0:00:05 > 0:00:07I have crossed the Atlantic to ride the railroads of America
0:00:07 > 0:00:10with a new travelling companion.
0:00:10 > 0:00:15Published in 1879, my Appletons' General Guide
0:00:15 > 0:00:22will steer me to everything that's novel, beautiful,
0:00:22 > 0:00:31memorable or curious in the United States.
0:00:31 > 0:00:35As I cross the continent, I'll discover
0:00:35 > 0:00:39America's gilded age, when powerful tycoons launched
0:00:39 > 0:00:42a railway boom that tied the nation together and carved
0:00:42 > 0:00:52out its future as a superpower.
0:01:08 > 0:01:12I'm continuing my American adventure through New York State where,
0:01:12 > 0:01:17in Appleton's time, an industrial revolution was under way.
0:01:17 > 0:01:21I began in Manhattan and I'll head north
0:01:21 > 0:01:23towards Poughkeepsie and the state capital,
0:01:23 > 0:01:26Albany.
0:01:26 > 0:01:29I'll turn west to the Great Lakes, taking in Rochester
0:01:29 > 0:01:31and Buffalo, and finish at the tourist hotspot
0:01:31 > 0:01:41of Niagara Falls.
0:01:43 > 0:01:49My journey through New York State continues on Long Island -
0:01:49 > 0:01:53180 miles long, with a population of 8 million.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57It hosts two of New York City's boroughs, Brooklyn and
0:01:57 > 0:02:01Queens.
0:02:01 > 0:02:04It was often the first sighting of the United States for immigrants
0:02:04 > 0:02:09and, even today, air passengers survey its streets and houses
0:02:09 > 0:02:10before landing at Kennedy Airport.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13The Long Island Railroad daily ferries its commuters to the city
0:02:13 > 0:02:19and, at weekends, carries the city's holiday-makers to its beaches.
0:02:27 > 0:02:31On today's leg, I'll explore New York's
0:02:31 > 0:02:35eastern boroughs, Brooklyn and Queens, before heading
0:02:35 > 0:02:38north-east on the Long Island Railroad to the Gold
0:02:38 > 0:02:42Coast, and then south-east to the Hamptons.
0:02:42 > 0:02:45My final stop will be the island's most easterly tip,
0:02:45 > 0:02:49Montauk.
0:02:49 > 0:02:51Along the way, I'll see how tourists following my guidebook
0:02:51 > 0:02:54enjoyed heady views.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57People felt like they were flying with the birds, walking
0:02:57 > 0:03:00across this bridge.
0:03:00 > 0:03:03I'll discover how America's biggest infrastructure project is reshaping
0:03:03 > 0:03:06both Manhattan and Long Island.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08You were literally blasting.
0:03:08 > 0:03:09We were literally blasting.
0:03:09 > 0:03:10Wow.
0:03:10 > 0:03:12And their martinis didn't even shake.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15No, not like James Bond.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18And I'll relive the fun and decadence of the roaring '20s.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22Brooklyn, says Appletons', is the third-largest city
0:03:36 > 0:03:41Brooklyn, says Appletons', is the third-largest city
0:03:41 > 0:03:44in the United States.
0:03:44 > 0:03:46That's before it was absorbed into New York to become one
0:03:46 > 0:03:48of the conurbation's five boroughs.
0:03:48 > 0:03:52But, if it were independent and on its own today,
0:03:52 > 0:03:55it would still rank alongside all but the very largest
0:03:55 > 0:03:59cities on earth.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02By the 1860s, Brooklyn's population had swollen,
0:04:02 > 0:04:06with huge numbers of immigrants from Europe.
0:04:06 > 0:04:11Industry and commerce were booming.
0:04:11 > 0:04:13Around a third of Brooklyn's working population
0:04:13 > 0:04:16commuted across the East River to Manhattan, and ferries
0:04:16 > 0:04:19were reaching capacity.
0:04:19 > 0:04:23A long-term solution was needed and, in 1865, plans were put
0:04:23 > 0:04:29forward to build a permanent link between the two cities.
0:04:33 > 0:04:35The Brooklyn Bridge was under construction when my Appletons'
0:04:35 > 0:04:39was published and it remarks that the massive towers
0:04:39 > 0:04:43and ponderous cables are conspicuous objects.
0:04:43 > 0:04:47The distance across the river is nearly 1600 feet,
0:04:47 > 0:04:50affording space for two railroad tracks, four
0:04:50 > 0:04:53wagonways and two footpaths.
0:04:53 > 0:04:55With those colossal towers and being the
0:04:55 > 0:04:58first steel suspension bridge in the world,
0:04:58 > 0:05:03it was soon known as the eighth wonder of the world.
0:05:04 > 0:05:09It's easy to see why.
0:05:09 > 0:05:11The bridge, with its elegant steel cabling, suspended
0:05:11 > 0:05:14against the 19th-century skyline, was an historic engineering
0:05:14 > 0:05:19achievement.
0:05:19 > 0:05:27I am meeting Brooklyn-born historian and tour guide Seth
0:05:27 > 0:05:28Kamil under the now iconic structure.
0:05:28 > 0:05:29Hello, Seth.
0:05:29 > 0:05:31Michael, good to see you.
0:05:31 > 0:05:33Welcome to Brooklyn.
0:05:33 > 0:05:35Thank you very much, and what a very beautiful bridge.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37What were the challenges in building it?
0:05:37 > 0:05:39There were financial challenges, the fact the bridge cost more
0:05:39 > 0:05:41than $12 million.
0:05:41 > 0:05:44Technically, no one had ever built a suspension bridge with a centre
0:05:44 > 0:05:46span of 1600 feet.
0:05:46 > 0:05:48This is doubling anything that had come
0:05:48 > 0:05:51before it.
0:05:51 > 0:05:52It's built, I think, with granite towers.
0:05:52 > 0:05:55How does it work beneath the water?
0:05:55 > 0:05:58Beneath the water are wooden caissons, which are extremely large
0:05:58 > 0:06:03boxes flipped upside down, about 100 feet by roughly 70 feet,
0:06:03 > 0:06:05floated into place, sunk into the sand.
0:06:05 > 0:06:09They pumped out the air, sent workers inside to dig
0:06:09 > 0:06:13from inside to lower them while they build the granite towers
0:06:13 > 0:06:17upwards at the same time.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20A workforce of 600 built the bridge over 14 years,
0:06:20 > 0:06:26starting in 1869.
0:06:26 > 0:06:28The designer was John Augustus Roebling, a German
0:06:28 > 0:06:33immigrant living in Pennsylvania.
0:06:33 > 0:06:35Then 61 years old, he was a pioneer of suspension bridges.
0:06:35 > 0:06:40But, while he was surveying the site, Roebling's
0:06:40 > 0:06:46foot was crushed by a boat coming into dock.
0:06:46 > 0:06:49Tetanus set in and, three weeks later, he died.
0:06:49 > 0:06:54His son, Washington Roebling, took over the project
0:06:54 > 0:06:59and saw his father's bridge as far as he could go until he,
0:06:59 > 0:07:01too, was crippled in the process.
0:07:01 > 0:07:05With John dead and Washington crippled,
0:07:05 > 0:07:06who took over the work?
0:07:06 > 0:07:07Washington's wife Emily Lauren Roebling finishes
0:07:07 > 0:07:09the bridge.
0:07:09 > 0:07:11In those days, a woman.
0:07:11 > 0:07:13It's unbelievable.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16This is nearly 50 years before an American woman has
0:07:16 > 0:07:20the vote, and she begins by simply running messages from the office
0:07:20 > 0:07:23in Brooklyn Heights to the job site.
0:07:23 > 0:07:27But she is so intelligent and begins to understand the process so quickly
0:07:27 > 0:07:33that she is able to make decisions on her own.
0:07:33 > 0:07:35Construction was dangerous and two dozen workers lost
0:07:35 > 0:07:38their lives.
0:07:38 > 0:07:41But, on May the 24th, 1883, the great East River was spammed.
0:07:41 > 0:07:44The brilliant design and scale of this piece of engineering
0:07:44 > 0:07:50expressed America's growing self-confidence.
0:07:50 > 0:07:52It was spectacular.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55You had Emily Lauren Roebling leading the procession,
0:07:55 > 0:07:57the President of the United States, the mayors of Brooklyn and Manhattan
0:07:57 > 0:07:59meeting and shaking hands, a magnificent
0:07:59 > 0:08:00fireworks display at sundown...
0:08:00 > 0:08:09It was incredible, and memorable for decades.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13It was spectacular.
0:08:13 > 0:08:15The day it opened, 150,000 pedestrians and 1800 vehicles
0:08:15 > 0:08:17crossed the bridge.
0:08:17 > 0:08:18Within months, passengers on cable cars were
0:08:18 > 0:08:21crossing for a 5 cents fare.
0:08:21 > 0:08:23There were no aeroplanes, no tall buildings.
0:08:23 > 0:08:25People felt like they were just flying with the birds,
0:08:25 > 0:08:32walking across this bridge.
0:08:32 > 0:08:34It's been called the eighth wonder of the world.
0:08:34 > 0:08:35What do you say?
0:08:35 > 0:08:38I live here and I think it should be the first
0:08:38 > 0:08:40wonder of the world, but but I'll accept eight.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42wonder of the world, but I'll accept eight.
0:08:42 > 0:08:44The completion of the bridge and Brooklyn's rail links brought
0:08:44 > 0:08:48even more immigrants to the borough which,
0:08:48 > 0:08:54in 1898, had been incorporated into New York City.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57Immigrants from northern, eastern and southern Europe made up
0:08:57 > 0:09:01around a third of the newly amalgamated city.
0:09:01 > 0:09:04Italians were one of the largest groups to settle in Brooklyn,
0:09:04 > 0:09:07and their influence has left a lasting
0:09:07 > 0:09:14culinary mark that I'm keen to experience.
0:09:14 > 0:09:15Good evening, sir.
0:09:15 > 0:09:17How are you?
0:09:17 > 0:09:19I'm very well indeed. I was thinking of having a pizza.
0:09:19 > 0:09:20I think you mean a pie.
0:09:20 > 0:09:21A pie?
0:09:21 > 0:09:22Yes.
0:09:22 > 0:09:24OK.
0:09:24 > 0:09:26Can I have just a piece or two of pie?
0:09:26 > 0:09:27I think you mean a slice.
0:09:27 > 0:09:31A slice?
0:09:31 > 0:09:33Divided by a common language, eh?
0:09:33 > 0:09:34OK.
0:09:34 > 0:09:35I think I'll have a margarita pie.
0:09:35 > 0:09:36You mean a pizza.
0:09:36 > 0:09:37Do I?
0:09:37 > 0:09:38I give up!
0:09:38 > 0:09:40I'm kidding, it's a pie.
0:09:40 > 0:09:40Thank you.
0:09:40 > 0:09:41You're welcome.
0:09:41 > 0:09:52Coming right up.
0:09:53 > 0:10:02This slice of pie is infinitely superior to a piece of pizza.
0:10:08 > 0:10:11Today, I'm continuing my journey on the
0:10:11 > 0:10:13Long Island Railroad in the borough of Queens.
0:10:13 > 0:10:21Before tunnels were built to Manhattan Island in 1910,
0:10:21 > 0:10:23Queens was the terminus of the railroad and
0:10:23 > 0:10:24passengers crossed by ferry.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27After the first branch of the Long Island
0:10:27 > 0:10:30Railroad was opened in 1836, the mainly rural island was quickly
0:10:30 > 0:10:35developed with suburbs.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37Today, it's the busiest commuter railroad in America,
0:10:37 > 0:10:47with over 700 miles of track.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50It's also the site of an ambitious engineering project that
0:10:50 > 0:10:53will transform New York City's rail network.
0:10:53 > 0:10:55By one of the oddities of railroad history,
0:10:55 > 0:10:57many commuters who come from Long Island, which lies
0:10:57 > 0:11:04to the east of Manhattan, have to cross
0:11:04 > 0:11:09all the way across the island to almost the Westside,
0:11:09 > 0:11:10to Pennsylvania Central Station, and then, if their
0:11:10 > 0:11:13jobs are in the business district back on the Eastside,
0:11:13 > 0:11:17they have to make a subway journey, wasting time and money every day.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20The solution is to put a station on the east side of Manhattan,
0:11:20 > 0:11:22in fact, deep under Grand Central Terminal,
0:11:22 > 0:11:25but that project involves creating a new tunnel
0:11:25 > 0:11:28with eight tracks and building 11 miles
0:11:28 > 0:11:36of tunnel and absolutely turning the system upside down.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39It's said to be the biggest project in the United
0:11:39 > 0:11:42States right now.
0:11:42 > 0:11:44Doctor Michael Kyriacou is the chief engineer
0:11:44 > 0:11:45at the Metropolitan Transportation
0:11:45 > 0:11:47Authority and the man responsible for delivering the Eastside Access
0:11:47 > 0:11:54scheme.
0:11:54 > 0:11:56Michael, you are in charge of the biggest construction project
0:11:56 > 0:11:57in the United States today.
0:11:57 > 0:11:59What do you feel about that?
0:11:59 > 0:12:04Well, humbled by the experience and lucky to be able to do that.
0:12:04 > 0:12:06Michael is taking me to survey the ongoing works.
0:12:06 > 0:12:16Hello. You must be Chris.
0:12:19 > 0:12:20Yes, I am. How are you?
0:12:20 > 0:12:22I'm Michael. Good to see you.
0:12:22 > 0:12:27Pleasure to meet you.
0:12:27 > 0:12:29Right here, basically, tunnel D will come
0:12:29 > 0:12:31up to the right.
0:12:31 > 0:12:34B-C will be built right here in the middle.
0:12:34 > 0:12:37So, from GCT, you'll come out the ground right
0:12:37 > 0:12:40here, and then you can see tunnel A will be on north side.
0:12:40 > 0:12:44Four new tunnels will run from Queens on Long
0:12:44 > 0:12:47Island straight to New York's Railway cathedral, Grand Central
0:12:47 > 0:12:53Terminal, opening access to the Eastside of Manhattan.
0:12:53 > 0:12:57What benefit will commuters see when it's all over?
0:12:57 > 0:13:03The commuters from Long Island will see a reduction in travel time
0:13:03 > 0:13:06of up to 40 minutes a day, and they will have a direct
0:13:06 > 0:13:10shot without having to transfer into Grand Central.
0:13:10 > 0:13:14The great thing about the construction of the terminal
0:13:14 > 0:13:17is that no one knew we were there.
0:13:17 > 0:13:20We've blasted away these huge caverns and people upstairs
0:13:20 > 0:13:22were sipping wine in the restaurant
0:13:22 > 0:13:24and they never knew we were down there.
0:13:24 > 0:13:25You were literally blasting?
0:13:25 > 0:13:26We were literally blasting.
0:13:26 > 0:13:28Wow.
0:13:28 > 0:13:38And their martinis didn't even shake.
0:13:43 > 0:13:45No, not that James Bond would've liked it!
0:13:45 > 0:13:48The extension is due to open in 2023 and is projected to cost
0:13:48 > 0:13:49around $10 billion.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51It will transform the working lives of
0:13:51 > 0:13:52millions of New York commuters.
0:13:52 > 0:13:54It's another example of how the city's
0:13:54 > 0:13:55infrastructure is being revitalised after 9/11.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58It represents a kind of renaissance for New York, doesn't it?
0:13:58 > 0:13:59Yes, it does.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01Without public transport, a city like New York,
0:14:01 > 0:14:03cities like London cannot exist.
0:14:03 > 0:14:05And that's something that...
0:14:05 > 0:14:07I've been in London, I've seen the work being done there.
0:14:07 > 0:14:12We're trying to keep up with you guys.
0:14:12 > 0:14:16That's a very flattering way of putting it.
0:14:16 > 0:14:26I'm impressed by this.
0:14:27 > 0:14:33During the 19th century, trains increased the prosperity
0:14:33 > 0:14:34of Long Island's workers, shuffling them daily
0:14:34 > 0:14:39to and from New York City, but the railroads also
0:14:39 > 0:14:43created fortunes beyond the comprehension of ordinary commuters.
0:14:43 > 0:14:46You might think that the Gold Coast is in Australia, but there's one
0:14:46 > 0:14:50here on Long Island.
0:14:50 > 0:14:54Of course, not where gold was discovered, but where enormous
0:14:54 > 0:14:57wealth was displayed, flaunted, squandered.
0:14:57 > 0:15:06From Queens, it's a journey of just over an hour north-east to Cold
0:15:06 > 0:15:13Spring Harbor, the nearest station to Oheka Castle.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24Ha-ha!
0:15:24 > 0:15:32This is Oheka Castle.
0:15:32 > 0:15:34Unbelievably big, for what was once a private residence,
0:15:34 > 0:15:36it has the look of a French chateaux, but it's
0:15:36 > 0:15:39built on the foundations of a solid American fortune.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42Completed in 1919 and costing the equivalent of $110
0:15:42 > 0:15:47million in today's money, the castle was the private home
0:15:47 > 0:15:52of banker and rail magnate Otto Kahn.
0:15:52 > 0:16:04At the time, it was the second largest residence
0:16:04 > 0:16:08Today, Oheka castle is a hotel and this historian Eunice is taking
0:16:08 > 0:16:28me on a tour of these once exclusive grounds.
0:16:28 > 0:16:32Which names were involved here? once exclusive grounds.
0:16:32 > 0:16:35JP Morgan, Vanderbilt, Roosevelt, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor,
0:16:35 > 0:16:37the Prince of Wales were all coming here
0:16:37 > 0:16:40for the polo season and stay in their summers on Long Island.
0:16:40 > 0:16:46When I think about this era and this
0:16:46 > 0:16:49place, my thoughts are dominated by the parties.
0:16:49 > 0:16:51Sure, F Scott Fitzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby
0:16:51 > 0:16:54may have taken parties to a new level, but it really
0:16:54 > 0:16:56was not an exaggeration of what was going on
0:16:56 > 0:16:57here at the time.
0:16:57 > 0:16:59I imagine the ponds here are probably clogged
0:16:59 > 0:17:06with champagne corks.
0:17:06 > 0:17:08Like many tycoons of the era, Kahn made much of his fortune
0:17:08 > 0:17:12in the railroads.
0:17:12 > 0:17:15This is Otto Kahn.
0:17:15 > 0:17:18Otto Kahn was also known as the figure for Mr Monopoly.
0:17:18 > 0:17:19Really?
0:17:19 > 0:17:20Correct.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23How did he make his money in the railroads?
0:17:23 > 0:17:26He teamed up with great railroads giants of the time and he actually
0:17:26 > 0:17:30would reorganise the facilities and make
0:17:30 > 0:17:31them more streamlined and more profitable.
0:17:31 > 0:17:34Was he a big party giver?
0:17:34 > 0:17:36He was known for throwing parties.
0:17:36 > 0:17:39There were men like Charlie Chaplin here, Douglas Fairbanks,
0:17:39 > 0:17:43many industrialists of the day, so it was a home always filled.
0:17:43 > 0:17:47What happened to be home after he died?
0:17:47 > 0:17:50After Otto Kahn passed away in the 30s, his wife sold it
0:17:50 > 0:17:52to the New York department of sanitation, which
0:17:52 > 0:17:55renamed it Sanitia, and it became the weekend retreat and retirement
0:17:55 > 0:18:01home for the New York City garbage men.
0:18:01 > 0:18:04So, from riches to rags.
0:18:04 > 0:18:09Correct.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12Sensing the ghosts of the bankers and tycoons and the stars of stage
0:18:12 > 0:18:18and screen, I decide to relive for a moment the heady decadence
0:18:18 > 0:18:21of those years by taking to the dance floor.
0:18:21 > 0:18:22Hello, Nancy.
0:18:22 > 0:18:24Hello, Michael.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27You look divine.
0:18:27 > 0:18:33Thank you very much.
0:18:33 > 0:18:35You are very handsome.
0:18:35 > 0:18:38What a beautiful dress.
0:18:38 > 0:18:38Thank you.
0:18:38 > 0:18:40How does one do the Charleston?
0:18:40 > 0:18:42OK, so, it's a very easy dance.
0:18:42 > 0:18:44Forward on the left, and tap front with the right.
0:18:44 > 0:18:45Right, right, left.
0:18:45 > 0:18:47And swing the arms left, forward, right, forward.
0:18:47 > 0:18:49I think you've got it.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51Cue music.
0:18:51 > 0:19:01CHARLESTON MUSIC PLAYS.
0:19:02 > 0:19:04CHARLESTON MUSIC PLAYS.
0:19:04 > 0:19:06It is a little fast.
0:19:06 > 0:19:08Named after the city of Charleston in South
0:19:08 > 0:19:10Carolina, the dance became one of the musical sensations
0:19:10 > 0:19:20of the roaring 20s.
0:19:21 > 0:19:24The mansions of the north once echoed to the Charleston
0:19:24 > 0:19:34and popping champagne corks.
0:19:40 > 0:19:49But, for me, the party is over.
0:19:49 > 0:19:56On many a bright morning like this, Otto Kahn
0:19:56 > 0:19:58must have surveyed his beautiful gardens and thought,
0:19:58 > 0:20:02all that hard work amalgamating railroads, here I stand up
0:20:02 > 0:20:05on the hill that I made, in the castle that I built,
0:20:05 > 0:20:12and it was all worthwhile.
0:20:12 > 0:20:16The wealthy tycoons of New York City are no longer drawn
0:20:16 > 0:20:22to the north shore of Long Island.
0:20:22 > 0:20:25And, while the elites of the past made their money in industry
0:20:25 > 0:20:26and infrastructure, their counterparts
0:20:26 > 0:20:30today are the so-called masters of the universe,
0:20:30 > 0:20:32the bankers, traders and hedge fund managers who prowl
0:20:32 > 0:20:36the canyons of Wall Street.
0:20:36 > 0:20:39Their summer retreat lies some 75 miles
0:20:39 > 0:20:43south-east in the Hamptons.
0:20:43 > 0:20:45East Hampton, says Appletons', is the
0:20:45 > 0:20:50quietest of all quiet towns, with quaint, old houses.
0:20:50 > 0:20:54Its old world charm is seduced many a broker,
0:20:54 > 0:20:57derivatives trader and venture capitalist.
0:20:57 > 0:21:01I may not meet many of them on the Long Island Railroad,
0:21:01 > 0:21:04but their helicopters are much in evidence.
0:21:04 > 0:21:08East Hampton and its sister village of South Hampton was almost entirely
0:21:08 > 0:21:11undeveloped until the arrival of the railroad in 1895.
0:21:11 > 0:21:16Today, the permanent population of the count is around
0:21:16 > 0:21:2321,000 but, in summer, that swells to over 70,000.
0:21:23 > 0:21:31East Hampton is extraordinarily clean and tidy, very
0:21:31 > 0:21:36well-kept, manicured, you might say.
0:21:36 > 0:21:40I'm meeting Diana from the Ladies Village Improvement Society,
0:21:40 > 0:21:45founded in 1895.
0:21:45 > 0:21:47She's invited me to one of the thrift stores,
0:21:47 > 0:21:51where they raise funds for the preservation of the town.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53What brought about the foundation of the Ladies Village
0:21:53 > 0:21:55Improvement Society?
0:21:55 > 0:21:57One of the issues in the 1890s was unpaved
0:21:57 > 0:22:00streets.
0:22:00 > 0:22:04There was a lot of dust any time a cart or the early automobiles
0:22:04 > 0:22:07would drive by.
0:22:07 > 0:22:12The LVIS felt their mission was to sprinkle the street and keep
0:22:12 > 0:22:13the dust down.
0:22:13 > 0:22:14Once that was done, they just started
0:22:14 > 0:22:16beautifying east Hampton.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19Today, as well as preserving East Hampton's
0:22:19 > 0:22:24history, the LVIS funds student scholarships,
0:22:24 > 0:22:27including one for a woman over 25 years old returning
0:22:27 > 0:22:30to higher education.
0:22:30 > 0:22:32What it's like to live in East Hampton?
0:22:32 > 0:22:35Well, it has a bit of a roller-coaster feel,
0:22:35 > 0:22:38because things are nonstop between June and September,
0:22:38 > 0:22:41but then it quietens down.
0:22:41 > 0:22:45I guess people outside might have the impression of East Hampton
0:22:45 > 0:22:47has been populated with the wolves of Wall Street.
0:22:47 > 0:22:48Right.
0:22:48 > 0:22:49Would that be inaccurate?
0:22:49 > 0:22:51No.
0:22:51 > 0:22:53It's not inaccurate.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56I just feel that the Women's Village Improvement Society
0:22:56 > 0:23:00is about as far from the wolves of Wall Street as I can imagine.
0:23:00 > 0:23:04I think there is definitely a sense of
0:23:04 > 0:23:08trying to maintain the historical character and the natural beauty,
0:23:08 > 0:23:12and the LVIS is one of those groups who just want to keep it in the way
0:23:12 > 0:23:20it is, and that's why they work so hard.
0:23:38 > 0:23:4215 miles and two stops further east from the pristine Hamptons,
0:23:42 > 0:23:45the Montauk branch of the Long Island
0:23:45 > 0:23:48Railroad reaches its terminus.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51Montauk Point, Appletons' tells me, is the eastern extremity of Long
0:23:51 > 0:23:54Island.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57On it is a lighthouse with a powerful revolving light.
0:23:57 > 0:24:01The village of Montauk, which clings limpet like to be tip
0:24:01 > 0:24:06of Long Island, is popularly nicknamed "The End".
0:24:06 > 0:24:11We've reached the end of the line and the end of the island.
0:24:12 > 0:24:16We've reached the end of the line and the end of the island.
0:24:16 > 0:24:18There is nothing beyond.
0:24:18 > 0:24:22And so we crawl gently to a halt.
0:24:22 > 0:24:27Montauk is a fishing and surfing town.
0:24:27 > 0:24:29Like the Hamptons, it's a popular weekend
0:24:29 > 0:24:34getaway, but it prides itself on being more rustic than chic.
0:24:34 > 0:24:37Its lighthouse, the first built in New
0:24:37 > 0:24:41York State, stands guard over treacherous waters.
0:24:41 > 0:24:45Henry Osmus, local historian and author,
0:24:45 > 0:24:47can explain its significance.
0:24:47 > 0:24:50Henry, such a beautiful lighthouse.
0:24:50 > 0:24:54What is its importance in history?
0:24:54 > 0:24:58Well, when it was built in 1796, the purpose of it was to guide ships
0:24:58 > 0:25:04safely from England and France to New York City.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07Prior to that being built, there had been no lighthouses
0:25:07 > 0:25:10on Long Island at all, so it became very difficult
0:25:10 > 0:25:11for ships navigating these waters.
0:25:11 > 0:25:14And so it came to the years of president George Washington
0:25:14 > 0:25:17and authorisation was passed to build the lighthouse.
0:25:17 > 0:25:19Did it do a good job?
0:25:19 > 0:25:20It did.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23Apparently the number of ships which had mishaps
0:25:23 > 0:25:27dropped dramatically, so this lighthouse did its job very well.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30For the many new arrivals, who hoped to settle in America,
0:25:30 > 0:25:32this light was their first glimpse of their new
0:25:32 > 0:25:34home.
0:25:34 > 0:25:38And, if one man's vision had prevailed, Montauk rather
0:25:38 > 0:25:40than New York City might have been where they
0:25:40 > 0:25:47first set foot in the New World.
0:25:47 > 0:25:49There was a gentleman named Austin Corbin,
0:25:49 > 0:25:53who was the president of the Long Island Railroad
0:25:53 > 0:25:59from the early 1880s until the mid-1890s.
0:25:59 > 0:26:02He had a dream of creating a port of entry in Montauk.
0:26:02 > 0:26:09It was going to be a docking place for transatlantic
0:26:09 > 0:26:11steamers, and they would continue the journey to New York
0:26:11 > 0:26:13by his railroad line and save about five or six hours
0:26:13 > 0:26:14in travel time.
0:26:14 > 0:26:17This idea sounded outlandish to some, but he extended his
0:26:17 > 0:26:19railroad to Montauk in December 1895, and the first
0:26:19 > 0:26:22passenger train officially rolled into Montauk on December 17th.
0:26:22 > 0:26:27But, only six months after that first
0:26:27 > 0:26:31train came into Montauk, Austin Corbin was dead,
0:26:31 > 0:26:34killed in a freak accident.
0:26:34 > 0:26:37Unfortunately, there was no one else with the drive and stamina
0:26:37 > 0:26:39that he had for this project.
0:26:39 > 0:26:42So, officially, by 1900, the idea was considered dead.
0:26:42 > 0:26:44And the dream?
0:26:44 > 0:26:51The dream went with him.
0:26:51 > 0:26:53Had Austin Corbin's plan succeeded, Montauk would have become one
0:26:53 > 0:26:57of the world's busiest ports.
0:26:57 > 0:26:59As it is, it's been left with extraordinary
0:26:59 > 0:27:04serenity.
0:27:04 > 0:27:09Americans have often thought of themselves as exceptional.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12The city on the hill, a new Jerusalem, a country
0:27:12 > 0:27:16with a manifest destiny.
0:27:16 > 0:27:20The perfect natural harbour of New York, with the East River
0:27:20 > 0:27:24protectively flanked by Brooklyn, must have seemed
0:27:24 > 0:27:28like a gift from God.
0:27:28 > 0:27:30And following that logic the beauty of Long Island's
0:27:30 > 0:27:33surf and beaches would merely confirm the limitless blessings
0:27:33 > 0:27:36heaped upon this land and its people.
0:27:36 > 0:27:46Next time, I'm spooked by a famous American ghost story.
0:27:48 > 0:27:51Next time, I'm spooked by a famous American ghost story.
0:27:51 > 0:28:01This sequestered glen has long been known by the name of Sleepy Hollow.
0:28:01 > 0:28:05I hear a new take on America's greatest turncoat.
0:28:05 > 0:28:07You think that Benedict Arnold was actually an American
0:28:07 > 0:28:09revolutionary hero?
0:28:09 > 0:28:12He was, absolutely.
0:28:12 > 0:28:14Before learning how the American Civil War divided
0:28:14 > 0:28:18the nation.
0:28:18 > 0:28:21Not only is it father against son and brother against brother,
0:28:21 > 0:28:27but it's classmate against classmate.