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Power of Place
How geography, environment, and communities have shaped history.

Featured "Power of Place" Stories


Quiltmakers of Gee's Bend
Quilt making has a long history in Alabama, and there are no finer examples of this art form than the motifs and craftsmanship of the quilts of Gee’s Bend.


Dakota Pathways: The Mighty Mo
Throughout our history and even before human habitation, the Missouri River has played a significant role in shaping not only the physical geography of South Dakota but also the human geography. This episode examines how the Missouri River has shaped human habitation in the state and region. In this collection of resources, your students will learn how the river served as a life source for many early Indian tribes and as a watery highway for exploration and settlement. It has


Florida Life during the Revolution
Discover the story of Florida during the American Revolution: a place loyal to the British Crown, shaped by international land swaps, cultural clashes, and the determination of its people.


America's Secret War: Minnesota Remembers Vietnam
In the shadows of the Vietnam War, the CIA organized a secret war in neighboring Laos to prevent communism from spreading deeper into Southeast Asia. The Hmong fought for the U.S. — and for themselves— to keep Ho Chi Minh’s regime from destroying their way of life.


The Bozeman Trail: A Rush to Montana's Gold
The Bozeman Trail was an offshoot of the Oregon Trail, a shortcut to the newly discovered gold fields of Montana Territory. Cutting through the heart of Indian country. It became a flash point for a clash of cultures that would explode into warfare, destruction and tragedy. First telecast March, 2019.


Kiyokawa Apple Paradise
The story of a third-generation Japanese American-owned fruit orchard in the shadow of Oregon’s Mount Hood. The Kiyokawas have been stewards of the land since 1911 and, over the next century, survived the forcible relocation of Japanese Americans to concentration camps during World War II and the continuing challenges of generational farming.


Luther Cressman, Quest for First People
In the 1930s, archeologist Luther Cressman made a series of discoveries that shocked the scientific world. They included a cache of 75 sagebrush sandals that proved to be the oldest shoes ever found. He believed people were in the Americas far earlier than most researchers thought possible. Today, modern science is finally proving him right.


Mr. Besley's Forest
In 1906, Maryland was third in the nation to establish a state system of forests and parks. Fred W. Besley, appointed by Governor Edwin Warfield, became Maryland's first State Forester. During his 36 years, Besley created a model for scientific forest management and the Big Tree formula. Today, Marylanders are learning his lessons of forest conservation and listening to the music of the trees.
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