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00:00:01,367 --> 00:00:04,767
[narrator] Strange structures
that harnessed Nazi technology,

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00:00:04,767 --> 00:00:07,367
concealed in the heart
of America.

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00:00:07,533 --> 00:00:09,767
[man] If it wasn't for the work
that was carried out in

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00:00:09,934 --> 00:00:13,066
these buildings, we could all be
speaking Russian right now.

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00:00:14,300 --> 00:00:19,266
[narrator]
An amusement park where joy
unexpectedly turned to despair.

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00:00:19,433 --> 00:00:20,567
[man
Everything was devastated.

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00:00:20,567 --> 00:00:22,300
At that point in time,
we had nothing.

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00:00:23,867 --> 00:00:27,367
[narrator] And the island ruins
of an unbelievable industry.

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00:00:27,533 --> 00:00:30,166
It's hard to imagine
that people could

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00:00:30,333 --> 00:00:31,967
build something like this.

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00:00:43,000 --> 00:00:47,367
[narrator] In upstate New York,
one forgotten facility helped

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00:00:47,367 --> 00:00:51,166
launch the United States
into a whole new world.

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00:00:56,800 --> 00:00:58,567
[birds singing]

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00:01:03,066 --> 00:01:06,200
[man] There was a certain danger
involved in this work.

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It was an exciting phenomena,

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to smell them and to hear them
and to get a sense

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of the power.

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The most intelligent people in
America, they were attracted to

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this new science.

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[Dr. Kwami]
We're just outside Malta.

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It's a small town located
right at the foothills of

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the Adirondack Mountains.

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[narrator] Deep in the forest,
a forgotten site is hidden

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00:01:34,667 --> 00:01:35,967
in the foliage.

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[Dr. Auerbach] This is the last
thing you would expect to see,

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huge concrete
and steel structures that are

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totally derelict.

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[Bell] Looming over it all is
this huge, rusting tower.

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Is it a guard tower?
Is it a control tower?

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Who knows?
But it's certainly sinister.

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Many of the buildings have
thick blast-proof windows.

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What is this place?

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00:02:05,300 --> 00:02:08,200
[Dr. Auerbach]
Some are still fully equipped.

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This was clearly
state-of-the-art stuff for

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the time, and yet it was
just all left behind.

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[narrator] This place represents
a time when the nation's dreams

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00:02:20,266 --> 00:02:23,467
stretched out of this world.

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[Bell] These structures
transformed a Nazi wonder weapon

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into one of America's greatest
success stories.

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00:02:39,166 --> 00:02:43,867
[narrator]
Retired history teacher
Paul Perreault has a passion for

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00:02:43,867 --> 00:02:46,266
the Empire State's past.

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But for over 50 years,
the role these buildings played

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eluded him.

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00:02:54,000 --> 00:02:57,900
[Perreault]
When I first discovered
the place, I felt shocked that

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such an important facility
existed but was

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00:03:01,367 --> 00:03:02,600
so little known.

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00:03:04,567 --> 00:03:07,900
[narrator] Despite being built
for a clandestine purpose,

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00:03:08,066 --> 00:03:12,066
Paul has made it his life's
mission to shine a light on

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00:03:12,233 --> 00:03:13,533
these structures.

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00:03:15,367 --> 00:03:18,767
And I felt, well, it's my job
to make the community aware of

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00:03:18,934 --> 00:03:21,500
just how important this place
is to American history.

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00:03:23,066 --> 00:03:25,700
[narrator]
The story of this site began

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00:03:25,867 --> 00:03:30,266
in 1945,
as America and its allies

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00:03:30,433 --> 00:03:33,400
pushed into Nazi Germany
to defeat Hitler.

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00:03:34,467 --> 00:03:38,000
Germany lost the war,
but its technological

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00:03:38,000 --> 00:03:40,200
advancements
were extraordinary.

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00:03:40,367 --> 00:03:43,467
The American government was
really keen to get their hands

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on some of that technology.

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00:03:46,200 --> 00:03:49,000
[Bell] The Soviets
wanted this tech, too.

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So to capture it first,
Washington hatched a plan to

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recruit Nazi engineers
and scientists as their army

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00:03:56,867 --> 00:03:58,867
progressed through Germany.

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00:03:59,033 --> 00:04:03,900
[narrator]
The secret mission that
shaped this facility was dubbed

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00:04:04,066 --> 00:04:05,100
Operation Paperclip.

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00:04:06,266 --> 00:04:08,800
Operation Paperclip
was hugely successful,

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and approximately 1,600
German scientists and engineers

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00:04:12,767 --> 00:04:13,867
were recruited.

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[narrator] Among all the names,
one stood out.

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[Perreault] Wernher von Braun
was the head of

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00:04:22,367 --> 00:04:23,767
the German rocket program,

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00:04:23,934 --> 00:04:25,567
and he was the chief target.

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00:04:25,567 --> 00:04:28,667
He is called the father
of rocketry.

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00:04:28,667 --> 00:04:32,867
[narrator]
The US government believed one
of von Braun's inventions could

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steer any future conflict in
America's favor,

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00:04:37,700 --> 00:04:39,266
the V2 rocket.

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00:04:39,266 --> 00:04:43,667
Designed and tested at the Nazi
Peenemunde Research Center on

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Germany's Baltic coast, it was
a weapon the kind of which

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00:04:47,734 --> 00:04:50,667
the world had never
seen before.

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00:04:50,834 --> 00:04:55,000
With a 220-mile range
and gyroscopic guidance for

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00:04:55,166 --> 00:04:58,767
accuracy, the V2 rocket
had rained terror

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00:04:58,767 --> 00:05:00,867
on America's allies in Europe.

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00:05:01,033 --> 00:05:04,367
The V2 rocket was
the first ballistic missile.

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00:05:07,700 --> 00:05:10,467
[dramatic music playing]

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00:05:10,467 --> 00:05:14,667
[narrator]
Yet its destructive power
wasn't the only capability of

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00:05:14,834 --> 00:05:18,300
the V2 that excited
the American government.

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00:05:20,767 --> 00:05:25,400
On June 20th, 1944,
during a V2 test,

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00:05:25,567 --> 00:05:28,734
a rocket reached
a height of 109 miles.

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00:05:31,200 --> 00:05:34,000
This officially crossed
the boundary of space,

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00:05:34,166 --> 00:05:37,300
which lies at 62 miles
above sea level.

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00:05:37,467 --> 00:05:41,000
This was the first time in
history that man had sent

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an object into space.

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00:05:43,967 --> 00:05:47,400
[Bell] Some people in Washington
had sensed that the Cold War was

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00:05:47,567 --> 00:05:50,467
coming, and with it,
the space race.

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They saw the V2 rocket as
the basis of a design that

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00:05:54,567 --> 00:05:57,634
could propel America
into this new frontier.

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00:06:00,166 --> 00:06:07,166
[narrator] Established in 1945,
this 165-acre top-secret site

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00:06:07,166 --> 00:06:10,700
in New York was built to
reverse engineer

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00:06:10,867 --> 00:06:12,967
and improve the V2.

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00:06:14,900 --> 00:06:17,767
This is the Malta Test Station.

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00:06:20,166 --> 00:06:23,667
[Perreault]
The first rocket test
of a captured V2 rocket took

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00:06:23,834 --> 00:06:27,100
place here on
Christmas Day in 1945.

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[narrator] At this site, around
500 scientists and engineers

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00:06:32,367 --> 00:06:35,800
sparked the American
Space Program.

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00:06:35,967 --> 00:06:38,767
It was very high tech
for its age.

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00:06:40,000 --> 00:06:42,767
Some of the first computers
that the federal government

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00:06:42,767 --> 00:06:44,367
purchased were used here.

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[narrator]
But the rockets initially
tested here weren't the only

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things taken
from Nazi Germany.

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00:06:55,900 --> 00:07:00,066
[Perreault]
The buildings actually that
we see surrounding us here are

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00:07:00,233 --> 00:07:04,266
pretty much duplicates of what
the Germans built in the 1930s

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00:07:04,433 --> 00:07:06,967
in Peenemunde,
which was the German facility.

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00:07:08,867 --> 00:07:12,100
[narrator] However,
unlike at Peenemunde,

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no rocket ever left
the ground here.

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The Malta site
is a ground testing site.

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00:07:20,433 --> 00:07:22,300
This part of New York has too
many people

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00:07:22,467 --> 00:07:23,867
and too many buildings
for the government to risk

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00:07:24,033 --> 00:07:25,500
launching rockets
into the air.

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The rocket engines were
harnessed to this gantry

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00:07:30,567 --> 00:07:33,767
and fired up to a quarter of
a million pounds of propulsion.

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00:07:33,767 --> 00:07:36,767
[announcer]
...two...one...fire!

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00:07:38,166 --> 00:07:39,467
[explosion blasts]

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00:07:39,467 --> 00:07:42,266
[Perreault] The test lasted
as long as 20 minutes.

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You can imagine the noise that
that would create.

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Local people still talk about
the fact that the sugar bowl

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00:07:50,100 --> 00:07:52,967
would fall off the kitchen
table with the vibrations from

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00:07:53,133 --> 00:07:54,300
the rocket tests here.

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[narrator] After passing
these engine trials in New York,

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the rockets went on
to be air tested in

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00:08:01,634 --> 00:08:03,000
New Mexico and Florida.

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00:08:04,266 --> 00:08:07,967
But at the same time,
on the other side of the world,

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America's enemies were
about to strike a telling blow.

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It just never occurred to me
that the Russians

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would beat us into space.

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[announcer] One of the great
scientific feats of the age.

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[narrator]
At the Malta test station
in upstate New York,

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October 4, 1957,
began like any other day...

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-[indistinct radio chatter]
...with rocket engines being

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tested for the American
space program.

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[indistinct radio chatter]

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00:08:44,100 --> 00:08:46,100
[engine blasting]

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There was some danger involved,
but the observation building

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was extremely safe.

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It's built out of
concrete and steel.

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[narrator] But no amount of
concrete and steel could save

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00:08:57,433 --> 00:09:01,467
the scientists here from
the blow that the Soviet Union

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00:09:01,634 --> 00:09:05,667
dealt at 3:28 PM
Eastern time.

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00:09:05,834 --> 00:09:08,700
They launched the world's
first artificial satellite,

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00:09:08,867 --> 00:09:10,200
Sputnik 1.

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00:09:10,367 --> 00:09:13,500
The launching of Sputnik 1 was
a real hammer blow to

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00:09:13,667 --> 00:09:16,667
the American psyche
and their sense of superiority.

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00:09:16,834 --> 00:09:20,166
[Bell] It may have been bad for
the American public, but it was

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00:09:20,333 --> 00:09:22,400
catastrophic
for the Malta test station.

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00:09:22,567 --> 00:09:25,900
It proved that the Soviets
were ahead of them in

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00:09:26,066 --> 00:09:27,200
the space race.

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00:09:28,667 --> 00:09:31,700
[narrator] To rally
the scientists and the nation,

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00:09:31,867 --> 00:09:34,200
President Kennedy
made a pledge,

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00:09:34,367 --> 00:09:37,667
one that pushed the rocket
technology developed here

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to its limit.

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00:09:39,967 --> 00:09:43,000
We choose to go to the moon in
this decade and do

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00:09:43,000 --> 00:09:44,100
the other things.

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Not because they are easy,
but because they are hard.

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00:09:48,667 --> 00:09:52,000
[narrator] To reach the moon,
the American space program

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went into overdrive,

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00:09:54,333 --> 00:09:57,567
although not using
the buildings here,

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00:09:57,734 --> 00:10:01,166
their glory days were over,
because their mission had

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00:10:01,166 --> 00:10:02,700
been accomplished.

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00:10:02,867 --> 00:10:05,567
[Dr. Auerbach] In the end,
the Malta site fulfilled
its purpose.

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00:10:05,734 --> 00:10:10,800
They managed to reverse
engineer the V2 rocket.

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00:10:10,967 --> 00:10:15,467
[narrator]
The Saturn V rocket that
powered the Apollo program was

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00:10:15,634 --> 00:10:20,567
a direct descendant of the V2s
tested here, so these buildings

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00:10:20,734 --> 00:10:24,900
were pivotal in fueling one of
America's proudest days.

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00:10:25,867 --> 00:10:29,100
[Neil Armstrong, archive]
That's one small step for man,

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00:10:29,100 --> 00:10:32,900
one giant leap for mankind.

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00:10:33,066 --> 00:10:39,667
[narrator] On July 20, 1969,
America won the space race.

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00:10:39,667 --> 00:10:43,367
Without the research that
occurred here, the Soviet Union

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00:10:43,533 --> 00:10:46,600
would have been steps ahead
of us in the Cold War.

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00:10:46,767 --> 00:10:49,000
I think it would be
a very different world

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00:10:49,166 --> 00:10:50,767
if that had occurred.

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[narrator]
Today, over 50 years since
the end of the Apollo program,

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00:11:02,166 --> 00:11:06,567
many companies are working on
projects to return humanity to

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00:11:06,734 --> 00:11:10,266
space, a journey which might
have been unthinkable

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00:11:10,433 --> 00:11:13,000
without these structures.

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00:11:13,000 --> 00:11:16,400
[Perreault]
This place represents
the start of a new adventure.

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00:11:16,567 --> 00:11:20,600
I say that America's
first steps to the moon

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00:11:20,767 --> 00:11:22,567
were taken from Malta.

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00:11:29,767 --> 00:11:34,000
[narrator] In New Orleans lies
the ruins of an attraction that

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00:11:34,000 --> 00:11:38,767
entertained millions before
suddenly transforming into

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00:11:38,767 --> 00:11:40,400
a nightmarish scene.

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00:11:44,800 --> 00:11:47,667
[Dr. Auerbach]
This place must have been
absolutely magnificent

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00:11:47,834 --> 00:11:49,767
at some point.

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00:11:49,767 --> 00:11:53,667
The roller coaster,
the rusting Ferris wheel --

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00:11:53,667 --> 00:11:57,100
this was amusement
on a grand scale.

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00:11:58,700 --> 00:12:03,100
[Bell] You can still see
bumper cars, ice cream stands,

194
00:12:03,266 --> 00:12:05,367
but everything's in
a decrepit state.

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00:12:09,000 --> 00:12:13,266
[narrator] Broken parts of rides
lie strewn across the site,

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00:12:13,433 --> 00:12:16,667
a haunting reminder
of its heyday.

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00:12:16,834 --> 00:12:18,867
Well, I'd like to know how
the car got to the front of

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00:12:19,033 --> 00:12:21,967
the park, because that certainly
was not here 19 years ago.

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00:12:24,200 --> 00:12:28,467
[Dr. Auerbach]
Just the stuff that's been left
behind here leads me to believe

200
00:12:28,467 --> 00:12:31,867
that the closure was not
a planned, orderly affair.

201
00:12:33,467 --> 00:12:37,000
[narrator] The park's future was
extinguished by one of the most

202
00:12:37,000 --> 00:12:40,467
dramatic
circumstances imaginable.

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00:12:40,467 --> 00:12:43,867
No one could have predicted how
this park was going to end up.

204
00:12:44,033 --> 00:12:46,200
[Henry]
I saw it on the news.

205
00:12:46,367 --> 00:12:50,166
We knew that our homes,
this park, it was gone.

206
00:12:58,667 --> 00:13:01,800
[narrator] While many of the
rides and attractions remain,

207
00:13:01,967 --> 00:13:05,600
the park today is not
a welcoming place.

208
00:13:07,900 --> 00:13:10,467
[Galpin] Basically, the swamp
has reclaimed itself.

209
00:13:10,634 --> 00:13:13,600
With that comes all the native
wildlife in Louisiana.

210
00:13:15,367 --> 00:13:19,400
[narrator]
Jeff Galpin has been managing
the wildlife here for the last

211
00:13:19,567 --> 00:13:23,800
12 years and knows more than
anyone the dangers

212
00:13:23,967 --> 00:13:26,000
that exist here.

213
00:13:26,000 --> 00:13:29,567
Over the years, we've taken over
21 alligators out the park.

214
00:13:29,734 --> 00:13:32,266
There still are a bunch in
the park, but until they become

215
00:13:32,433 --> 00:13:34,100
a nuisance,
we don't remove them.

216
00:13:35,467 --> 00:13:39,700
[narrator] But Jeff remembers
a very different time, as well.

217
00:13:39,867 --> 00:13:43,066
So the craziest part about this
area is I remember being here

218
00:13:43,233 --> 00:13:46,367
when it was open, and I had my
kids here, and I actually found

219
00:13:46,533 --> 00:13:50,266
some photos of my kids right in
this area, put two pictures

220
00:13:50,433 --> 00:13:53,367
side to side, and it's kind of
crazy on seeing the difference.

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00:13:57,000 --> 00:13:59,767
[narrator]
Built in the late 1990s,

222
00:13:59,934 --> 00:14:02,900
this was a theme park
the size of which the city

223
00:14:03,066 --> 00:14:04,266
had never seen.

224
00:14:07,700 --> 00:14:10,000
Troy Henry is
a property developer

225
00:14:10,166 --> 00:14:12,567
and the current owner
of the site.

226
00:14:12,734 --> 00:14:16,166
But back in the day,
he was just one of many excited

227
00:14:16,333 --> 00:14:19,367
locals eagerly
anticipating its opening.

228
00:14:21,767 --> 00:14:24,600
Everyone was super excited
because one, it was in

229
00:14:24,767 --> 00:14:26,800
our backyard, and two,
we didn't have

230
00:14:26,967 --> 00:14:28,300
anything of that sort.

231
00:14:28,967 --> 00:14:32,467
[narrator]
The park officially opened
in the year 2000 under

232
00:14:32,467 --> 00:14:33,867
the name Jazzland.

233
00:14:33,867 --> 00:14:35,767
[funky surf music playing]

234
00:14:37,467 --> 00:14:41,800
[narrator]
In addition to the roller
coaster, the 140-acre site had

235
00:14:41,967 --> 00:14:45,000
a log flume, a massive
water ride,

236
00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:47,200
and a Mardi Gras-themed area.

237
00:14:52,800 --> 00:14:56,800
Ryan Bordenave fondly remembers
his time working here.

238
00:14:58,900 --> 00:15:02,867
This is where you first became
acquainted into Jazzland,

239
00:15:02,867 --> 00:15:04,100
New Orleans.

240
00:15:04,100 --> 00:15:06,467
You were always welcomed
with some really nice music.

241
00:15:06,634 --> 00:15:08,700
You can actually see
the speakers, actually,

242
00:15:08,867 --> 00:15:11,266
they're still standing
after all this time.

243
00:15:13,667 --> 00:15:15,567
[Henry] So when you came in,
it was sort of, you can leave

244
00:15:15,734 --> 00:15:19,100
your worries behind --
it was just a fun place.

245
00:15:19,100 --> 00:15:22,800
[Bell]
You'd have heard the excited
screams coming from people on

246
00:15:22,967 --> 00:15:25,367
the rides, the sound of
laughter from those perhaps

247
00:15:25,533 --> 00:15:26,600
watching one of the shows.

248
00:15:26,600 --> 00:15:30,000
I mean, this place was just
full of joyful sounds.

249
00:15:31,967 --> 00:15:35,000
[Bordenave] This large
structure here is actually
part of our theater.

250
00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:37,100
We did small theatrical
style shows.

251
00:15:37,100 --> 00:15:39,000
I remember the first one went
like it was yesterday.

252
00:15:39,166 --> 00:15:40,867
It was called
"Jazz Jazz Jazz."

253
00:15:42,500 --> 00:15:45,100
[narrator] But unknown to most
of the visitors,

254
00:15:45,100 --> 00:15:50,567
behind the scenes,
Jazzland was in trouble.

255
00:15:50,567 --> 00:15:54,800
[Morgan]
I first visited Jazzland
within the first few days of

256
00:15:54,967 --> 00:15:59,066
operation, and it struck me as
a little bit questionable.

257
00:15:59,233 --> 00:16:00,467
It was a little shabby.

258
00:16:00,467 --> 00:16:04,166
It seemed like they were trying
to work bugs out of it.

259
00:16:04,333 --> 00:16:06,800
Just two years after opening,

260
00:16:06,967 --> 00:16:09,667
Jazzland was on
the verge of bankruptcy.

261
00:16:19,967 --> 00:16:23,467
[narrator] This vast amusement
park in East New Orleans

262
00:16:23,467 --> 00:16:24,900
opened in 2000

263
00:16:25,066 --> 00:16:28,367
under the name Jazzland.

264
00:16:28,367 --> 00:16:32,367
But it wasn't long before
this new park was in trouble.

265
00:16:34,467 --> 00:16:36,066
[Dr. Mitchell]
Shortly after they opened,

266
00:16:36,233 --> 00:16:38,266
visitor numbers dropped
off the cliff.

267
00:16:38,433 --> 00:16:41,500
[Morgan]
On the first visit, I got stuck
on one of the roller coasters

268
00:16:41,667 --> 00:16:43,467
and was stuck there
for almost two hours.

269
00:16:43,467 --> 00:16:47,767
It certainly wasn't a great way
to introduce the park to me.

270
00:16:49,166 --> 00:16:53,000
[narrator] In March 2002,
the struggling park was offered

271
00:16:53,166 --> 00:16:55,767
a lifeline by one of
America's most famous

272
00:16:55,934 --> 00:16:57,600
entertainment corporations.

273
00:17:00,100 --> 00:17:02,967
[Dr. Mitchell]
They added bigger,
more high-adrenaline rides,

274
00:17:03,133 --> 00:17:06,667
like an inverted roller coaster
that was over 100 feet tall

275
00:17:06,834 --> 00:17:08,700
and that went up
to 50 miles per hour.

276
00:17:10,166 --> 00:17:14,266
[narrator] The new owners spent
tens of millions on upgrades

277
00:17:14,266 --> 00:17:16,100
to the park.

278
00:17:16,100 --> 00:17:19,166
But just three years after
taking it over,

279
00:17:19,333 --> 00:17:23,467
a disaster turned everything
on its head.

280
00:17:23,467 --> 00:17:27,567
August 26th, we saw this storm
approaching the region.

281
00:17:27,567 --> 00:17:30,200
This park closed like
everything else.

282
00:17:30,367 --> 00:17:33,166
[Morgan] New Orleans was no
newcomer to hurricanes.

283
00:17:33,166 --> 00:17:35,266
There was always this
assumption that everything's

284
00:17:35,266 --> 00:17:37,567
gonna get back to normal
very quickly.

285
00:17:37,567 --> 00:17:41,166
[narrator] But this was
no ordinary hurricane.

286
00:17:41,333 --> 00:17:44,867
It was one of the most powerful
Atlantic storms on record,

287
00:17:45,033 --> 00:17:49,166
with winds in excess of
170 miles per hour.

288
00:17:50,300 --> 00:17:53,767
This was Hurricane Katrina.

289
00:17:53,934 --> 00:17:57,300
Within 24 hours of Katrina
making landfall, things got

290
00:17:57,467 --> 00:18:00,467
immeasurably worse,
when 28 of the levees

291
00:18:00,467 --> 00:18:02,600
holding back
the floodwaters broke.

292
00:18:03,867 --> 00:18:06,700
[Henry] My home,
my neighborhood,

293
00:18:06,867 --> 00:18:09,567
my business,
everything was

294
00:18:09,567 --> 00:18:11,166
devastated by
Hurricane Katrina.

295
00:18:12,767 --> 00:18:15,700
[Dr. Mitchell]
By the end of Katrina,
parts of New Orleans were under

296
00:18:15,867 --> 00:18:18,066
15 feet of water.

297
00:18:19,867 --> 00:18:22,200
The devastation
for the city was

298
00:18:22,367 --> 00:18:25,467
catastrophic, and the park
was not spared.

299
00:18:29,000 --> 00:18:31,166
[Henry] This park had six to
eight feet of water,

300
00:18:31,333 --> 00:18:34,166
of the ugliest, nastiest,
murkiest water

301
00:18:34,166 --> 00:18:36,100
you could ever imagine.

302
00:18:36,266 --> 00:18:38,000
[Dr. Mitchell] You can still
see the high water marks

303
00:18:38,000 --> 00:18:39,467
on the gate to the park.

304
00:18:39,634 --> 00:18:41,567
It's crazy to think
that the park was

305
00:18:41,567 --> 00:18:43,166
this much underwater.

306
00:18:44,767 --> 00:18:48,667
[narrator] Employees like Ryan
didn't have a chance to take any

307
00:18:48,834 --> 00:18:51,567
possessions or say goodbye
to the place

308
00:18:51,734 --> 00:18:53,300
they had worked for years.

309
00:18:55,667 --> 00:18:57,767
Wow,
this was my office.

310
00:18:57,767 --> 00:19:00,567
I actually see items in here
that I brought, pictures of

311
00:19:00,734 --> 00:19:05,567
family members, and I remember
it like it was yesterday.

312
00:19:05,734 --> 00:19:07,934
A lot of great memories,
a lot of good times.

313
00:19:10,400 --> 00:19:12,867
[narrator] With the city's
resources stretched,

314
00:19:13,033 --> 00:19:16,600
the floodwater stayed in
the park for over a month.

315
00:19:19,066 --> 00:19:22,266
Eventually, the water drained,
and the extent of the damage

316
00:19:22,266 --> 00:19:25,200
became clear --
it was not a pretty sight.

317
00:19:26,400 --> 00:19:28,266
[Bell] They now had
a decision to make --

318
00:19:28,266 --> 00:19:32,667
rebuild, or take the insurance
money and walk away.

319
00:19:34,600 --> 00:19:38,166
[narrator] In December 2006,
they dismantled

320
00:19:38,166 --> 00:19:40,367
and took away
one of the rides.

321
00:19:40,367 --> 00:19:44,867
It was clear the park was being
salvaged for parts and was

322
00:19:44,867 --> 00:19:46,000
beyond repair.

323
00:19:52,066 --> 00:19:54,967
[narrator] In recent years,
the abandoned park has been

324
00:19:55,133 --> 00:19:57,600
used for big budget movie sets.

325
00:19:57,767 --> 00:20:00,767
This new activity is keeping
animal wrangler

326
00:20:00,767 --> 00:20:02,467
Jeff Galpin busy.

327
00:20:03,767 --> 00:20:05,567
[Galpin] You know,
in Jurassic World,

328
00:20:05,734 --> 00:20:07,900
one of the crew members
saw a wild boar.

329
00:20:08,066 --> 00:20:10,667
So I went off into the woods,
and I found mama boar with

330
00:20:10,667 --> 00:20:12,400
a bunch of babies --
she charged me.

331
00:20:12,567 --> 00:20:15,166
We finally got mama under
control, but it was --

332
00:20:15,166 --> 00:20:17,967
it was a pretty dangerous
situation for a moment.

333
00:20:18,133 --> 00:20:21,300
[narrator] Although its days
as a post-apocalyptic filming

334
00:20:21,467 --> 00:20:25,266
location might soon be over,
Troy Henry is planning to

335
00:20:25,433 --> 00:20:29,767
redevelop the park to ensure
the cameras keep rolling.

336
00:20:29,767 --> 00:20:32,667
The first thing that's going to
come out the ground will be

337
00:20:32,834 --> 00:20:35,300
a movie and production studio.

338
00:20:35,467 --> 00:20:38,567
[narrator] And there are further
plans for the site to return to

339
00:20:38,567 --> 00:20:41,667
its amusement park
beginnings, too.

340
00:20:41,834 --> 00:20:44,767
The other thing we'll have is
we'll have two hotels,

341
00:20:44,934 --> 00:20:45,934
an indoor water park.

342
00:20:45,934 --> 00:20:48,100
We'll also have a family
entertainment center.

343
00:20:49,367 --> 00:20:53,066
[narrator] For this community
that has been through so much,

344
00:20:53,233 --> 00:20:55,567
the good times are coming back

345
00:20:55,734 --> 00:20:59,600
and this time are hopefully
here to stay.

346
00:21:04,767 --> 00:21:10,100
In Idaho's Treasure Valley,
an imposing fortified structure

347
00:21:10,266 --> 00:21:14,100
marks a watershed moment in
the taming of the Wild West.

348
00:21:21,500 --> 00:21:23,367
[Parry]
This place is full of stories,

349
00:21:24,767 --> 00:21:26,767
hope, desperation,

350
00:21:27,700 --> 00:21:29,767
tragedy, and redemption.

351
00:21:31,767 --> 00:21:34,166
Back in the day, this would
have been one of the worst

352
00:21:34,166 --> 00:21:35,600
places to be in Idaho.

353
00:21:36,900 --> 00:21:39,200
[Meigs] We're in Boise,
the state capital.

354
00:21:39,367 --> 00:21:44,066
Today it's a big, modern city,
but wasn't that long ago that

355
00:21:44,233 --> 00:21:46,166
this was a rough frontier town.

356
00:21:47,567 --> 00:21:50,800
[Prof. Zarsadiaz] Idaho, in many
ways, embodies the folklore of

357
00:21:50,967 --> 00:21:52,266
the old American West.

358
00:21:52,266 --> 00:21:56,300
Lots of vast, wide open spaces,
not very populated.

359
00:21:57,767 --> 00:22:02,100
[narrator] On the edge of town,
an impenetrable stone compound

360
00:22:02,266 --> 00:22:05,667
sits in the shadow of
the surrounding foothills.

361
00:22:05,834 --> 00:22:09,467
[Dr. Davis-Hayes]
This looks like some sort
of medieval fortress.

362
00:22:09,467 --> 00:22:13,400
You've got turrets guarding
the entire site.

363
00:22:15,367 --> 00:22:17,200
[Meigs] Inside, there are
multiple buildings.

364
00:22:17,367 --> 00:22:19,000
Some things are in
pretty good shape.

365
00:22:19,000 --> 00:22:22,767
Other buildings are falling
down or missing roofs.

366
00:22:22,934 --> 00:22:26,567
[Dr. Davis-Hayes] It looks like
a very destructive force

367
00:22:26,567 --> 00:22:28,500
just ripped
through them.

368
00:22:38,100 --> 00:22:42,300
[narrator] In Idaho's capital,
an austere complex stands as

369
00:22:42,467 --> 00:22:46,200
a reminder of the city's rough
and raucous beginnings.

370
00:22:47,900 --> 00:22:50,567
Lifelong Boise resident
Anthony Parry

371
00:22:50,567 --> 00:22:53,800
knows the secrets held
within these stone walls.

372
00:22:55,166 --> 00:22:58,767
There were plenty of outlaw
gangs and desperados that came

373
00:22:58,767 --> 00:23:02,300
through and left their names
and their stories,

374
00:23:02,467 --> 00:23:04,000
a lot of
them here.

375
00:23:05,600 --> 00:23:09,567
[narrator]
But this area's history
goes back to a time before

376
00:23:09,734 --> 00:23:12,500
law and order prevailed.

377
00:23:12,667 --> 00:23:15,367
As well as being indigenous
land, fur trappers and settlers

378
00:23:15,533 --> 00:23:18,000
following the Oregon Trail
passed through Boise.

379
00:23:18,166 --> 00:23:21,767
The flood of settlers
intensified even more in 1862

380
00:23:21,767 --> 00:23:24,066
when gold was discovered.

381
00:23:24,233 --> 00:23:26,467
[Parry] As some people
were striking it rich,

382
00:23:26,634 --> 00:23:28,867
others were not quite as

383
00:23:29,033 --> 00:23:31,467
lucky, and some of them
turned to crime.

384
00:23:31,634 --> 00:23:34,800
In the late 1860s,
they chose this area here in

385
00:23:34,967 --> 00:23:38,266
Boise to construct
the new territorial prison.

386
00:23:39,567 --> 00:23:43,400
[narrator] This is
the Old Idaho Penitentiary.

387
00:23:45,867 --> 00:23:49,100
Everything here
was designed for doling out

388
00:23:49,100 --> 00:23:51,567
discipline and discomfort.

389
00:23:51,567 --> 00:23:56,467
[Parry]
This building could actually
house 160 men at full capacity.

390
00:23:56,467 --> 00:23:58,266
There's no plumbing.

391
00:23:58,266 --> 00:24:01,467
In each of these cells,
there's a little trap door

392
00:24:01,634 --> 00:24:03,266
where they could
actually store

393
00:24:03,433 --> 00:24:05,000
their honey bucket,
their toilets.

394
00:24:07,467 --> 00:24:10,300
[narrator] And for those
who stepped out of line,

395
00:24:10,467 --> 00:24:12,367
punishment was cruel.

396
00:24:14,266 --> 00:24:18,200
[Meigs] The prison had solitary
confinement cells.

397
00:24:18,367 --> 00:24:20,967
They called it Siberia,
which probably gives you

398
00:24:21,133 --> 00:24:23,700
an idea of how appealing
these accommodations were.

399
00:24:25,600 --> 00:24:28,900
[Prof. Zarsadiaz]
Most of the men sentenced
to solitary confinement spent

400
00:24:29,066 --> 00:24:32,900
four to six months here,
but one actually spent a year

401
00:24:33,066 --> 00:24:35,800
and a half in one of
those tiny cells.

402
00:24:35,967 --> 00:24:39,967
[narrator]
Those who wound up behind bars
here would share prison time

403
00:24:40,133 --> 00:24:42,266
with some of the worst
criminals in the West.

404
00:24:44,000 --> 00:24:47,467
One of the most famous inmates
in this prison was a guy named

405
00:24:47,467 --> 00:24:48,634
Harry Orchard.

406
00:24:51,066 --> 00:24:54,000
[Dr. Davis-Hayes] He was
a bigamist, he was a gambler,

407
00:24:54,000 --> 00:24:55,867
and he had
lots of debts.

408
00:24:55,867 --> 00:25:00,367
[narrator]
He realized there was money in
being a hitman, and his weapon

409
00:25:00,367 --> 00:25:03,066
of choice wasn't
a gun or a knife.

410
00:25:03,233 --> 00:25:04,567
It was dynamite.

411
00:25:04,734 --> 00:25:07,367
[explosion booms]

412
00:25:07,533 --> 00:25:11,000
On December 30th,
1905, he assassinated

413
00:25:11,166 --> 00:25:12,867
Idaho Governor
Frank Steunenberg.

414
00:25:14,800 --> 00:25:17,467
[Meigs] Harry Orchard
was arrested for the crime.

415
00:25:17,467 --> 00:25:21,000
His trial was one of the first
trials of the century that was

416
00:25:21,166 --> 00:25:24,667
closely covered by newspapers
across the country.

417
00:25:26,367 --> 00:25:29,767
[narrator] In his confession,
Orchard claimed to have been

418
00:25:29,767 --> 00:25:33,100
contracted by members of
the Western Federation of

419
00:25:33,100 --> 00:25:37,767
Miners to assassinate Governor
Steunenberg because of his harsh

420
00:25:37,767 --> 00:25:40,667
anti-union stance.

421
00:25:40,667 --> 00:25:43,166
[Prof. Zarsadiaz] Orchard was
originally sentenced to death,

422
00:25:43,166 --> 00:25:45,900
but his sentence
was commuted to life in prison.

423
00:25:47,867 --> 00:25:51,500
[narrator] And life at the Idaho
Penitentiary would have

424
00:25:51,667 --> 00:25:56,367
a profound effect on
this cold-blooded murderer.

425
00:25:56,367 --> 00:26:01,667
[Dr. Davis-Hayes]
He was visited by Governor
Frank Steunenberg's widow.

426
00:26:01,834 --> 00:26:04,100
She forgave him for
killing her husband.

427
00:26:04,100 --> 00:26:07,500
[Meigs] She convinced him to
adopt a particularly devout form

428
00:26:07,667 --> 00:26:11,867
of Christianity -- he became
a Seventh-Day Adventist.

429
00:26:11,867 --> 00:26:14,900
For a guy who claimed to have
been involved in more than

430
00:26:15,066 --> 00:26:18,467
a dozen murders, Orchard was
a real pussycat in prison.

431
00:26:18,467 --> 00:26:21,800
He even learned how to be
a skilled shoemaker.

432
00:26:23,266 --> 00:26:27,066
[narrator]
While his requests for
parole were repeatedly denied,

433
00:26:27,233 --> 00:26:30,367
Orchard was still granted
a freedom very few

434
00:26:30,533 --> 00:26:32,266
prisoners enjoyed.

435
00:26:32,266 --> 00:26:35,367
He eventually got to live
outside the walls, away from

436
00:26:35,533 --> 00:26:38,667
the other prisoners, in his own
cabin, just because he was

437
00:26:38,834 --> 00:26:41,200
a kindly old man in
his older age.

438
00:26:43,000 --> 00:26:46,667
[narrator]
While Orchard was undergoing
his transformation from

439
00:26:46,834 --> 00:26:51,100
hardened criminal to trusted
inmate, others sentenced here

440
00:26:51,100 --> 00:26:54,400
were willing to put
their lives on the line.

441
00:26:54,567 --> 00:26:57,200
[Parry] Over the 101 years
that the prison was active,

442
00:26:57,367 --> 00:26:59,767
there were
500 attempted escapes,

443
00:26:59,767 --> 00:27:01,767
90 of which
were successful.

444
00:27:03,567 --> 00:27:07,066
[narrator]
One of those attempts occurred
at the newly constructed

445
00:27:07,233 --> 00:27:11,000
women's ward, which in 1921,
welcomed one of

446
00:27:11,000 --> 00:27:14,200
the penitentiary's most
notorious inmates,

447
00:27:14,367 --> 00:27:15,500
Lyda Southard.

448
00:27:17,967 --> 00:27:21,100
[Parry] Famously,
she married 'em and buried 'em.

449
00:27:21,266 --> 00:27:23,567
She would marry prominent men.

450
00:27:23,567 --> 00:27:26,200
She would take out life
insurance policies on them

451
00:27:26,367 --> 00:27:29,867
and slowly poison them using
arsenic extracted

452
00:27:30,033 --> 00:27:31,000
from flypaper.

453
00:27:31,000 --> 00:27:34,266
She murdered four
husbands, brother-in-law,

454
00:27:34,433 --> 00:27:35,700
and her daughter.

455
00:27:38,000 --> 00:27:41,567
[narrator] Lyda Southard was
sentenced to 10 years to life

456
00:27:41,734 --> 00:27:44,867
and sent to
Idaho Penitentiary.

457
00:27:44,867 --> 00:27:49,667
But unlike Harry Orchard,
who chose a path of redemption,

458
00:27:49,834 --> 00:27:53,667
Lyda wanted to be free,
whatever the cost.

459
00:27:55,266 --> 00:27:59,667
She ultimately escaped out of
her cell by sawing through

460
00:27:59,667 --> 00:28:02,867
the outer bars
and climbing out of her cell.

461
00:28:03,033 --> 00:28:07,467
And she had staged a set of
planter boxes that were

462
00:28:07,467 --> 00:28:08,667
actually a ladder.

463
00:28:10,500 --> 00:28:13,867
[Meigs] It took a year for
the authorities to catch up

464
00:28:14,033 --> 00:28:15,133
with her.

465
00:28:15,133 --> 00:28:18,367
Now she was living in Denver,
just gotten remarried,

466
00:28:18,533 --> 00:28:20,567
and she had just convinced him

467
00:28:20,567 --> 00:28:23,166
to take out
a life insurance policy.

468
00:28:25,100 --> 00:28:27,266
[Meigs] In the end, she was
actually released on parole.

469
00:28:27,433 --> 00:28:29,200
She moved to Utah.

470
00:28:29,367 --> 00:28:32,266
She remarried a man
who disappeared,

471
00:28:32,433 --> 00:28:34,567
and there's no trace of him.

472
00:28:34,567 --> 00:28:37,200
And she died of a heart attack
in the 1950s.

473
00:28:39,367 --> 00:28:43,500
[narrator] While some escaped
and others reformed, the lives

474
00:28:43,667 --> 00:28:45,567
of the criminals that passed
through the old

475
00:28:45,734 --> 00:28:48,500
Idaho Penitentiary were
forever changed.

476
00:28:49,867 --> 00:28:53,100
But the prison's most notorious
days were just

477
00:28:53,266 --> 00:28:54,266
around the corner.

478
00:29:03,367 --> 00:29:07,000
[narrator]
From the state's territorial
days to the mid-20th century,

479
00:29:07,166 --> 00:29:10,266
over 10,000 men and women
were imprisoned

480
00:29:10,266 --> 00:29:13,066
at the old Idaho Penitentiary.

481
00:29:13,233 --> 00:29:16,467
But as it approached
its centenary, the inmates were

482
00:29:16,634 --> 00:29:19,667
about to reach
their breaking point.

483
00:29:19,667 --> 00:29:21,867
[Parry]
In the middle of the century,
there are several riots,

484
00:29:22,033 --> 00:29:24,767
and it's around that time that
conditions here

485
00:29:24,767 --> 00:29:26,400
were being questioned.

486
00:29:26,567 --> 00:29:30,100
So they started construction in
late 1960s on the new prison.

487
00:29:31,767 --> 00:29:35,200
[Dr. Davis-Hayes]
Many men knew that they
were to be transferred there,

488
00:29:35,367 --> 00:29:38,700
and this created a good amount
of uncertainty.

489
00:29:38,867 --> 00:29:42,100
[narrator] This tension would
ultimately bring down

490
00:29:42,266 --> 00:29:46,000
the Old Idaho Penitentiary in
catastrophic fashion.

491
00:29:46,166 --> 00:29:49,867
[Parry] We had our final major
riot in March of 1973.

492
00:29:51,100 --> 00:29:52,700
The dining hall
was caught on fire.

493
00:29:52,867 --> 00:29:55,266
The chapel
eventually caught on fire.

494
00:29:55,266 --> 00:29:59,567
The commissary was looted,
and it took officers along

495
00:29:59,734 --> 00:30:03,567
the wall and officers in
the yard with riot sticks to

496
00:30:03,734 --> 00:30:05,767
finally quell that riot
after several hours.

497
00:30:07,600 --> 00:30:10,367
[narrator] The dining hall
and chapel were never rebuilt.

498
00:30:10,367 --> 00:30:16,166
And by December of 1973,
all the inmates were relocated

499
00:30:16,166 --> 00:30:17,266
to the new facility.

500
00:30:18,467 --> 00:30:21,667
With that,
the Old Idaho Penitentiary

501
00:30:21,667 --> 00:30:24,367
closed its doors
for good.

502
00:30:26,300 --> 00:30:30,100
Today, the Idaho State
Historical Society is

503
00:30:30,266 --> 00:30:32,166
preserving the penitentiary,

504
00:30:32,333 --> 00:30:35,867
and its doors are open
once again.

505
00:30:35,867 --> 00:30:37,700
[Parry]
This is an active museum.

506
00:30:37,867 --> 00:30:40,900
We invite the public to come
here all year round to

507
00:30:41,066 --> 00:30:44,166
celebrate the history of Idaho
and see the evolution of

508
00:30:44,333 --> 00:30:45,500
the criminal justice system.

509
00:30:54,367 --> 00:30:59,300
[narrator] In the Great Lakes
is the home of an unlikely
industry that

510
00:30:59,467 --> 00:31:03,166
refused to be squashed by
a radical change in the law.

511
00:31:11,367 --> 00:31:14,200
[Korenko]
Looking at the building,
you can't help but wonder.

512
00:31:16,266 --> 00:31:17,867
Wonder about the lore.

513
00:31:18,033 --> 00:31:20,100
You wonder about
the mystery of the place.

514
00:31:22,100 --> 00:31:24,200
[Szulgit]
This is Kelleys Island, Ohio.

515
00:31:24,367 --> 00:31:27,567
It's a small landmass in
Lake Erie, about four miles

516
00:31:27,734 --> 00:31:29,166
north of the mainland.

517
00:31:30,767 --> 00:31:33,667
[narrator] Hidden in the woods
are the remains of

518
00:31:33,834 --> 00:31:35,000
an abandoned structure.

519
00:31:36,100 --> 00:31:38,400
[Dr. Thomas] It's just
the shell of a building.

520
00:31:38,567 --> 00:31:40,800
Looks like something
catastrophic happened here.

521
00:31:40,967 --> 00:31:44,367
[Korenko] If you didn't know
what it was, you might think

522
00:31:44,533 --> 00:31:46,000
it was a castle.

523
00:31:47,967 --> 00:31:49,266
[Szulgit]
When you look on the ground,

524
00:31:49,266 --> 00:31:51,967
there are pieces of metal
strewn everywhere.

525
00:31:52,133 --> 00:31:54,767
Are these a clue to
the building's past?

526
00:31:56,900 --> 00:32:00,867
[Meares] Beneath the ruins
is this subterranean lair.

527
00:32:00,867 --> 00:32:03,500
It almost feels
like the catacombs.

528
00:32:03,667 --> 00:32:04,800
It's really creepy.

529
00:32:05,867 --> 00:32:07,300
[dripping]

530
00:32:07,300 --> 00:32:11,400
[narrator]
This building was at the heart
of a movement that made it all

531
00:32:11,567 --> 00:32:13,700
the way to the White House.

532
00:32:13,867 --> 00:32:17,400
But the potency of its product
would play a part

533
00:32:17,567 --> 00:32:19,166
in its downfall.

534
00:32:19,166 --> 00:32:23,100
[Dr. Thomas]
The flames raced across
the structure, smoke billowing

535
00:32:23,100 --> 00:32:25,000
out, ash coming out everywhere.

536
00:32:25,000 --> 00:32:28,300
It's said that as the building
smoldered, the entire ground

537
00:32:28,467 --> 00:32:31,500
was strewn with nothing
but men, blind drunk.

538
00:32:36,867 --> 00:32:40,266
[narrator] On Kelleys island
in the Great Lakes,

539
00:32:40,433 --> 00:32:42,367
Leslie Korenko is exploring

540
00:32:42,533 --> 00:32:45,867
a set of ruins that
have been close to her heart

541
00:32:46,033 --> 00:32:47,400
for nearly 50 years.

542
00:32:47,567 --> 00:32:51,667
When I first saw the building,
my first thought was, wow!

543
00:32:53,467 --> 00:32:58,300
[narrator]
This structure was home to
a forgotten industry that Ohio

544
00:32:58,467 --> 00:33:02,266
was at the forefront of
nearly two centuries ago.

545
00:33:02,433 --> 00:33:05,166
They produced various
kinds of wines up here,

546
00:33:05,166 --> 00:33:06,700
red, white, sparkling.

547
00:33:09,166 --> 00:33:13,567
[narrator] This is the
Kelleys Island Wine Company.

548
00:33:13,567 --> 00:33:17,166
And the grapevines,
which were key to its success,

549
00:33:17,166 --> 00:33:20,634
only came here thanks
to one man.

550
00:33:23,100 --> 00:33:26,000
Around 1810,
a keen horticulturalist named

551
00:33:26,166 --> 00:33:29,100
Charles Carpenter
moved to the island.

552
00:33:29,266 --> 00:33:34,166
[narrator] No one suspected
that Charles's passion for
plants would change

553
00:33:34,333 --> 00:33:37,166
the course of history for
Kelleys Island.

554
00:33:37,166 --> 00:33:40,367
[Szulgit]
In the mid-19th century,
the Catawba grapevine was

555
00:33:40,533 --> 00:33:45,667
the new it plant for gardeners
across America, and in 1841,

556
00:33:45,667 --> 00:33:47,767
Charles planted it here
in his garden.

557
00:33:47,934 --> 00:33:51,000
It was the first grapevine
planted on the island.

558
00:33:53,100 --> 00:33:57,367
[Korenko] Carpenter recognized
that they grew really well.

559
00:33:57,533 --> 00:34:00,166
Kelleys Island is in
a unique situation.

560
00:34:00,166 --> 00:34:02,567
Because of the lake effect,
we have later falls,

561
00:34:02,567 --> 00:34:04,567
and we have earlier springs.

562
00:34:04,567 --> 00:34:10,166
And that allows the grapes to
mature in a much better way.

563
00:34:10,333 --> 00:34:11,767
It was a cash crop.

564
00:34:13,300 --> 00:34:15,700
[narrator]
Charles had excess grapes,

565
00:34:15,867 --> 00:34:19,166
which he sold to be eaten by
other islanders.

566
00:34:19,166 --> 00:34:22,100
And when the crop
outgrew this demand,

567
00:34:22,100 --> 00:34:27,166
he turned to
a new product -- wine.

568
00:34:27,166 --> 00:34:29,667
The wine that Charles made
must have been excellent.

569
00:34:29,667 --> 00:34:33,767
It won an award
at the 1853 Ohio State Fair.

570
00:34:37,667 --> 00:34:40,600
[Dr. Thomas]
Seeing the success that Charles
had with his wine, other people

571
00:34:40,767 --> 00:34:42,166
on the island started to
do the same,

572
00:34:42,166 --> 00:34:45,467
and it wasn't long before
little wineries could be seen

573
00:34:45,634 --> 00:34:46,800
all over the island.

574
00:34:46,967 --> 00:34:49,266
This place was really bit
by the wine bug.

575
00:34:51,100 --> 00:34:55,667
[narrator] By 1870, a quarter of
the island was covered

576
00:34:55,667 --> 00:34:57,600
in vineyards,

577
00:34:57,767 --> 00:35:00,567
but turning their grapes into
wine wasn't easy

578
00:35:00,567 --> 00:35:03,500
for these small,
independent producers.

579
00:35:03,667 --> 00:35:06,800
A large part of wine production
comes down to storing

580
00:35:06,967 --> 00:35:10,300
the liquid in barrels and under
the right conditions so that

581
00:35:10,467 --> 00:35:11,767
the wine can gather its flavor.

582
00:35:11,767 --> 00:35:15,000
This can be for months,
even years.

583
00:35:15,000 --> 00:35:18,900
This was really hard for
a lot of small wineries.

584
00:35:19,066 --> 00:35:21,900
So they actually banded
together and built

585
00:35:22,066 --> 00:35:25,900
this building here where
they could store the wine.

586
00:35:28,367 --> 00:35:32,367
[narrator] In 1872, when
this building was constructed,

587
00:35:32,367 --> 00:35:37,567
its cellars could store over
150,000 gallons of wine.

588
00:35:43,967 --> 00:35:46,834
It takes your breath away.
It really does.

589
00:35:49,266 --> 00:35:52,500
[narrator]
Just four years later,
the wine made here was being

590
00:35:52,667 --> 00:35:56,467
sold throughout America,
Canada, and even Europe.

591
00:35:58,467 --> 00:36:01,667
The wine from the island
won national awards.

592
00:36:01,834 --> 00:36:04,266
It was considered to be
so good that it was enjoyed

593
00:36:04,433 --> 00:36:07,800
and discussed at a New Year's
Eve dinner at the White House.

594
00:36:09,166 --> 00:36:13,000
[narrator] With this success,
no one could have predicted

595
00:36:13,166 --> 00:36:15,567
the tragedy that happened next.

596
00:36:27,200 --> 00:36:30,567
[narrator] On Lake Erie,
the Kelleys Island Wine Company

597
00:36:30,734 --> 00:36:34,667
had utilized the area's natural
grape-growing ability,

598
00:36:34,834 --> 00:36:39,166
making Ohio one of
the wine capitals of America.

599
00:36:39,333 --> 00:36:43,367
But island life would play
a leading role in exacerbating

600
00:36:43,533 --> 00:36:46,867
a disaster that was just
around the corner.

601
00:36:46,867 --> 00:36:50,567
It's hard to imagine that
a stone building like this

602
00:36:50,734 --> 00:36:52,266
could burn, but it did.

603
00:36:53,300 --> 00:36:56,100
In 1876, it caught fire.

604
00:36:57,500 --> 00:36:59,800
The fire would have
been seen for miles.

605
00:36:59,967 --> 00:37:02,266
They would have been able to
see it onto the mainland.

606
00:37:03,867 --> 00:37:07,667
[Szulgit]
The cause of the fire is lost
to history, but what we do know

607
00:37:07,834 --> 00:37:11,800
is that islanders came from all
over the island to fight it.

608
00:37:11,967 --> 00:37:15,000
They weren't firefighters,
so they weren't very good at

609
00:37:15,166 --> 00:37:16,500
stopping the fire.

610
00:37:16,500 --> 00:37:19,700
[Korenko]
We really had no firefighting
apparatus at this point.

611
00:37:19,867 --> 00:37:22,467
It was a bucket brigade
from the lake.

612
00:37:23,967 --> 00:37:27,100
[narrator] The fire spread into
the cellars below, and as

613
00:37:27,266 --> 00:37:30,700
the wooden wine barrels
became engulfed in flames,

614
00:37:30,867 --> 00:37:34,367
they burst open,
creating a sea of wine.

615
00:37:36,500 --> 00:37:40,467
Apparently, some of
the volunteers took advantage

616
00:37:40,467 --> 00:37:43,967
of the situation, and by
the time the fire was well

617
00:37:44,133 --> 00:37:46,667
underway, there were
drunken bodies laying all

618
00:37:46,834 --> 00:37:47,800
over the ground.

619
00:37:49,600 --> 00:37:52,166
[narrator]
The fire decimated the building,

620
00:37:52,333 --> 00:37:55,266
but its story didn't end here.

621
00:37:56,300 --> 00:37:59,300
The fire did not destroy
the company, it was too

622
00:37:59,467 --> 00:38:02,667
profitable, and within a year,
they had rebuilt into

623
00:38:02,834 --> 00:38:04,400
the castle that we see today.

624
00:38:06,500 --> 00:38:09,066
[narrator]
It was built bigger than before,

625
00:38:09,233 --> 00:38:10,867
more than doubling its capacity

626
00:38:11,033 --> 00:38:13,266
to 350,000 gallons.

627
00:38:14,867 --> 00:38:20,200
Yet this extra storage couldn't
prevent the harsh Ohio winters

628
00:38:20,367 --> 00:38:23,400
threatening to bring business
to a halt each year.

629
00:38:23,567 --> 00:38:27,867
Lake Erie is not the smallest
of the Great Lakes, but it is

630
00:38:28,033 --> 00:38:32,266
the shallowest, and that means
that it freezes, making getting

631
00:38:32,433 --> 00:38:34,667
on and off the island
very difficult.

632
00:38:36,767 --> 00:38:39,567
[Dr. Thomas]
So the Kelleys Island Wine
Company came up with a creative

633
00:38:39,567 --> 00:38:42,066
and ingenious method to get
the wine from the island

634
00:38:42,233 --> 00:38:43,867
to the mainland.

635
00:38:44,033 --> 00:38:47,400
[Szulgit]
The wine was put into these
barrels that were sometimes as

636
00:38:47,567 --> 00:38:51,767
large as 1,200 gallons, and they
would put them on sleds pulled

637
00:38:51,934 --> 00:38:56,066
by horses to be drawn
4.5 miles to the mainland.

638
00:38:58,500 --> 00:39:02,900
[narrator]
Despite overcoming the bitter
Midwest winters, this winery

639
00:39:03,066 --> 00:39:07,467
was about to be thrown into
chaos as a radical wave of

640
00:39:07,467 --> 00:39:09,800
change swept across America.

641
00:39:11,100 --> 00:39:14,567
On the 27th of May,
1919, the state of Ohio enacted

642
00:39:14,734 --> 00:39:18,600
Prohibition, making it illegal
to buy or consume alcohol in

643
00:39:18,767 --> 00:39:19,934
the state of Ohio.

644
00:39:21,000 --> 00:39:25,000
[narrator] Nearly seven months
later, on January 17th,

645
00:39:25,166 --> 00:39:30,100
1920, the entire country
followed suit, and the era of

646
00:39:30,100 --> 00:39:32,667
national Prohibition began.

647
00:39:32,667 --> 00:39:36,800
Yet, in a cunning twist,
it didn't mark the end

648
00:39:36,967 --> 00:39:39,266
of this building.

649
00:39:39,266 --> 00:39:41,500
They sold grapes,
which they continued to grow

650
00:39:41,667 --> 00:39:42,934
on the island.

651
00:39:42,934 --> 00:39:46,867
They sold sacramental wine to
the churches, and they sold kits

652
00:39:47,033 --> 00:39:49,166
to make wine vinegar.

653
00:39:49,333 --> 00:39:52,867
[Dr. Thomas] Now the production
of wine vinegar isn't all that

654
00:39:53,033 --> 00:39:55,567
different from regular wine.

655
00:39:55,567 --> 00:39:57,767
So to ensure that
their customers stayed on

656
00:39:57,767 --> 00:40:01,000
the right side of the law,
the Kelleys Island Wine Company

657
00:40:01,166 --> 00:40:04,467
made sure to create a label
that said, do not add any sugar,

658
00:40:04,634 --> 00:40:07,800
and definitely don't put this
in a cool, dry place for

659
00:40:07,967 --> 00:40:09,467
up to two weeks.

660
00:40:09,467 --> 00:40:12,600
[narrator] Despite finding a way
to survive Prohibition,

661
00:40:12,767 --> 00:40:16,900
this building didn't last to
see alcohol legalized again.

662
00:40:18,667 --> 00:40:22,867
[Korenko] The saga of
this building pretty much
ends in 1933,

663
00:40:23,033 --> 00:40:27,200
when a massive fire destroyed
the entire interior.

664
00:40:27,367 --> 00:40:31,000
According to the newspaper
reports, it was a brush fire.

665
00:40:31,000 --> 00:40:33,000
Who knows?
Could have been arson.

666
00:40:33,166 --> 00:40:34,467
Nobody was ever really sure.

667
00:40:35,700 --> 00:40:38,500
[Szulgit] This fire came at
exactly the wrong time.

668
00:40:38,667 --> 00:40:41,867
With Prohibition, profits were
dramatically reduced,

669
00:40:42,033 --> 00:40:44,700
and the company simply didn't
have the money to rebuild

670
00:40:44,867 --> 00:40:46,667
this place,
and it was abandoned.

671
00:40:52,700 --> 00:40:57,567
[narrator]
Today, nearly a century later,
the wine industry is making

672
00:40:57,734 --> 00:40:59,667
a comeback on the island.

673
00:40:59,834 --> 00:41:03,567
[Korenko] We now have three
active wineries, one of which

674
00:41:03,567 --> 00:41:07,000
it is an incarnation of the
Kelleys Island Wine Company.

675
00:41:08,100 --> 00:41:11,600
[narrator] And there's hope that
this place, where the industry

676
00:41:11,767 --> 00:41:14,567
began, might
come back to life.

677
00:41:14,734 --> 00:41:18,066
[Korenko]
The current owners are not sure
what they want to do with it,

678
00:41:18,233 --> 00:41:22,467
but we are hoping that
they preserve the integrity of

679
00:41:22,634 --> 00:41:25,066
the ruins that are here,
since they're such a big part

680
00:41:25,233 --> 00:41:26,166
of the island's history.