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.
0:00:12 > 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 > 0:00:22beautiful...
0:00:22 > 0:00:23memorable
0:00:23 > 0:00:26or curious in the United States.
0:00:26 > 0:00:27- ALL:- Amen!
0:00:29 > 0:00:33As I cross the continent, I'll discover America's Gilded Age
0:00:33 > 0:00:38when powerful tycoons launched a railway boom
0:00:38 > 0:00:40that tied the nation together
0:00:40 > 0:00:43and carved out its future as a superpower.
0:01:09 > 0:01:13I'm following a recommended Appletons' route,
0:01:13 > 0:01:18north along the magnificent valley of the Hudson River.
0:01:18 > 0:01:19HORN BLARES
0:01:22 > 0:01:27Today I want to discover how tourism, art, culture,
0:01:27 > 0:01:30learning, even a sense of Americanness,
0:01:30 > 0:01:32spread northwards
0:01:32 > 0:01:35along, of course, with the railroads.
0:01:48 > 0:01:50I began my journey in New York City
0:01:50 > 0:01:53and on its surrounding commuter railroads.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57Now I'll continue up the Hudson River to Poughkeepsie
0:01:57 > 0:02:00and the New York State capital, Albany.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03From there, I'll turn west to the Great Lakes,
0:02:03 > 0:02:06taking in Rochester and Buffalo
0:02:06 > 0:02:10and I'll finish my journey on the Canadian border at Niagara Falls.
0:02:14 > 0:02:16This leg of my journey begins
0:02:16 > 0:02:18at Garrison, New York
0:02:18 > 0:02:20from where I'll hug the banks
0:02:20 > 0:02:22of the river, north to Poughkeepsie.
0:02:22 > 0:02:24Next, I'll head west into the
0:02:24 > 0:02:27beautiful Catskill Mountains -
0:02:27 > 0:02:28Catnip for tourists
0:02:28 > 0:02:30at the time of my guidebook.
0:02:30 > 0:02:32I'll finish my journey in the
0:02:32 > 0:02:34capital of New York State, Albany.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42'Along the way I'll take a different sort of line.'
0:02:42 > 0:02:45Ah! Whoa!
0:02:45 > 0:02:48Agh! No!
0:02:48 > 0:02:51'And enjoy beautiful mountain scenery
0:02:51 > 0:02:54'from an American iron horse...'
0:02:54 > 0:02:56- Wow.- Take it west, little Tom.
0:02:56 > 0:02:58HORN BLARES
0:02:59 > 0:03:03'..before tapping into Albany's boozy past.'
0:03:03 > 0:03:04Whey!
0:03:04 > 0:03:06Wow, that is strong.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08- Cheers.- Cheers.
0:03:20 > 0:03:23I shall be leaving this train at Poughkeepsie.
0:03:23 > 0:03:25Appletons' tells me that it's the largest city
0:03:25 > 0:03:28between New York and Albany.
0:03:28 > 0:03:34"It has no fewer than eight important educational institutions,
0:03:34 > 0:03:37"including Vassar College - one of the leading female colleges
0:03:37 > 0:03:39"in the world."
0:03:39 > 0:03:43How interesting that from the middle of the 19th century,
0:03:43 > 0:03:47American women could enjoy higher education
0:03:47 > 0:03:48of exceptional quality.
0:04:04 > 0:04:08Founded less than 20 years before my guidebook was published,
0:04:08 > 0:04:11Vassar College had an unlikely benefactor.
0:04:12 > 0:04:16English-born Matthew Vassar had no formal education.
0:04:16 > 0:04:20He'd made his fortune from beer, with his brewery, like many others,
0:04:20 > 0:04:23thriving on the banks of the Hudson.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27With no heirs, Vassar decided to immortalise his name
0:04:27 > 0:04:32with an institution and boldly founded a university for women
0:04:32 > 0:04:35to rival the men's Ivy League colleges.
0:04:35 > 0:04:39Vassar College counts Meryl Streep, Jane Fonda
0:04:39 > 0:04:43and Jackie Kennedy Onassis amongst its alumni.
0:04:43 > 0:04:47Even at the time of my Appletons', Vassar was home to some big names.
0:04:47 > 0:04:49In the observatory named after Maria Mitchell,
0:04:49 > 0:04:53I'm meeting astronomy professor Debbie Elmgreen.
0:04:53 > 0:04:55- Hello, Debbie.- Hiya, Michael.
0:04:55 > 0:04:56Good to see you.
0:04:56 > 0:05:00I just wonder, how quickly did Vassar have an observatory?
0:05:00 > 0:05:03It was the first building on campus.
0:05:03 > 0:05:05That's extraordinary. Why was that so?
0:05:05 > 0:05:08Matthew Vassar had a vision that he wanted women to be educated
0:05:08 > 0:05:09just as men were.
0:05:09 > 0:05:13And 20 years earlier, Maria Mitchell had been awarded a gold medal
0:05:13 > 0:05:16from the King of Denmark for discovering a comet through
0:05:16 > 0:05:18a telescope and that made a worldwide impact,
0:05:18 > 0:05:20so everyone knew about her.
0:05:20 > 0:05:22She was America's first woman astronomer.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25And so he lured her to Vassar to be one of the first professors
0:05:25 > 0:05:28and built the first observatory for her.
0:05:28 > 0:05:30And what was she like as a teacher of her students?
0:05:30 > 0:05:33She was famous for getting students up beyond their curfew
0:05:33 > 0:05:36and getting them up in the middle of the night to observe an object.
0:05:36 > 0:05:38The only problem is that Poughkeepsie skies
0:05:38 > 0:05:40are not research grade skies.
0:05:40 > 0:05:41Because you have too much light.
0:05:41 > 0:05:45Because we have too much light and too unstable an atmosphere.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48Did Maria Mitchell take her students further afield?
0:05:48 > 0:05:53She had two famous expeditions cross-country in the late 1800s.
0:05:53 > 0:05:57So 1869, 1878, she took a handful of girls by train
0:05:57 > 0:06:00to see total solar eclipses.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03And this was obviously very pioneering.
0:06:03 > 0:06:06She went to one in Iowa and another in Denver.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09Poughkeepsie, New York to Denver, Colorado is quite a long train ride.
0:06:09 > 0:06:10Couple of thousand miles, yeah.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13Here were these young women who were in the field
0:06:13 > 0:06:17with their long dresses with chronometers measuring the eclipse.
0:06:17 > 0:06:19One of her mottos was,
0:06:19 > 0:06:21"Don't learn it from a book, learn it by doing it."
0:06:21 > 0:06:23And we still do that today.
0:06:27 > 0:06:31Heading back to the Hudson, I'm struck by the natural beauty
0:06:31 > 0:06:34of this impressive 300-mile-long river.
0:06:34 > 0:06:37and by the prowess of the engineers who
0:06:37 > 0:06:42in so many places along its course managed to span its awesome width.
0:06:43 > 0:06:47This is the Poughkeepsie-Highland Railroad Bridge.
0:06:47 > 0:06:51It was the first to link the eastern and western shores of the river.
0:06:51 > 0:06:56And thus, New York City to the growing American railroad network.
0:06:56 > 0:07:02Opened in 1888 with a span of close to 7,000 feet,
0:07:02 > 0:07:05it was a technological wonder of its time.
0:07:05 > 0:07:10It burnt down in 1974 and lay abandoned for nearly two decades.
0:07:11 > 0:07:15Then in 2009, it rose from the ashes
0:07:15 > 0:07:18as this delightful pedestrian walkway.
0:07:24 > 0:07:28It is the longest elevated walkway in the world.
0:07:28 > 0:07:30It was once the longest bridge in the world
0:07:30 > 0:07:33and the first to be built across the Hudson.
0:07:33 > 0:07:36Having come to know a little bit about this mighty river,
0:07:36 > 0:07:41I'm struck that I can, at a height of 212 feet,
0:07:41 > 0:07:45cross it using just the power of my own two feet.
0:07:50 > 0:07:54My route continues back across the Hudson at Poughkeepsie
0:07:54 > 0:07:57where I pick up my journey northwards to Rhinecliff.
0:08:02 > 0:08:04Thank you very much.
0:08:10 > 0:08:13At the time of my guidebook, many travellers would have been
0:08:13 > 0:08:15making their way west to the wilderness
0:08:15 > 0:08:17of the Catskill Mountains.
0:08:23 > 0:08:25"The Catskills," says Appletons',
0:08:25 > 0:08:30"are part of the great appellation mountain chain.
0:08:30 > 0:08:35"They follow the course of the Hudson River for 20 or 30 miles.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38"They present a multitude of picturesque objects
0:08:38 > 0:08:43"and Indian traditions single them out as the favourite dwelling place
0:08:43 > 0:08:44"of spirits."
0:08:44 > 0:08:48Thanks to that usual American combination of a tycoon
0:08:48 > 0:08:51and brilliant railroad engineers,
0:08:51 > 0:08:53we can enjoy them by train.
0:08:53 > 0:08:54All aboard!
0:08:58 > 0:09:00- Hello, Earl!- Hello there, Michael, how are you?
0:09:00 > 0:09:02- Good to see you. - Great to see you too.
0:09:02 > 0:09:03Thank you, Tom, we're ready to go.
0:09:03 > 0:09:04- OK!- Wow.
0:09:04 > 0:09:06Take it west, little Tom.
0:09:06 > 0:09:08HORN BLARES
0:09:08 > 0:09:11Today, small sections of the numerous lines
0:09:11 > 0:09:16that once crisscrossed the area run as heritage railways
0:09:16 > 0:09:20and are looked after by enthusiasts like Earl Pardini.
0:09:20 > 0:09:25Earl, my Appletons' tells me that the Catskills contain wild country
0:09:25 > 0:09:27and are a favourite place for artists.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30But I don't suppose that's why they built a railroad here. Why did they?
0:09:30 > 0:09:33Well, it's really interesting, Michael.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36The reason they charted this railroad originally
0:09:36 > 0:09:38was to tan hides.
0:09:38 > 0:09:43The Catskill Mountains were covered with hemlocks and red oak
0:09:43 > 0:09:47and the bark from those trees made tannic acid
0:09:47 > 0:09:48and, would you believe it,
0:09:48 > 0:09:50when you look around at the Catskills Mountains
0:09:50 > 0:09:52and you see all these trees here,
0:09:52 > 0:09:56around 1890 this place was clear-cut, clear-cut!
0:09:56 > 0:09:59When they cut down all these trees, they had all that lumber
0:09:59 > 0:10:03and that ended up going to New York to build the metropolitan area.
0:10:03 > 0:10:06By the time they got the railroad completed enough,
0:10:06 > 0:10:08they also developed chrome tanning
0:10:08 > 0:10:10and the whole tanning thing went away.
0:10:11 > 0:10:13By the mid-19th century,
0:10:13 > 0:10:17the abundant natural resources of this area gave rise to tourism.
0:10:19 > 0:10:22Of course, the cities at that time were all coal-fired
0:10:22 > 0:10:27and pollution was just horrible, especially in the summertime,
0:10:27 > 0:10:31so that people were looking for a place to go and, of course,
0:10:31 > 0:10:34we had this beautiful clean air here.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37As a young nation,
0:10:37 > 0:10:41the United States lacked very old buildings for tourists to visit.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44The dramatic landscapes of the Catskill Mountains
0:10:44 > 0:10:49and the Hudson River became America's castles and cathedrals.
0:10:51 > 0:10:54At its peak, which was around 1913,
0:10:54 > 0:10:59670,000 people rode this railroad in one summer.
0:10:59 > 0:11:00That is amazing.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03There were nine trains a day in each direction.
0:11:03 > 0:11:04Prior to the railroad,
0:11:04 > 0:11:06it was a half a day's journey to get from Kingston
0:11:06 > 0:11:09to where we are here right now,
0:11:09 > 0:11:12and all of a sudden with the railroad it became an hour's trip.
0:11:12 > 0:11:14HORN BLARES
0:11:14 > 0:11:17So, in the industrial era, thanks to the railways,
0:11:17 > 0:11:20this area wasn't quite the wild frontier.
0:11:25 > 0:11:27Having enjoyed the heritage railroad,
0:11:27 > 0:11:30I find that 21st-century tourists can appreciate
0:11:30 > 0:11:33the Catskill Mountains on a different sort of line.
0:11:35 > 0:11:38- Hello, are you Brad? - I am. Hi, Michael. Welcome.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41Very good to see you. You're going to get me harnessed up, are you?
0:11:41 > 0:11:44- I am. Are you ready for this? - Yes.- All right.
0:11:44 > 0:11:48- Largest head you've had here for a while.- It is actually.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51- Oh!- Is that too much?- No, no. Just, you know, just feels
0:11:51 > 0:11:53a little like a mediaeval torture. It's fine.
0:11:53 > 0:11:55- Do you feel OK? - I feel fine.- All right.
0:11:55 > 0:11:57Oh, my goodness. Oh!
0:11:57 > 0:11:59Don't make any mistakes.
0:11:59 > 0:12:00One, two, three.
0:12:00 > 0:12:04One, two, see, four.
0:12:04 > 0:12:06All right, now you are good to go.
0:12:06 > 0:12:08Thank you very much.
0:12:08 > 0:12:10I personally would always choose a railway line,
0:12:10 > 0:12:13but for a view that you wouldn't get from a train
0:12:13 > 0:12:15and that artists would have died for,
0:12:15 > 0:12:17it has to be the zip line.
0:12:17 > 0:12:18Ah!
0:12:18 > 0:12:20For this you need cat skills!
0:12:20 > 0:12:23Whoa!
0:12:23 > 0:12:25Argh!
0:12:25 > 0:12:26Argh!
0:12:26 > 0:12:30Aah! Whoa!
0:12:30 > 0:12:32Ah!
0:12:39 > 0:12:43I'm making my way back to the river at the village of Catskill -
0:12:43 > 0:12:46site of the Rip Van Winkle Bridge.
0:12:46 > 0:12:49Built with supplies brought upstream
0:12:49 > 0:12:52with the help of a temporary narrow gauge railway,
0:12:52 > 0:12:56it was named in 1935 after a character created by
0:12:56 > 0:13:00the great American writer Washington Irving.
0:13:00 > 0:13:01Irving declared,
0:13:01 > 0:13:03"Of all the scenery of the Hudson,
0:13:03 > 0:13:08"the Catskill Mountains have the most witching effect
0:13:08 > 0:13:09"on my boyish imagination."
0:13:12 > 0:13:17Overlooking the river, is the studio of an American artist
0:13:17 > 0:13:19who was mesmerised by this landscape -
0:13:19 > 0:13:21Thomas Cole.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24And there I meet art historian, Keith Lebel.
0:13:25 > 0:13:28So, this is a wonderfully preserved studio of Thomas Cole.
0:13:28 > 0:13:33How did he paint? How did he represent the Hudson Valley?
0:13:33 > 0:13:36Well, his first trip was spent hiking in the mountains sketching,
0:13:36 > 0:13:40really trying to capture a certain realism of the American landscape.
0:13:40 > 0:13:43When he went back to his studio to finish the paintings,
0:13:43 > 0:13:46he had completed a series of works to capture
0:13:46 > 0:13:49the natural beauty and grandeur of the environment.
0:13:49 > 0:13:52And this then was quite influential on others, I believe?
0:13:52 > 0:13:53Others followed in his wake?
0:13:53 > 0:13:57For sure. Cole is thought to be the founder
0:13:57 > 0:14:00of the Hudson River School which is a term that we use
0:14:00 > 0:14:04to associate people like Frederic Church and Jasper Cropsey,
0:14:04 > 0:14:08other artists who followed Cole's philosophy of nature
0:14:08 > 0:14:12and how to look at America and paint it truthfully.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15So when Cole begins in 1825,
0:14:15 > 0:14:18I suppose that it is a pretty virgin landscape,
0:14:18 > 0:14:22but then I've seen how much tourism there has been in this area,
0:14:22 > 0:14:26- I assume it begins to change as those others follow him.- For sure.
0:14:26 > 0:14:29Industry comes up the Hudson Valley,
0:14:29 > 0:14:32the trains bring corporations, tanneries,
0:14:32 > 0:14:35people are altering the landscape
0:14:35 > 0:14:37to make the most of the natural resources.
0:14:37 > 0:14:39And this was problematic for Cole.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42Cole himself made selective edits to his paintings
0:14:42 > 0:14:44at the beginning of his career.
0:14:44 > 0:14:49He would omit, very deliberately, signs of mankind.
0:14:49 > 0:14:52It was this romanticised landscape
0:14:52 > 0:14:57that late-19th century tourists had come to enjoy.
0:14:57 > 0:15:01Do you think the Hudson River School plays an important part
0:15:01 > 0:15:06- in establishing national culture, self-consciousness?- Yes, absolutely.
0:15:06 > 0:15:08People like Thomas Cole
0:15:08 > 0:15:11painted scenes from the wilderness
0:15:11 > 0:15:14to legitimate the American landscape.
0:15:14 > 0:15:18They would often paint views of natural land farms
0:15:18 > 0:15:21that became tourist destinations in their own right.
0:15:21 > 0:15:26It encouraged people to go out and see the landscape for themselves,
0:15:26 > 0:15:30and to experience everything the nation had to offer.
0:15:30 > 0:15:35Having experienced a little of this landscape for myself,
0:15:35 > 0:15:38I too am inspired.
0:15:38 > 0:15:40Excuse me disturbing you. Hello.
0:15:40 > 0:15:43- Hello.- My name's Michael.- Katruen. Nice to meet you.
0:15:43 > 0:15:45- Hello.- Helena. Nice to meet you.
0:15:45 > 0:15:48I find you in the shadow of Thomas Cole's house
0:15:48 > 0:15:52- and I find you painting.- Yes.- Are you inspired by Thomas Cole?- Yes.
0:15:52 > 0:15:54I think everyone that works at the site is,
0:15:54 > 0:15:56I think that's why we're drawn to it.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59The area's beautiful and he captured the American wilderness
0:15:59 > 0:16:01like no other painter has.
0:16:01 > 0:16:04- I believe you teach children how to paint?- Yes.- Yes.
0:16:04 > 0:16:07Well, you've got a large child with you now. LAUGHTER
0:16:07 > 0:16:11So how should I set about depicting that tall, straight tree there?
0:16:11 > 0:16:13Thomas Cole would first start with the drawing,
0:16:13 > 0:16:17and he would actually write notes in there to himself to remind himself of the details,
0:16:17 > 0:16:19and then he would go back home and paint.
0:16:19 > 0:16:22So, the important thing with working like Thomas Cole
0:16:22 > 0:16:24is that he always observed from nature.
0:16:24 > 0:16:28Is there something particularly American
0:16:28 > 0:16:30about Cole, about this landscape?
0:16:30 > 0:16:34I know for many people Thomas Cole's landscapes are particularly American
0:16:34 > 0:16:39because they have this wild aspect to them that you don't often see in European landscapes,
0:16:39 > 0:16:43because Europe was just much more developed than America was when Thomas Cole was working here.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46How do you think the Hudson River School is regarded in America today?
0:16:46 > 0:16:48Well, it's definitely widely regarded
0:16:48 > 0:16:51as the first great American art movement,
0:16:51 > 0:16:53so it has a lasting influence.
0:16:53 > 0:16:56I believe that Americans are in that point right now
0:16:56 > 0:17:01where they're pulling back to Thomas Cole and the Hudson River School of thought,
0:17:01 > 0:17:04cos it wasn't just painting,
0:17:04 > 0:17:07going back to that to try to form a stronger American identity
0:17:07 > 0:17:10when so many things are being challenged today.
0:17:10 > 0:17:14I'm never going to capture the beauty of this landscape.
0:17:16 > 0:17:21But, as I end my day, it's definitely made its impression.
0:17:32 > 0:17:33BIRDSONG
0:18:04 > 0:18:06I shall be leaving this train at Albany,
0:18:06 > 0:18:10which Appletons' tells me is the capital of New York State.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13Founded by the Dutch as a trading post in 1614,
0:18:13 > 0:18:16and next to Jamestown in Virginia,
0:18:16 > 0:18:19it was the earliest European settlement
0:18:19 > 0:18:22in the original 13 states.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25Its present name was given to it in 1664
0:18:25 > 0:18:31in honour of the Duke of York and Albany, who was later King James II.
0:18:31 > 0:18:35It's very often the case in the USA that a state's capital
0:18:35 > 0:18:38is not its biggest or best-known city,
0:18:38 > 0:18:42and Albany, New York, fits the pattern.
0:18:50 > 0:18:54Albany became capital in 1797,
0:18:54 > 0:18:58and industry boomed thanks to its prime location.
0:18:58 > 0:19:02The city also led the way in the new age of transport.
0:19:02 > 0:19:08In 1831, one of America's earliest railroads, the Mohawk and Hudson,
0:19:08 > 0:19:12ran north-west from Albany to Schenectady.
0:19:12 > 0:19:16One of the first steam locomotives ever built in the United States
0:19:16 > 0:19:18ran on this line, the Dewitt Clinton,
0:19:18 > 0:19:22named after an early governor of New York State.
0:19:22 > 0:19:26An industry which helped the affluence of the state was brewing.
0:19:26 > 0:19:31So I've arranged to have a beer with ale historian Craig Gravina.
0:19:31 > 0:19:33Albany has a great location.
0:19:33 > 0:19:37It's right on the Hudson River, it's not too far from the Mohawk River,
0:19:37 > 0:19:40which allows you to be able to get into the interior of the state.
0:19:40 > 0:19:44And it's really perfectly positioned in the Appalachian mountain range,
0:19:44 > 0:19:48where it's the only break in that mountain range to get to the Great Lakes.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51In the 1820s, they built the Erie Canal
0:19:51 > 0:19:55and it perfectly positions Albany to bring grain and hops
0:19:55 > 0:19:58from central and western New York into Albany.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00The beer is made in town
0:20:00 > 0:20:02and then it's shipped down to the port of New York
0:20:02 > 0:20:07and all over the world. We've seen that Albany ale by the 1850s
0:20:07 > 0:20:12is being shipped to Honolulu, Hawaii, we've seen it in Newfoundland,
0:20:12 > 0:20:15we've seen reference to it in Buenos Aires.
0:20:15 > 0:20:19So in the 19th century, if I'd asked for Albany ale, what would that have been?
0:20:19 > 0:20:22It would've been strong first off, and it would have been fairly light.
0:20:22 > 0:20:23It would've been mildly hopped,
0:20:23 > 0:20:28it would be the equivalent of what today might be considered an English light mild.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31- Well, I wouldn't mind tasting some of that. - I think we can make that happen.
0:20:31 > 0:20:37At this microbrewery, they're bringing back the glory days of Albany ale
0:20:37 > 0:20:40under master brewer Ryan Demler.
0:20:40 > 0:20:43So now is when we get into the fun and messy bit.
0:20:43 > 0:20:47If you would be so kind as to tap the cask for us so we could try it.
0:20:47 > 0:20:49And why is that messy?
0:20:49 > 0:20:51Erm, I mean, you know, if it's not well-vented,
0:20:51 > 0:20:54you might get a little bit of a beer shower.
0:20:54 > 0:20:56- You look ready to take a shower, it's a hot day.- Would you...
0:20:56 > 0:20:59- I'm standing back here.- Would you mind holding on to that?- Absolutely.
0:20:59 > 0:21:01OK.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08- Ready, everybody?- As we'll ever be.
0:21:11 > 0:21:13Hey!
0:21:13 > 0:21:15- All right.- Right! - TAPPING
0:21:15 > 0:21:19- Job done.- Perfect.- Thank you very much.- You're very welcome.
0:21:19 > 0:21:23Now, what do you call this lovely brew?
0:21:23 > 0:21:27We're calling this one, in honour of you coming down here, Albany Railroad Ale.
0:21:27 > 0:21:29- Thank you. Cheers.- Cheers.- Cheers.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37Wow! That is strong!
0:21:37 > 0:21:4180 years after my Appletons' was published,
0:21:41 > 0:21:43Albany was in decline.
0:21:43 > 0:21:48To galvanise the city the then state governor, Nelson Rockefeller,
0:21:48 > 0:21:50dramatically altered the skyline.
0:21:53 > 0:21:57This is his Empire State Plaza,
0:21:57 > 0:22:00a complex of state government buildings
0:22:00 > 0:22:02in the international style,
0:22:02 > 0:22:06inspired in part by the architecture of Brasilia.
0:22:06 > 0:22:11Costing 2 billion, it was designed on this massive scale
0:22:11 > 0:22:14to be appreciated from across the Hudson.
0:22:16 > 0:22:22Albany was also engaged in a grand building project at the time of my guidebook.
0:22:22 > 0:22:27Published in 1879, my Appletons' tells me that the new capital,
0:22:27 > 0:22:33"was began in 1871 and its exterior is nearly finished.
0:22:33 > 0:22:37"When completed it will be the largest and most splendid edifice in America
0:22:37 > 0:22:41"except for the federal capital at Washington.
0:22:41 > 0:22:43"It stands on the most elevated ground
0:22:43 > 0:22:47"and will be visible for many miles around."
0:22:47 > 0:22:51With this spectacular building, New York made a statement.
0:22:51 > 0:22:54You might call it assertive,
0:22:54 > 0:22:58some other envious states might have called it arrogant.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02In fact, Albany had good reason to be boastful.
0:23:02 > 0:23:06It was one of America's oldest and most prosperous cities,
0:23:06 > 0:23:09and in 1754 it had hosted a conference
0:23:09 > 0:23:14at which a proposal formally to unite the colonies was discussed.
0:23:14 > 0:23:19A president and Grand Council of Representatives was suggested,
0:23:19 > 0:23:24and each colony was to retain its own independent legislature.
0:23:24 > 0:23:26Although not implemented at the time,
0:23:26 > 0:23:29it's not unlike the political system
0:23:29 > 0:23:32that the United States of America would adopt.
0:23:34 > 0:23:38As a former politician, I look forward to comparing notes
0:23:38 > 0:23:43with New York State Senator Democrat Neil Breslin and his staff.
0:23:43 > 0:23:47- You haven't met Michael.- Hello. - Hi, I'm Kate. Nice to meet you.
0:23:47 > 0:23:49Good to see you, Kate.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52What... Are you in charge of constituents or legislation?
0:23:52 > 0:23:56- What's your bailiwick?- I am the Senator's community liaison.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59Now, Neil and I are a rather similar generation,
0:23:59 > 0:24:01does Neil get in there on Twitter and Facebook?
0:24:01 > 0:24:05Oh, yeah. He has a Twitter account, a Facebook account,
0:24:05 > 0:24:09- a LinkedIn account. - I'm proud of you.- Yeah.- Yeah. - LAUGHTER
0:24:09 > 0:24:11I never got my head round that stuff.
0:24:11 > 0:24:13- How do you do?- Good, Michael.
0:24:13 > 0:24:16So what kind of legislation's on the boil at the moment?
0:24:16 > 0:24:20You know, the Senator was responsible for insurance and healthcare and education.
0:24:20 > 0:24:23- And I think Neil has a background in insurance, don't you? - That's correct.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26So is that what you particularly enjoy legislating about?
0:24:26 > 0:24:29So I've been in insurance in the Senate for 18 years.
0:24:29 > 0:24:34- That's a bit awkward, because the Senator may know more than the staffer?- Yeah, he does.
0:24:34 > 0:24:36LAUGHTER
0:24:36 > 0:24:39- Or at least that's what Evan is saying now. - LAUGHTER
0:24:39 > 0:24:41- Appropriately.- Yes.
0:24:42 > 0:24:47Although my guidebook looked forward to this building soon being completed,
0:24:47 > 0:24:50in fact, it would take a further 20 years.
0:24:50 > 0:24:56It was opened in 1899 by Theodore Roosevelt, then the state governor.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01The lavish decoration in the Senate Chamber
0:25:01 > 0:25:04is perhaps a clue as to why it took so long.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10Now something that rather puzzles me, cos I used to be in your business as well,
0:25:10 > 0:25:14for European viewers it may be a bit difficult to understand,
0:25:14 > 0:25:17what do the states do and what does the federal government do?
0:25:17 > 0:25:21I think it's best described by saying each of the 50 states
0:25:21 > 0:25:25does what they think is best for their state.
0:25:25 > 0:25:28And the federal government generally leaves them alone,
0:25:28 > 0:25:31unless there's some compelling national interest
0:25:31 > 0:25:33that allows the federal government to act.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37With New York State, you have New York City, upstate,
0:25:37 > 0:25:41we're a lot different than other states in terms of our philosophy,
0:25:41 > 0:25:42we're much more liberal.
0:25:42 > 0:25:47So we can have laws passed that reflect the population.
0:25:47 > 0:25:49And I think a good example of that
0:25:49 > 0:25:52is marriage equality passed in New York State.
0:25:52 > 0:25:55- You were in the vanguard on marriage equality, were you?- That's correct.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58This is a magnificent building which I found very striking,
0:25:58 > 0:26:03how does it feel to you coming to work day by day in this grand place?
0:26:03 > 0:26:06Every day, when I walk in here, it's a monumental day.
0:26:06 > 0:26:09I look around and I go, "My gosh!
0:26:09 > 0:26:12"This is a nice place to be in and a nice place to work."
0:26:12 > 0:26:15And it's nice to bring my grandchildren in here to see it
0:26:15 > 0:26:18- and they view it as a castle. - LAUGHTER
0:26:18 > 0:26:20It does represent the might of New York.
0:26:20 > 0:26:24- I mean, New York just is a very important and powerful state, isn't it?- Right.
0:26:24 > 0:26:28I still believe it's the commercial centre of the world
0:26:28 > 0:26:30and one of the most important states,
0:26:30 > 0:26:31and, if it was a country,
0:26:31 > 0:26:33one of the most important countries in the world.
0:26:39 > 0:26:43That particularly American political, economic
0:26:43 > 0:26:47and cultural power flowed down the Hudson,
0:26:47 > 0:26:49through the Empire State
0:26:49 > 0:26:51and across the world.
0:26:51 > 0:26:56The Hudson River was named after an Englishman
0:26:56 > 0:26:58who was working for the Dutch.
0:26:58 > 0:27:03And New York and Albany draw their names from a British prince,
0:27:03 > 0:27:09yet the Hudson has played a vital role in defining America,
0:27:09 > 0:27:11since the moment that revolutionaries
0:27:11 > 0:27:15prevented the Royal Navy from conquering it.
0:27:15 > 0:27:16In that riverscape,
0:27:16 > 0:27:21which my guidebook regards as superior to any in Europe,
0:27:21 > 0:27:28writers and painters developed a distinctive American style.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31And out of the Hudson's waters and hills
0:27:31 > 0:27:37there grew patriotism, national consciousness and self-assurance.
0:27:46 > 0:27:51Next time - I try to keep up with the latest rail technology.
0:27:51 > 0:27:53Can you see there's a little dip in the terrain?
0:27:53 > 0:27:56You've put all the hazards in here, haven't you?
0:27:56 > 0:28:01I man the Erie Canal, a waterway that shaped America.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04It changed New York State and really the country,
0:28:04 > 0:28:07an almost immediate impact after the canal opened.
0:28:07 > 0:28:11And I land somewhere over the rainbow.
0:28:11 > 0:28:15- And you have a yellow-brick road running all the way through your town.- Yes, we do.