Testing Objects and Finding Experts
Description
Wes Cowan of PBS's History Detectives discusses the work of experts who carry out tests to determine the authenticity and origin of artifacts investigated in the show.
Buildings
Description
Gwen Wright of PBS's History Detectives discusses the details to look at when dating a building, examines scientific techniques used in difficult dating tasks, and looks at several specific homes.
Nazi Technology
Description
Gwen Wright of PBS's History Detectives introduces Operation Paperclip, which, at the end of World War II, brought Nazi scientists to work for the U.S. Many of the CIA documents related to this project remain classified, despite demands for their release.
Background: Civil War Photography
Description
Wes Cowan of PBS's History Detectives discusses the work of photographers during the Civil War, including how photographers manipulated reality in constructing their shots.
Thin Section Analysis
Description
Elyse Luray of PBS's History Detectives narrates a brief demonstration of thin section analysis, used to determine the mineral content of an historic artifact.
Trash or Treasure
Description
Elyse Luray of PBS's History Detectives gives an overview of basic points to look for and sources to turn to in identifying found artifacts.
Plantation Agriculture Museum [AR]
Description
This museum interprets cotton agriculture in Arkansas from statehood in 1836 through World War II, when agricultural practices quickly became mechanized. Visitors can tour the restored 1920s cotton gin and see how cotton was grown, picked, and processed.
The museum offers exhibits, tours, educational programs, and occasional recreational and educational events.
Arkansas Museum of Natural Resources
Description
Exhibits and programs tell of the industrial and social history surrounding the 'black gold rush' of Arkansas's oil fields. Visitors walk the rutted streets of a 1920s oil boom town, then go on a journey inside the earth to see formation of the oil strata. In the museum's Oil Field Park, see full-size operating equipment used from the 1920s to the modern era, including a 1920s standard oil rig and a 112-foot wooden derrick.
The site offers a short film, exhibits, tours, educational programs, and occasional recreational and educational events.
Powhatan Historic State Park [AR]
Description
In the late 1800s, this busy river port on the Black River was the shipping point for a large territory. In 1888, a Victorian courthouse was built here. Restored in 1970 to the architect's original plans, the courthouse today serves as a regional archive that contains some of the oldest records in Arkansas. Visitors can tour the Powhatan Courthouse, 1873 Powhatan Jail, 1840s Ficklin-Imboden House, 1888 Telephone Exchange Building, and 1880s Powhatan Male and Female Academy, a unique two-room schoolhouse, all gracing their original foundations.
The site offers tours, exhibits, and workshops.
Missouri Mines State Historic Site
Description
St. Joseph Lead Co. dominated ore production and became the heart of the easter Ozarks' Old Lead Belt, continuing operations in this district until 1972. In 1975, the company donated the 25 buildings of their largest mine-mill complex and the surrounding land to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. These properties became Missouri Mines State Historic Site and St. Joe State Park. The 19,000 square-foot mine-mill powerhouse has been developed into a large museum that interprets Missouri's mining history and displays old mining machinery and an outstanding mineral collection.
The site offers a short film, exhibits, tours, and occasional recreational and educational events.