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 > 0:00:16Published in 1879, my Appletons' General Guide
0:00:16 > 0:00:20will steer me to everything that's novel...
0:00:20 > 0:00:23beautiful...memorable
0:00:23 > 0:00:26or curious in the United States.
0:00:26 > 0:00:28- ALL:- Amen.
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 > 0:00:40that tied the nation together
0:00:40 > 0:00:43and carved out its future as a superpower.
0:01:12 > 0:01:14At the time of my Appletons',
0:01:14 > 0:01:18travellers arriving in the United States encountered a nation
0:01:18 > 0:01:21where industry was beginning to boom
0:01:21 > 0:01:24and people were being drawn to the cities.
0:01:25 > 0:01:28Huge changes were afoot in American society,
0:01:28 > 0:01:32and the divisions, which had lately erupted in a civil war,
0:01:32 > 0:01:35were never far from the surface.
0:01:36 > 0:01:40I'm embarking on a new railroad journey,
0:01:40 > 0:01:46heading south from the city in which the United States has its origin.
0:01:46 > 0:01:49In Philadelphia, where my journey begins,
0:01:49 > 0:01:52American revolutionaries declared independence
0:01:52 > 0:01:57and the principle of government by consent.
0:01:57 > 0:01:59Yet by the time my Appletons' Guide was published
0:01:59 > 0:02:01just over a century later,
0:02:01 > 0:02:03thousands of Americans had been killed
0:02:03 > 0:02:09in a mechanised civil war, in which railways played an important part.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13I hope that my journey passing through the nation's capital
0:02:13 > 0:02:16and the greatest battlefield of that civil war
0:02:16 > 0:02:20will help me to understand the price that the United States paid
0:02:20 > 0:02:24for the contradiction rooted in their foundation.
0:02:24 > 0:02:28They're the land of the free, whilst the home of the slave.
0:02:29 > 0:02:34On this journey, I begin in the City of Brotherly Love - Philadelphia.
0:02:36 > 0:02:40I continue through the American Civil War battlefield of Gettysburg,
0:02:40 > 0:02:43before turning south to Baltimore in Maryland.
0:02:45 > 0:02:49I take in the nation's capital - Washington DC -
0:02:49 > 0:02:53continue to Richmond, Virginia, and end in Jamestown,
0:02:53 > 0:02:57the first permanent English settlement in North America.
0:03:01 > 0:03:06'In Philadelphia I discover how the city flexed its financial muscle...'
0:03:06 > 0:03:08Philadelphia in the 19th century
0:03:08 > 0:03:13was the manufacturing heart of the United States.
0:03:13 > 0:03:16'..taste an American institution...'
0:03:16 > 0:03:18I think I should have had it with the molten cheese, but,
0:03:18 > 0:03:21to tell you the truth, Cheez Whizz just put me off.
0:03:21 > 0:03:23'..and unleash my inner demon.'
0:03:23 > 0:03:25Argh!
0:03:41 > 0:03:43I've arrived in Philadelphia,
0:03:43 > 0:03:47which, according to Appletons', was founded by William Penn,
0:03:47 > 0:03:50who came over from England in 1682,
0:03:50 > 0:03:53accompanied by a colony of Quakers.
0:03:53 > 0:03:57It then became the largest city in the United States -
0:03:57 > 0:03:59the capital of the nation.
0:03:59 > 0:04:01And its railway station received
0:04:01 > 0:04:05lines from east and west and north and south.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17A 20 minute walk from 30th Street Station
0:04:17 > 0:04:20brings me to City Hall,
0:04:20 > 0:04:26which opened in 1901, and until 1908 was the world's tallest structure.
0:04:27 > 0:04:32On the top, a magnificent 27-tonne statue of William Penn
0:04:32 > 0:04:34proudly surveys his city.
0:04:41 > 0:04:43A wonderful view.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45Philadelphia laid at my feet.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51Shan Holt, a historian at Penn State University,
0:04:51 > 0:04:56is going to be my guide to the city from this rooftop eyrie.
0:04:56 > 0:04:57- Hello, Shan.- Hello, Michael.
0:04:57 > 0:04:59Good morning. Welcome to Philadelphia.
0:04:59 > 0:05:00Thank you very much.
0:05:00 > 0:05:03And thank you for meeting in such a spectacular place.
0:05:03 > 0:05:04Well, you're welcome.
0:05:04 > 0:05:06Tell me about William Penn.
0:05:06 > 0:05:09He was an extraordinary product of the 17th century.
0:05:09 > 0:05:13He was an aristocrat who turned his back on his background
0:05:13 > 0:05:14and became a Quaker,
0:05:14 > 0:05:17broke with his father, went to jail.
0:05:17 > 0:05:18According to Appletons',
0:05:18 > 0:05:21Penn arrives here with a colony of Quakers.
0:05:21 > 0:05:24What was the character of what they founded here?
0:05:24 > 0:05:29Penn was looking to found a colony dedicated to religious liberty.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33He wanted a place for Quakers to safely practice their religion,
0:05:33 > 0:05:35because they couldn't do that in the old country.
0:05:35 > 0:05:40So he chose a plot of land on the Delaware River because,
0:05:40 > 0:05:44of course, trade and commerce was all water-based in the 17th century.
0:05:44 > 0:05:47So if you were near the river, you could be prosperous.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52William Penn made a treaty with Native Americans,
0:05:52 > 0:05:56and true to his Quaker beliefs named his city after
0:05:56 > 0:06:00the Greek words for love - philos - and brother - adelphos.
0:06:00 > 0:06:05Philadelphia - the City of Brotherly Love.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07Philadelphia in the 19th century was
0:06:07 > 0:06:11the manufacturing heart of the United States.
0:06:11 > 0:06:17Steel, railroads, textiles, leather, transportation all centred here.
0:06:17 > 0:06:19I'm very interested in railways,
0:06:19 > 0:06:23and I assume that they played a big part in the development of the city?
0:06:23 > 0:06:26The Pennsylvania Railroad, which was founded here and headquartered here,
0:06:26 > 0:06:29was the largest railroad in America right into the 20th century.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32Pennsylvania Station in New York, Pennsylvania Station in Baltimore
0:06:32 > 0:06:34all named for the Pennsylvania Railroad.
0:06:34 > 0:06:37Wow. Thank you, Shan. This has been a wonderful place
0:06:37 > 0:06:40to understand Philadelphia's towering ambition.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47Philadelphia's ambition was on full display
0:06:47 > 0:06:50in the Centennial Exhibition.
0:06:50 > 0:06:54It was held in 1876 in Fairmount Park,
0:06:54 > 0:06:58which Appletons' tells me is the largest city park in the world.
0:06:59 > 0:07:04The exhibition celebrated 100 years of the United States
0:07:04 > 0:07:07and its growing industrial might.
0:07:07 > 0:07:09It attracted around ten million visitors,
0:07:09 > 0:07:11with railroads bringing crowds
0:07:11 > 0:07:14from across the country and the world.
0:07:15 > 0:07:19Today the only building remaining is Memorial Hall.
0:07:24 > 0:07:25Appletons' tells me
0:07:25 > 0:07:30this trade fair was based on the Great Exhibition of 1851 in London.
0:07:30 > 0:07:33But I'm thinking that just one of these exhibition halls
0:07:33 > 0:07:36would have been bigger than the Crystal Palace.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38And here were shown innovations.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42Alexander Graham Bell's telephone, the typewriter.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46Inventions that would transform our lives.
0:07:46 > 0:07:51And Philadelphia showed to the world that, for all its brotherly love,
0:07:51 > 0:07:53it was fearfully competitive.
0:07:56 > 0:08:00Walking back into downtown Philadelphia, one building
0:08:00 > 0:08:03is distinguished, not by its size,
0:08:03 > 0:08:05but by its momentous history.
0:08:07 > 0:08:09Independence Hall, says Appletons',
0:08:09 > 0:08:12is the most interesting object in Philadelphia.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15"Here, on July 4th, 1776,
0:08:15 > 0:08:20"the Declaration of Independence was adopted and publicly proclaimed."
0:08:20 > 0:08:25Imagine a crowd of 2,000 people hearing those words,
0:08:25 > 0:08:30in prose that was as elegant as it has been enduring,
0:08:30 > 0:08:32announcing a new relationship
0:08:32 > 0:08:35between the people and their government.
0:08:41 > 0:08:45In the Pennsylvania State House, the Founding Fathers declared
0:08:45 > 0:08:50independence, and asserted that all men are created equal
0:08:50 > 0:08:54and entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57And that, more than that, if a government failed to
0:08:57 > 0:09:03guarantee those benefits, men were entitled to reform it or abolish it.
0:09:03 > 0:09:06There are more than 100 democracies in the world today
0:09:06 > 0:09:12that more or less pay tribute to those then-original principles.
0:09:13 > 0:09:17This bell already hung in the Pennsylvania State House,
0:09:17 > 0:09:19and it bore the Biblical inscription,
0:09:19 > 0:09:23"Proclaim liberty throughout the land."
0:09:23 > 0:09:27But at the time of the formation of the United States, declaring that
0:09:27 > 0:09:29all men had been created equal,
0:09:29 > 0:09:31there were millions of slaves.
0:09:31 > 0:09:35And in the 19th century this bell became the symbol of those
0:09:35 > 0:09:37who would abolish slavery.
0:09:44 > 0:09:48Philadelphia is also known as the City of Neighbourhoods.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50Philadelphians are proud of their city,
0:09:50 > 0:09:54but they hold a special affection for their own district.
0:09:56 > 0:09:59A half-hour stroll south from Independence Hall
0:09:59 > 0:10:03takes me to South Philadelphia, and Pat's King of Steaks -
0:10:03 > 0:10:05home of the Philly cheesesteak.
0:10:09 > 0:10:12This is very intimidating. It says, "How to order a steak."
0:10:12 > 0:10:14And it says, "If you make a mistake
0:10:14 > 0:10:17"just go to the back of the line and start over."
0:10:17 > 0:10:21But it also says, "Practice the above while waiting in line."
0:10:21 > 0:10:26So I've got to specify whether it's with, or as they say here, wit,
0:10:26 > 0:10:27onions or without onions.
0:10:27 > 0:10:30And then I have a choice of things here.
0:10:30 > 0:10:32I think I've got it, I think I've got it. OK.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40- Can I help you?- I want a steak wit American cheese, please.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43- American with onions?- Wit, wit.
0:10:43 > 0:10:45- What did you think of my ordering? Was it OK?- That was great.
0:10:45 > 0:10:49- American wit.- American wit, American wit.- I understood it.
0:10:49 > 0:10:51How much is that, sir? 10. Oh, wow.
0:10:51 > 0:10:54That's more than I've got, I think. Hang on.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57I was told to have my money ready. This is very terrifying now.
0:10:57 > 0:11:01- That's why we put the sign up there. - There we go, sir.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04So why is this so famous in Philadelphia, this cheesesteak?
0:11:04 > 0:11:05We're the inventor of the steak sandwich.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09- What, this very shop? This very place?- Yes, it is.- How long has it been going then?- Since 1930.
0:11:09 > 0:11:11And you've sold a few in that time, have you?
0:11:11 > 0:11:14A few. More than a few.
0:11:14 > 0:11:16- OK, great. Thank you very much. - You got it.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18Hi, there. Do you mind if I join you a second?
0:11:18 > 0:11:20- Go ahead.- Oh, thank you.
0:11:20 > 0:11:24Are you a great connoisseur of cheesesteaks?
0:11:24 > 0:11:29- Do you eat cheesesteaks a lot? - Um...coming to Philly I do.
0:11:29 > 0:11:30Are you from outside Philly?
0:11:30 > 0:11:33I am. I just moved to North Jersey, and then drove all the way
0:11:33 > 0:11:36from North Jersey here to have a cheesesteak.
0:11:36 > 0:11:37That is amazing.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40- And is it as good as you thought?- It is, it was perfect.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42How did you order yours? What did you have on it?
0:11:42 > 0:11:45- OK, so, I got the cheesesteak with Whiz.- That's molten cheese.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47I didn't even know what Whiz was.
0:11:47 > 0:11:49And then I was like, "Oh, cheese Whiz."
0:11:49 > 0:11:50What did you get in yours?
0:11:50 > 0:11:53I've got American cheese and it's "wit" onions.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00- That's pretty good, isn't it? - It's amazing.- A tasty steak.
0:12:00 > 0:12:02I think I should have had it with the molten cheese,
0:12:02 > 0:12:05but, to tell you the truth, Cheez Whiz just put me off.
0:12:05 > 0:12:08Well, thank you very much. It's been a real joy sharing lunch with you.
0:12:08 > 0:12:09- Yeah, definitely. - Bye-bye. Take care.
0:12:09 > 0:12:11Take care. Have a good one.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18The food in the United States is so gargantuan that I feel
0:12:18 > 0:12:21I need to take a run to keep fit.
0:12:21 > 0:12:22And I'm inspired to do so
0:12:22 > 0:12:28by Philadelphia's greatest fictional hero - Rocky Balboa.
0:12:28 > 0:12:32But in order to get myself going I need his theme music.
0:12:32 > 0:12:36MUSIC: Theme from Rocky
0:13:35 > 0:13:38My next stop is the University of Pennsylvania,
0:13:38 > 0:13:40which Appletons' tells me occupies,
0:13:40 > 0:13:43"Spacious and substantial stone buildings
0:13:43 > 0:13:46"at 36th and Locust Streets"
0:13:48 > 0:13:51The university grew out of a school established
0:13:51 > 0:13:54in 1751 by Benjamin Franklin -
0:13:54 > 0:13:57a Founding Father of the nation.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00It's one of the elite group of eight Ivy League colleges,
0:14:00 > 0:14:04which includes Harvard and Yale.
0:14:04 > 0:14:07The spacious and substantial buildings mentioned
0:14:07 > 0:14:08in Appletons' are still here,
0:14:08 > 0:14:12and they create a sense of heritage and of history,
0:14:12 > 0:14:15and they seem to exude an excellence.
0:14:15 > 0:14:18And these pathways provide a wonderful meeting place
0:14:18 > 0:14:21for students - a real sense of community.
0:14:21 > 0:14:23Oh, to be young again!
0:14:32 > 0:14:34Penn's American football tradition
0:14:34 > 0:14:37is amongst the oldest in the country.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40They've played over 1,350 games -
0:14:40 > 0:14:42more than any other college team.
0:14:43 > 0:14:48Their stadium, Franklin Field, opened in 1895,
0:14:48 > 0:14:52making it the nation's most historic college football venue.
0:14:54 > 0:14:59This football field has a capacity of more than 50,000 spectators,
0:14:59 > 0:15:04which makes it bigger than the average English Premier League football club.
0:15:04 > 0:15:09And you have to remember that this is just the college game!
0:15:16 > 0:15:20I've agreed to a crash course in American football.
0:15:20 > 0:15:24And I'm entering the Franklin Field locker room with trepidation.
0:15:26 > 0:15:30I'm now going to get myself into the famously fearsome
0:15:30 > 0:15:33American football kit.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35This should provide some useful protection.
0:15:41 > 0:15:43HE GROWLS
0:15:43 > 0:15:47To help me get to grips with the on-pitch complexities
0:15:47 > 0:15:51I'm meeting Ray Priore, head coach of the Penn football team.
0:15:51 > 0:15:54- Good to see you, Coach. - Nice to meet you.- How are you?
0:15:54 > 0:15:58I'm just thinking, I don't really understand the rules of football,
0:15:58 > 0:16:00but does it derive from British rugby?
0:16:00 > 0:16:02Definitely from British rugby.
0:16:02 > 0:16:04A very physical game, where there's tackling.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06And I believe in English rugby
0:16:06 > 0:16:09the passes can go only backwards, where in American football
0:16:09 > 0:16:11you're allowed to throw the ball down the playing field.
0:16:11 > 0:16:13In the late 19th century,
0:16:13 > 0:16:16American universities adapted the game of rugby.
0:16:16 > 0:16:18Their changes to the rules included
0:16:18 > 0:16:21reducing the size of the team and the pitch,
0:16:21 > 0:16:23and introducing limited attempts
0:16:23 > 0:16:27to travel ten yards towards the goal line, known as downs.
0:16:29 > 0:16:32The game is measured by getting what is called a first down.
0:16:32 > 0:16:35We have four opportunities to gain ten yards,
0:16:35 > 0:16:37and then really on the third opportunity,
0:16:37 > 0:16:41when it turns to the fourth, you have the chance to go for
0:16:41 > 0:16:43what's called a first down,
0:16:43 > 0:16:45or punt the ball to the opposition.
0:16:45 > 0:16:46So then they have the ball
0:16:46 > 0:16:49and they have the ability to try to score on you.
0:16:49 > 0:16:51OK, OK. I think I follow that.
0:16:51 > 0:16:52Now, listen, coach.
0:16:52 > 0:16:54I'm a little bit self-conscious today.
0:16:54 > 0:16:56It's the first time I've had pads on.
0:16:56 > 0:16:57I'm anxious to blend in.
0:16:57 > 0:17:01- How do you think I'm doing? - I think you look pretty good.
0:17:01 > 0:17:02Why don't you try putting the helmet on?
0:17:02 > 0:17:04I have a feeling I'm going to need this.
0:17:04 > 0:17:06There you go, that looks good.
0:17:06 > 0:17:07Nice and snug.
0:17:07 > 0:17:095-7, let's see the grunt!
0:17:09 > 0:17:11Let's go, let's go, let's go, let's go, let's go!
0:17:11 > 0:17:13- Hello.- Hi.- What are we doing here?
0:17:13 > 0:17:17The only objective is to punch this as hard as you can, OK?
0:17:17 > 0:17:20And when you hit it I want a nice grunt.
0:17:20 > 0:17:22- Let me hear your grunt now. - HE GRUNTS
0:17:22 > 0:17:24No, no, no. Louder.
0:17:24 > 0:17:26- HE GRUNTS LOUDER - There we go, there we go.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28- I'm going to hit it with my body? - No, no, no.
0:17:28 > 0:17:30You're going to hit it with your hands and your helmet.
0:17:30 > 0:17:32Let's practice the grunt again. Let me hear it.
0:17:32 > 0:17:34- HE GRUNTS - There it is! Go!
0:17:34 > 0:17:37HE ROARS
0:17:37 > 0:17:40Close, close. OK, easy, easy.
0:17:40 > 0:17:42OK. All right, all right.
0:17:42 > 0:17:44Now I need a little more oomph today.
0:17:44 > 0:17:46Let me hear your grunt.
0:17:46 > 0:17:49HE GRUNTS
0:17:50 > 0:17:53Ah!
0:17:55 > 0:17:58Good job, good job. good job, good job.
0:17:58 > 0:18:02- My man. Good job, good job. - Good coaching, man.
0:18:02 > 0:18:04- No problem, no problem. - Solid coaching.
0:18:04 > 0:18:08- It's not quite soccer.- It isn't.
0:18:08 > 0:18:11I don't usually feel this dizzy after soccer.
0:18:11 > 0:18:12Am I ready for the big match?
0:18:12 > 0:18:16- Uh, you know,... - MICHAEL LAUGHS
0:18:16 > 0:18:18- You've got a little work to do.- OK.
0:18:18 > 0:18:19THEY BOTH GRUNT
0:18:19 > 0:18:21Get down!
0:18:23 > 0:18:27Well, that wasn't quite as embarrassing as I'd feared.
0:18:27 > 0:18:31Time to rest my aching limbs before continuing my journey tomorrow.
0:18:40 > 0:18:44Today I'm taking the subway from Race-Vine to Fairmount Station
0:18:44 > 0:18:47to visit an innovative building.
0:18:47 > 0:18:512 and a quarter.
0:18:51 > 0:18:52Thank you.
0:18:59 > 0:19:04New thinking in the New World made Europe take notice.
0:19:04 > 0:19:08Up to the 19th century, most prisons were no more
0:19:08 > 0:19:11than crowded and violent holding cells.
0:19:11 > 0:19:15In 1787, a group of largely Quaker reformers, calling itself
0:19:15 > 0:19:22The Philadelphia Society For Alleviating The Miseries Of Public Prisons,
0:19:22 > 0:19:24proposed a radical idea.
0:19:26 > 0:19:28"The Eastern Penitentiary," says Appletons',
0:19:28 > 0:19:33"resembles a baronial castle." And so it does.
0:19:33 > 0:19:37"The separate, not solitary, system is adopted here.
0:19:37 > 0:19:39"Each prisoner is furnished with work,
0:19:39 > 0:19:43"and is allowed to converse with the chaplain and prison officials,
0:19:43 > 0:19:46"but not with any of his fellow prisoners."
0:19:46 > 0:19:49An interesting experiment in prison reform.
0:19:49 > 0:19:51I wonder whether it worked.
0:19:52 > 0:19:57The society lobbied Pennsylvania to adopt its suggestions.
0:19:57 > 0:19:59And 30 years later the effort paid off.
0:19:59 > 0:20:03The Eastern State Penitentiary opened in 1829.
0:20:05 > 0:20:09The prison had seven wings with individual cells.
0:20:09 > 0:20:12It had running water and central heating,
0:20:12 > 0:20:14at a time when the White House had neither.
0:20:15 > 0:20:18In the century after it was built
0:20:18 > 0:20:23more than 300 prisons across the world copied its novel design.
0:20:24 > 0:20:27The way the prison was run was also radical.
0:20:27 > 0:20:31Sean Kelley, the senior vice president of the Penitentiary Museum,
0:20:31 > 0:20:33is meeting me to explain more.
0:20:37 > 0:20:38Sean, my Appletons' tells me
0:20:38 > 0:20:42that here in the prison they adopted the separate, not solitary, system.
0:20:42 > 0:20:43What was that?
0:20:43 > 0:20:46The system was inspired by the Quaker belief in the inner light -
0:20:46 > 0:20:48the sense that all people are good.
0:20:48 > 0:20:49And so they believed that
0:20:49 > 0:20:52if they kept people in separation they would spend that time
0:20:52 > 0:20:55looking into their hearts, and eventually all people would make
0:20:55 > 0:21:00the correct moral decision to behave themselves, to fit into society.
0:21:00 > 0:21:04When the prisoners came out of their cells, didn't they see other prisoners, then?
0:21:04 > 0:21:06They covered their heads with hoods.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09They would never see another inmate, they would rarely see other staff members.
0:21:09 > 0:21:11They had no books, only the Bible.
0:21:11 > 0:21:14But no letters from home, no visitation.
0:21:14 > 0:21:18I can see that this system was based on an intellectual idea -
0:21:18 > 0:21:19rationalism.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22But did it have its opponents and critics in its day?
0:21:22 > 0:21:24The most notable critic was Charles Dickens.
0:21:24 > 0:21:28And he visited the building in 1842, and he went back to England,
0:21:28 > 0:21:31he wrote his book American Notes about his experience
0:21:31 > 0:21:34in the United States, and he devoted a full chapter to this building.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37He acknowledged that the people who built this prison
0:21:37 > 0:21:39had the best of intentions, but he went on to say
0:21:39 > 0:21:42he thought they had no idea what they were doing.
0:21:42 > 0:21:46He wrote, "I hold the slow and daily tampering with the mysteries
0:21:46 > 0:21:51"of the brain to be immeasurably worse than any torture of the body."
0:21:51 > 0:21:53Do we have any idea whether it was
0:21:53 > 0:21:55actually successful in rehabilitating prisoners?
0:21:55 > 0:21:57It's really hard to know.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00But a psychiatrist or psychologist today will tell you
0:22:00 > 0:22:03that prolonged isolation is in fact destructive.
0:22:15 > 0:22:20Finally, in 1913, the separate system was abandoned.
0:22:20 > 0:22:23By then the world knew it as the Pennsylvania System,
0:22:23 > 0:22:26and its legacy was long-lasting.
0:22:26 > 0:22:30In some European and Asian countries, reform didn't come
0:22:30 > 0:22:32until after the Second World War.
0:22:35 > 0:22:39I have been in cells that were smaller than this,
0:22:39 > 0:22:44but in the Eastern Penitentiary the punishment was lack of society.
0:22:45 > 0:22:47I'm a gregarious person.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50To me, not to be able to speak to other people,
0:22:50 > 0:22:52that would be the worst punishment.
0:22:52 > 0:22:56And I don't believe that it would lead me to sit here in silence,
0:22:56 > 0:22:59reflecting on the errors of my ways,
0:22:59 > 0:23:05but rather maybe to plan a vengeance on a system that had used me so ill.
0:23:15 > 0:23:19With my thoughts full of crime, punishment and redemption,
0:23:19 > 0:23:21I head east, out of Philadelphia,
0:23:21 > 0:23:25on an excursion recommended by my Appletons' -
0:23:25 > 0:23:29across the New Jersey state border to Atlantic City.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34This city is built on a sand barrier island,
0:23:34 > 0:23:37just off the New Jersey coast.
0:23:37 > 0:23:41It was first linked to the mainland by rail in 1854.
0:23:44 > 0:23:46"Atlantic City," says Appletons',
0:23:46 > 0:23:49"is a favourite resort of the citizens of Philadelphia,
0:23:49 > 0:23:54"and draws thousands of visitors from all parts of the country.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57"The regular bathing hour is 11 o'clock,
0:23:57 > 0:24:02"but gentleman are allowed to bathe without costume before 6am."
0:24:02 > 0:24:04I don't know about you,
0:24:04 > 0:24:09but I'm not attracted to nude bathing on a rainy day like this.
0:24:15 > 0:24:17I'm meeting Heather Perez -
0:24:17 > 0:24:20archivist from the Atlantic City Free Public Library -
0:24:20 > 0:24:26to learn how the city and its famous boardwalk became a tourist hot spot.
0:24:26 > 0:24:28- Welcome to Atlantic City.- Thank you.
0:24:28 > 0:24:30It's lovely to be here, even on a rainy day.
0:24:30 > 0:24:33What were the origins of Atlantic City as a resort?
0:24:33 > 0:24:36Well, in 1854 Dr Pitney got the idea
0:24:36 > 0:24:38of making Atlantic City a health resort.
0:24:38 > 0:24:39So those tourists would come over
0:24:39 > 0:24:43and enjoy the health benefits of the ocean air and the sea.
0:24:43 > 0:24:45And so he got together with some of his buddies in Philadelphia
0:24:45 > 0:24:49and they incorporated the Atlantic City Railroad System, which brought
0:24:49 > 0:24:53the railroads into Atlantic City, and consequently, all the traffic.
0:24:53 > 0:24:56And apparently, according to my Appletons' Guide,
0:24:56 > 0:24:59by the 1870s it's really successful, bringing visitors,
0:24:59 > 0:25:02not only from Philadelphia, but from all over the country.
0:25:02 > 0:25:04That's true. Certainly.
0:25:04 > 0:25:06Thousands upon thousands of people came
0:25:06 > 0:25:08to Atlantic City during its heyday.
0:25:08 > 0:25:09The boardwalk is very famous.
0:25:09 > 0:25:11When did that originate?
0:25:11 > 0:25:13The boardwalk came into being in 1870.
0:25:13 > 0:25:14The hotel owners were upset
0:25:14 > 0:25:17because all these women in their long gowns would track that sand
0:25:17 > 0:25:20on into their lobbies, and they were tired of sweeping it up.
0:25:20 > 0:25:22So they got together and came up with this idea of laying boards
0:25:22 > 0:25:25on the sand for the ladies to promenade on.
0:25:28 > 0:25:31The boardwalk became a permanent fixture,
0:25:31 > 0:25:36but the advent of the jet age saw the crowds dwindle.
0:25:36 > 0:25:42To reverse the decline, the city legalised gambling in 1976.
0:25:42 > 0:25:47Today it's the casino capital of the East Coast.
0:25:47 > 0:25:50This place is on a dizzying scale.
0:25:50 > 0:25:54You can scarcely see one end of the room to the other.
0:25:54 > 0:25:56In the centre here we've got the blackjack,
0:25:56 > 0:25:59we've got the craps, we've got the roulette.
0:25:59 > 0:26:03Every conceivable way of getting people to gamble their money.
0:26:08 > 0:26:10Hello. Do you mind if I chat to you for a moment?
0:26:10 > 0:26:12Go ahead, chat away.
0:26:12 > 0:26:13Do you do this very much?
0:26:13 > 0:26:15- Two or three times a week.- Really?
0:26:15 > 0:26:18These things are programmed so that you lose.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21- So presumably you lose more than you win?- Absolutely.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23MICHAEL LAUGHS But you still do it?
0:26:23 > 0:26:25Sometimes you can do pretty good.
0:26:25 > 0:26:27Even at 40 cents, if you get the right hit.
0:26:27 > 0:26:29You never know.
0:26:29 > 0:26:31- I wish you the right hit. Bye-bye.- Thank you.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36- May I interrupt you two just a second?- Sure.
0:26:36 > 0:26:38How's it gone this afternoon? How you doing?
0:26:38 > 0:26:40Well, I'm hoping to get a ten here,
0:26:40 > 0:26:41- and I got a ten.- Oh!
0:26:41 > 0:26:43- Oh, my God!- 21.
0:26:43 > 0:26:45- You must be good luck.- 21.
0:26:45 > 0:26:47I'm bringing you good luck. I think I should stay.
0:26:47 > 0:26:50Absolutely, you totally are. I think you should stay as well.
0:26:50 > 0:26:52- But actually, I have to go. It was nice to meet you.- Oh, right.
0:26:52 > 0:26:55- Good luck to you both.- Thank you. - Bye-bye.- Thank you very much.
0:27:05 > 0:27:08William Penn crossed the Atlantic from England,
0:27:08 > 0:27:11where he had been imprisoned for his Quaker beliefs.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14He intended his American city and state
0:27:14 > 0:27:18to be havens for dissenting Christians.
0:27:18 > 0:27:19From the outset,
0:27:19 > 0:27:22the British-American colonies were established
0:27:22 > 0:27:24to be different from the homeland,
0:27:24 > 0:27:27and even name Philadelphia -
0:27:27 > 0:27:31City of Brotherly Love - could be read as a rebuke against the
0:27:31 > 0:27:33religious repression of the British state
0:27:33 > 0:27:36and its established church.
0:27:36 > 0:27:38The bell with the inscription,
0:27:38 > 0:27:41"Proclaim liberty throughout all the land,"
0:27:41 > 0:27:44would toll the end of British rule.
0:27:47 > 0:27:51Next time, I'll discover an unchanged community...
0:27:51 > 0:27:54It might seem to be a very backward way of living,
0:27:54 > 0:27:56but it's a very enjoyable lifestyle.
0:27:56 > 0:28:00..learn about one of the most famous orations in history...
0:28:00 > 0:28:02From this point forward, everyone understood -
0:28:02 > 0:28:05if the North's going to succeed it's going to come
0:28:05 > 0:28:08with union preserved and slavery eliminated.
0:28:08 > 0:28:12..and fulfil a long-held dream.
0:28:12 > 0:28:17My first trip on the footplate of an American steam locomotive.
0:28:17 > 0:28:20TRAIN WHISTLES