yorkers lived in tenements?
0:05:38 > 0:05:43By 1900, you have about 75% of New Yorkers living in tenements.
0:05:43 > 0:05:44Heavens.
0:05:45 > 0:05:50On the floor above, a tenement from the 1900s has been recreated.
0:05:51 > 0:05:55- What are the differences?- First of all, you have many more people
0:05:55 > 0:05:58living in the tenements by the end of the 19th century.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02By 1900, we have about 111 people, according to the Census.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04There might have been even more than that.
0:06:04 > 0:06:07The majority of people living here are Eastern European Jews
0:06:07 > 0:06:10who've come over in large numbers to make New York
0:06:10 > 0:06:12the largest Jewish city in the world.
0:06:13 > 0:06:17The tenements became the heart of the garment industry.
0:06:17 > 0:06:19Manufacturers used home workers,
0:06:19 > 0:06:22avoiding the expense of running a factory.
0:06:24 > 0:06:26So, in this very apartment,
0:06:26 > 0:06:29a man named Harris Levine lived with his wife, Jenny,
0:06:29 > 0:06:32and would end up having five children
0:06:32 > 0:06:34and every day at least three workers
0:06:34 > 0:06:38would come and sit with him and make dresses.
0:06:38 > 0:06:41And the irony I suppose is that a pretty pink dress like that
0:06:41 > 0:06:44was not something that these people could have afforded.
0:06:44 > 0:06:46No, this dress would go to Macy's
0:06:46 > 0:06:49or would go in a catalogue and be shipped elsewhere.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52The harsh conditions in the tenements
0:06:52 > 0:06:57were captured by the pioneering photojournalist Jacob Riis
0:06:57 > 0:07:02in his groundbreaking work of 1890, How the Other Half Lives.
0:07:02 > 0:07:07So what impact did the publication of How the Other Half Lives make?
0:07:07 > 0:07:10It was very important because it showed people who did not live
0:07:10 > 0:07:13in the tenements what tenement life was like
0:07:13 > 0:07:17and one of the goals of the Progressive Reform Movement
0:07:17 > 0:07:22was to persuade people that it was not immigrants or the working-class
0:07:22 > 0:07:25moral disposition that caused the problems they were in,
0:07:25 > 0:07:28but rather it was the conditions they lived in
0:07:28 > 0:07:32and so they argued for a series of laws and reforms
0:07:32 > 0:07:34that would improve the conditions
0:07:34 > 0:07:37and therefore improve the life for people in the city.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40We all live in the city together and therefore the conditions
0:07:40 > 0:07:43of the people who live downtown are going to affect the conditions
0:07:43 > 0:07:47of the people who live uptown and therefore these laws and standards
0:07:47 > 0:07:50are good not only for the tenement dwellers but for the whole city.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54Riis's work shocked many Americans
0:07:54 > 0:07:59and prompted the city to pass the 1901 Tenement House Act.
0:07:59 > 0:08:03It stipulated indoor bathrooms and running water
0:08:03 > 0:08:08and appointed inspectors to push landlords to comply with the law.
0:08:17 > 0:08:21Irish immigrants were recruited to a corrupt political machine
0:08:21 > 0:08:23known as Tammany Hall,
0:08:23 > 0:08:25which, by means of ballot rigging,
0:08:25 > 0:08:28helped to maintain Democratic Party control in the city
0:08:28 > 0:08:30under leader William "Boss" Tweed.
0:08:32 > 0:08:33Please!
0:08:33 > 0:08:36What are you doing? Please, please!
0:08:37 > 0:08:40- Joseph, is that your name?- Yes.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42I want you to listen to me close, all right?
0:08:42 > 0:08:44Now I ask you to deliver votes, right?
0:08:44 > 0:08:47If you can't deliver the votes for me, you're no good to me,
0:08:47 > 0:08:50you're no good to Boss Tweed, you're no good to Tammany Hall,
0:08:50 > 0:08:52you're no good to the Regular Democratic Party.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55- Do you love your family? Do you want to keep them safe?- Yes.
0:08:55 > 0:08:59All right. Remember what I told you and be on your way.
0:09:00 > 0:09:02What's going on here? Who are you people?
0:09:02 > 0:09:04What was all that about Tammany hall?
0:09:04 > 0:09:07It's the organisation what looks after these folks around here.
0:09:07 > 0:09:10Tammany Hall is the seat of democratic power
0:09:10 > 0:09:13- in the city of New York. - It didn't sound very democratic.
0:09:13 > 0:09:15- I heard you mention Boss Tweed. - Right.
0:09:15 > 0:09:17He's the head of the Democratic Party.
0:09:17 > 0:09:20I used to be in politics myself, actually.
0:09:20 > 0:09:22- Did you now?- Yes, I did, I did.
0:09:22 > 0:09:25But I didn't buy any votes. Didn't buy any votes.
0:09:25 > 0:09:27Well, neither did I, did I now?
0:09:27 > 0:09:29- We don't buy votes.- OK.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32Gentlemen, I'm so sorry. A misunderstanding.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34You certainly did misunderstand.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37I thought you said something about buying votes. I'm so sorry.
0:09:37 > 0:09:39I think you better head back north where you came from.
0:09:39 > 0:09:43- That was the way I was going.- The streets down here can be dangerous
0:09:43 > 0:09:46- if you don't know your way around. - Very nice to meet you, gentlemen.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48Limey...
0:09:53 > 0:09:55I'm no stranger to bruising political battles
0:09:55 > 0:10:00but city government in 19th century New York was a particularly
0:10:00 > 0:10:03rough-and-tumble business and often alcohol-fuelled.
0:10:06 > 0:10:10After that encounter, I need a good stiff drink
0:10:10 > 0:10:14and at The Dead Rabbit bar, named after one of the most notorious
0:10:14 > 0:10:18Irish gangs in the city, I'm meeting cocktail historian David Wondrich.
0:10:24 > 0:10:26David.
0:10:26 > 0:10:29- Hello, Michael. Welcome. - What are we mixing today?
0:10:29 > 0:10:32We thought we'd make some whiskey cocktails.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35The original, the precursor to the Manhattan,
0:10:35 > 0:10:38what the gents were drinking in all the saloons of New York
0:10:38 > 0:10:41in the early 19th century.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44So we'll just take a glass, then you're going to take
0:10:44 > 0:10:46your sugar syrup - just a spoonful,
0:10:46 > 0:10:49- and that goes in your glass. - Thank you.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53So how did cocktails really get going?
0:10:53 > 0:10:58This was originally a morning drink, an eye-opener as it were,
0:10:58 > 0:11:00which is a little bit frightening
0:11:00 > 0:11:02and it comes from the English tradition
0:11:02 > 0:11:06but with that special American brashness added to it.
0:11:06 > 0:11:08Like so many things that are American,
0:11:08 > 0:11:11we took something that somebody else had invented
0:11:11 > 0:11:13and we put extra spin on it and made it our own.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15In England, it was a tonic,
0:11:15 > 0:11:18in America, it was the foundation of our culture, let's say.
0:11:18 > 0:11:21A little bit of orange liqueur just to make it tasty,
0:11:21 > 0:11:23maybe half a spoonful.
0:11:23 > 0:11:25We're going to dash... three dashes of bitters.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28The bitters is what make it the cocktail, originally.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31- And who were the big inventors of cocktails?- Bartenders.
0:11:31 > 0:11:34If you wanted a drink, you didn't make it yourself,
0:11:34 > 0:11:36you went and saw a professional.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38You went and saw somebody who knew how to mix.
0:11:38 > 0:11:43Somebody who would take rye whiskey like our big bottle here.
0:11:43 > 0:11:45This is the original jigger we're using -
0:11:45 > 0:11:47the original spirits measure.
0:11:48 > 0:11:50And who was the most famous bartender?
0:11:50 > 0:11:55Jerry Thomas in the 19th century was the most famous bartender.
0:11:55 > 0:11:59In 1862, he wrote the first bartender's guide.
0:11:59 > 0:12:01- Wow.- Cocktails.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04- Was that a first? - It was the first of its kind.
0:12:04 > 0:12:06And was he a flamboyant man?
0:12:06 > 0:12:08He would consider you a little underdressed.
0:12:08 > 0:12:12He tended bar with a bowler hat on and a pair of white rats
0:12:12 > 0:12:15on his shoulder that would scamper around on his hat
0:12:15 > 0:12:18and on his shoulders while he talked to people.
0:12:18 > 0:12:21Could you make much money as a barman in those days?
0:12:21 > 0:12:24Jerry Thomas made more money than the vice president
0:12:24 > 0:12:26of the United States at the peak of his career.
0:12:26 > 0:12:28He was doing extremely well.
0:12:28 > 0:12:31And why is this place called The Dead Rabbit?
0:12:31 > 0:12:36It's named after the Irish gang that John Morrissey lead.
0:12:36 > 0:12:38Irish gang leader, bare-knuckle pugilist
0:12:38 > 0:12:40and United States Congressman.
0:12:40 > 0:12:44My day has been plagued by Irish gangs.
0:12:44 > 0:12:47New York is as Irish a city as it is anything else, that's for sure.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57I will cut us a couple of lemon twists.
0:12:58 > 0:13:00Beautifully done. All right.
0:13:00 > 0:13:04You have made your first whiskey cocktail. Let's see how it is.
0:13:04 > 0:13:0619th century style.
0:13:09 > 0:13:10Boy-oh-boy, that's lovely.
0:13:10 > 0:13:12To oblivion.
0:13:33 > 0:13:35After an evening of indulgence,
0:13:35 > 0:13:39this morning I'm heading to the far West side of Manhattan Island
0:13:39 > 0:13:42to visit a park known as the High Line.
0:13:52 > 0:13:55In the 19th and early 20th centuries,
0:13:55 > 0:14:00freight trains servicing the port were routed down Tenth Avenue.
0:14:01 > 0:14:03A rather terrible death toll
0:14:03 > 0:14:07when trains used to run along here at street level
0:14:07 > 0:14:12led first to a horseman having to ride in front of each train,
0:14:12 > 0:14:14waving a red flag,
0:14:14 > 0:14:17and then to the creation of this elevated railway
0:14:17 > 0:14:21which literally pierced the buildings on its path.
0:14:24 > 0:14:26When it eventually fell out of use,
0:14:26 > 0:14:29it was narrowly saved from demolition
0:14:29 > 0:14:32and this beautiful linear park was created.
0:14:40 > 0:14:45This sliver of leafy serenity above the crowded Manhattan streets
0:14:45 > 0:14:48is nearly a mile and a half long
0:14:48 > 0:14:51and the first section opened in 2009.
0:14:52 > 0:14:56It's a magnificent example of railway heritage
0:14:56 > 0:14:59adapted to bring greenery to the city.
0:15:13 > 0:15:17A journey downtown takes me to Battery Park,
0:15:17 > 0:15:19the southernmost tip of Manhattan.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25The world at the time of my Appletons' Guide
0:15:25 > 0:15:28bore some similarities to today's.
0:15:28 > 0:15:32There were wars and massacres and persecutions
0:15:32 > 0:15:37and terrified and impoverished migrants set out for a new life.
0:15:37 > 0:15:42But, unlike nowadays, here, there was a vast, underpopulated continent
0:15:42 > 0:15:45with a government willing to receive them
0:15:45 > 0:15:48and New York City, as its gateway,
0:15:48 > 0:15:51took in up to a million in a single year.
0:15:58 > 0:16:01A short boat trip across the harbour
0:16:01 > 0:16:05will take me to the first port of call for New York-bound immigrants.
0:16:05 > 0:16:09- TANNOY:- Welcome aboard. Our next stop will be Ellis Island.
0:16:16 > 0:16:21Immigrants were greeted by the towering Statue of Liberty -
0:16:21 > 0:16:24a gift from the people of France to the United States.
0:16:24 > 0:16:26Dedicated in 1886,
0:16:26 > 0:16:30seven years after the publication of my guide book,
0:16:30 > 0:16:34Liberty's outstretched torch signified landfall,
0:16:34 > 0:16:38new opportunities and freedom from persecution.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42The settlers were processed at Ellis Island.
0:16:42 > 0:16:46Between 1892 and 1924,
0:16:46 > 0:16:48it was the nation's busiest immigration station.
0:17:00 > 0:17:05I'm meeting genealogist Megan Smolenyak in the main hall.
0:17:06 > 0:17:10Megan, this hall, with its vaulted ceiling,
0:17:10 > 0:17:13I suppose for immigrants coming from European villages,
0:17:13 > 0:17:16would have been impressive and intimidating too.
0:17:16 > 0:17:19I think absolutely. It was intended to impress.
0:17:19 > 0:17:21Most of them were coming from villages
0:17:21 > 0:17:23with populations of maybe 500 or 1,000 people.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27This hall was designed to process 4,000 people
0:17:27 > 0:17:29and sometimes, at its peak,
0:17:29 > 0:17:32it processed as many as three times that per day.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35So just imagine the cacophony of echoes,
0:17:35 > 0:17:39you're hearing all the sound, all these languages, just chaos,
0:17:39 > 0:17:42and it's right when you're on the cusp of starting your new life.
0:17:42 > 0:17:45At the end of the 19th century, beginning of the 20th,
0:17:45 > 0:17:47where were they coming from principally?
0:17:47 > 0:17:49Well, we were starting to get a shift.
0:17:49 > 0:17:51Previously had been mostly from western Europe,
0:17:51 > 0:17:54from the British Isles, Germany, that kind of thing.
0:17:54 > 0:17:56Now, all of a sudden, we were getting lots of people
0:17:56 > 0:17:58from southern and eastern Europe.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01So lots of Italians, Poles, Slavs,
0:18:01 > 0:18:03lots of people who were Jewish escaping the pogroms,
0:18:03 > 0:18:04that kind of thing.
0:18:04 > 0:18:09And the thing about immigrants is they're all survivors and strivers.
0:18:09 > 0:18:13They didn't all get in. What was the process of weeding them out?
0:18:13 > 0:18:16Basically, the process started as soon as you came up the stairs.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20Whether you knew it or not, you were already being watched.
0:18:20 > 0:18:23What the inspectors were looking for were medical conditions.
0:18:23 > 0:18:26If they saw something, what happened is they would chalk you and
0:18:26 > 0:18:30that would be an indication that you had to go for a further inspection.
0:18:30 > 0:18:33Fortunately, not too many people did get sent home.
0:18:33 > 0:18:35It was less than 2%.
0:18:35 > 0:18:37Roughly half of that was for medical reasons
0:18:37 > 0:18:39and half was for legal reasons.
0:18:42 > 0:18:47On January 1st, 1892, the main building on Ellis Island
0:18:47 > 0:18:52opened its doors to the world's tired and poor.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55Huddled masses yearning to breathe free.
0:18:55 > 0:18:59Those words are from the sonnet by Emma Lazarus.
0:18:59 > 0:19:03You can find them engraved at the Statue of Liberty.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08How many immigrants passed through Ellis Island?
0:19:08 > 0:19:11It's estimated that about 12 million people came through Ellis Island
0:19:11 > 0:19:15and that translates into about 40% of Americans today
0:19:15 > 0:19:19having at least one Ellis Island immigrant in their family tree.
0:19:19 > 0:19:23Did any of those millions become American celebrities?
0:19:23 > 0:19:24I would say so.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27You might have heard of a fellow by the name of Bob Hope, perhaps,
0:19:27 > 0:19:31but also Bela Lugosi, Cary Grant also came here.
0:19:31 > 0:19:35This was the place where they took their first step on American soil.
0:19:38 > 0:19:42Unlike British-born Cary Grant and Bob Hope, most immigrants
0:19:42 > 0:19:47passing through Ellis Island didn't become household names.
0:19:47 > 0:19:52As they stepped onto the island, they started new lives as Americans.
0:19:52 > 0:19:55Today, their descendants come from across the country
0:19:55 > 0:20:00and the world to search for them on a computerised database.
0:20:01 > 0:20:04- Hello, ladies. Excuse me.- Hi. - Are you simply tourists here
0:20:04 > 0:20:07or do you have a family connection with Ellis Island?
0:20:07 > 0:20:11We do have a family connection. We're looking for our grandfather.
0:20:11 > 0:20:13- Where did your grandfather come from?- He came from Greece.
0:20:13 > 0:20:17Do you know which bit of Greece? Do you know what became of him?
0:20:17 > 0:20:19He came from the island of Crete.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22He was a well-known pharmacist in New York City.
0:20:22 > 0:20:26- Really?- And he married an immigrant family from Irish descent.
0:20:26 > 0:20:31It is exciting because to know that our ancestors came here
0:20:31 > 0:20:35and started their life and we have what we have today because of them.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38They were brave enough to come here. It gives me tingles.
0:20:38 > 0:20:41Well, I hope it's a really successful day
0:20:41 > 0:20:44and in the nicest sense of the word an emotional one for you too.
0:20:44 > 0:20:47- Thank you very much.- Thank you.
0:20:50 > 0:20:54Of the millions of immigrants who arrived here at Ellis Island,
0:20:54 > 0:20:56some lived in poverty,
0:20:56 > 0:20:58some did OK,
0:20:58 > 0:21:01others became notorious gangsters,
0:21:01 > 0:21:03some film stars,
0:21:03 > 0:21:05others begat presidents.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08Altogether, US immigration has been one of the greatest
0:21:08 > 0:21:11social experiments in human history.
0:21:26 > 0:21:30Back in Lower Manhattan, I'm drawn to visit the site
0:21:30 > 0:21:33where the World Trade Center stood
0:21:33 > 0:21:37until destroyed on September 11th, 2001.
0:21:54 > 0:21:57We all remember where we were when we heard about
0:21:57 > 0:21:59the terrorist attack of 9/11
0:21:59 > 0:22:03and the horror that we felt and the fear.
0:22:03 > 0:22:08And here at the pools that have been built in the footprint
0:22:08 > 0:22:13of the Twin Towers, water pours ceaselessly into a void
0:22:13 > 0:22:19whose depths are invisible, with a symbolism that I find very moving.
0:22:19 > 0:22:23And here is the place to remember what we felt that day
0:22:23 > 0:22:25and those who perished.
0:22:31 > 0:22:34Here, very close to where the Twin Towers once stood,
0:22:34 > 0:22:36they have built the Oculus -
0:22:36 > 0:22:40the future transportation hub of Lower Manhattan.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43An extraordinary piece of architecture.
0:22:43 > 0:22:47What is it? It reminds me of a human rib cage,
0:22:47 > 0:22:50perhaps a reminder of the frailty of the body.
0:22:50 > 0:22:52Or is it maybe a bird?
0:22:53 > 0:22:56I think that's it. I think it's a bird taking off.
0:22:56 > 0:23:01It's a reminder that New York, once laid low by terrorism,
0:23:01 > 0:23:03is now taking flight again.
0:23:09 > 0:23:13Designed by the Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava,
0:23:13 > 0:23:17the transportation hub will link 11 subway lines
0:23:17 > 0:23:21with trains to New Jersey and the Hudson River Ferry Terminal.
0:23:24 > 0:23:28Underground, the walls are covered with Italian marble
0:23:28 > 0:23:31and one borders the original retaining wall
0:23:31 > 0:23:34from the fallen North Tower.
0:23:35 > 0:23:38The exterior ribs rise triumphantly
0:23:38 > 0:23:41160 feet above ground level,
0:23:41 > 0:23:45giving New York a new public space beneath.
0:23:46 > 0:23:50I'm meeting Steven Plate, the deputy chief of capital planning
0:23:50 > 0:23:53at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey,
0:23:53 > 0:23:57who is giving me a rare glimpse inside the ongoing construction.
0:23:58 > 0:23:59Wow!
0:24:05 > 0:24:07What an extraordinary building.
0:24:07 > 0:24:12The skylight up above you, consisting of 40 pieces of glass,
0:24:12 > 0:24:15will open so when you look down from up above
0:24:15 > 0:24:19you'll see something looking like an eye looking at you.
0:24:19 > 0:24:22The significance is, we went to great pains to turn the building
0:24:22 > 0:24:24to the exact alignment of the sun
0:24:24 > 0:24:28as it appears on September 11th at 10:28am,
0:24:28 > 0:24:33that precise time the sun will shine directly into this building
0:24:33 > 0:24:36at the moment the last tower fell. We call that the wedge of light.
0:24:37 > 0:24:40It truly is one of a kind.
0:24:40 > 0:24:43It is really a wonder.
0:24:45 > 0:24:49The project has not been without difficulty.
0:24:49 > 0:24:53Costs have doubled to almost 4 billion.
0:24:53 > 0:24:57But no recent addition to New York's transit infrastructure
0:24:57 > 0:25:00has dared to combine public utility
0:25:00 > 0:25:03with such architectural flair.
0:25:03 > 0:25:06It's a 21st century Grand Central.
0:25:09 > 0:25:12The centrepiece of Ground Zero's redevelopment
0:25:12 > 0:25:16is the nearly complete One World Trade Center,
0:25:16 > 0:25:19once known as the Freedom Tower.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26I'm taking the lifts at 23 miles per hour
0:25:26 > 0:25:31to a part of the building normally off-limits to the public.
0:25:31 > 0:25:35LIFT BEEPS RHYTHMICALLY Floor, floor, floor.
0:25:35 > 0:25:39Every second, another floor, all the way up to 102.
0:25:47 > 0:25:50- 102.- Thank you very much.
0:25:50 > 0:25:52My ears are popping.
0:26:04 > 0:26:07This is certainly a very special place,
0:26:07 > 0:26:13here at the base of the mast that rises to 1,776 feet.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16And a privileged few who have been able to visit here
0:26:16 > 0:26:18have added their signatures.
0:26:18 > 0:26:22Here's one from a survivor of 9/11.
0:26:22 > 0:26:25And, in tribute, I'll add mine too.
0:26:41 > 0:26:46A century ago, when New York City had already astonished the world
0:26:46 > 0:26:48with its skyscrapers,
0:26:48 > 0:26:52it proclaimed its greatness with an iconic gateway.
0:26:52 > 0:26:55A railroad temple - Grand Central Terminal.
0:26:55 > 0:26:59In the attack on the city on 9/11,
0:26:59 > 0:27:02the terrorists symbolically mutilated the city
0:27:02 > 0:27:05by destroying its two tallest buildings
0:27:05 > 0:27:08as they murdered thousands of its citizens.
0:27:08 > 0:27:13Here, rising 1,776 feet above their memorial,
0:27:13 > 0:27:17the city has defiantly created and even taller building
0:27:17 > 0:27:22while below it announces its comeback with a transport hub -
0:27:22 > 0:27:25a latter-day railway cathedral.
0:27:40 > 0:27:44Next time, I'll see how tourists following my guide book
0:27:44 > 0:27:47glimpsed soaring views.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49People thought they were just flying with the birds
0:27:49 > 0:27:51walking across this bridge.
0:27:51 > 0:27:55I'll discover how America's biggest infrastructure project
0:27:55 > 0:27:58is reshaping both Manhattan and Long Island.
0:27:58 > 0:28:01- You were literally blasting. - We were literally blasting.- Wow.
0:28:01 > 0:28:05- And their Martinis didn't even shake.- No, definitely not.
0:28:05 > 0:28:07James Bond would have liked it!
0:28:07 > 0:28:12And I'll relive the fun and the decadence of the Roaring Twenties.
0:28:12 > 0:28:15CHARLESTON DANCE MUSIC