It’s History

In autumn 2022, the Mississippi River fell to extraordinary lows: near Memphis, Civil War shipwrecks resurfaced with intact artifacts; at Baton Rouge, a steamboat hull last seen in 1915 was exposed; and saltwater from the Gulf advanced roughly 60 miles upstream, contaminating drinking water. The river didn’t run dry, but the conditions were unprecedented by historical standards.

This episode traces these events to engineering decisions after the catastrophic 1927 flood, when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers used levees and artificial cutoffs that shortened the river by about 170 miles. While effective for flood control, the faster, straighter river—lacking floodplains and natural reserves—proved vulnerable in drought, contributing to the record lows of 2022 and 2023.

#ItsHistory #MississippiRiver #AmericanHistory
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Did you know that Chicago's Merchandise Mart has its own zip code? Opened in 1930, it was the largest building in the world, spanning 4 million square feet. Its significance led to a dedicated L stop and a connection to a now-abandoned 60 miles of underground freight tunnels.

Merchandise Mart was built above a massive train yard, facilitating freight train deliveries in the heart of Chicago for many decades. This near-century-old art deco masterpiece, located on the banks of the Chicago River, serves around 20,000 people daily.

Video Highlights:
- Importance of Merchandise Mart’s land to Chicago trade
- Construction and size of Merchandise Mart
- Grand opening details
- Merchandise Mart as a "city within a city"
- Tour of Merchandise Mart
- History of radio broadcast at Merchandise Mart
- The Merchandise Mart train station
- Fate of the Merchandise Mart’s rail freight yard
- Features of Merchandise Mart’s basement
- Connection to Chicago freight tunnels
- Link to the Chicago Flood and its impact on Merchandise Mart
- Transformation of the Chicago Loop due to Merchandise Mart

#ITSHISTORY #MerchandiseMart #ChicagoHistory
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In this episode of It’s History, we explore the story behind the Lincoln Tunnel, one of the busiest vehicular tunnels in the world, connecting New York to New Jersey. The tunnel sees over 100,000 cars daily and around 21 million annually.

Topics covered include:
- Inspiration from the Holland Tunnel
- Proposed underwater tunnels
- Financial struggles and funding methods
- Engineering feats involved in its construction
- Ventilation system and significant events in its history

#LincolnTunnel #HollandTunnel #UrbanHistory #ItsHistory
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High in the hills of Griffith Park, Los Angeles, lies the abandoned remains of the first zoo, built in 1912. Once a symbol of civic ambition, the original Griffith Park Zoo became a cautionary tale of poor planning, limited funding, and misunderstandings about animal welfare. This episode delves into the zoo's cheaply constructed cages, the public scandal related to its cramped enclosures, and the New Deal renovations that briefly hid deeper issues. It covers the zoo's quiet closure in the 1960s and its afterlife as an urban ruin and graffiti-covered hangout.

#LosAngeles #AbandonedPlaces #ItsHistory
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IT’S HISTORY - Weekly Tales of American Urban Decay presented by host Ryan Socash.

In this episode, we explore the intricate history of the global sugar trade with a focus on New York and the Domino Sugar Refinery.

Chapters:
00:00 - How New York was a Part of the Global Sugar Trade
01:52 - The History of New York’s Havemeyer Family’s Sugar Company
03:48 - The impact of the Industrial Revolution on Sugar Trade
05:48 - Overview of sugar refining processes
06:33 - Functions of the 1880’s Domino Sugar Factory
08:44 - Expansion of the Domino Sugar Refinery in 1881
11:08 - 1920’s expansion of Domino Sugar beyond Brooklyn
13:06 - The challenging history of the global sugar trade
18:44 - The downfall of New York’s Domino Sugar Refinery
19:55 - What remains of Brooklyn’s Domino Sugar Refinery
24:39 - The legacy of New York’s Domino Sugar Refinery

Scriptwriter - Brandon Evans,
Editor - Karolina Szwata,
Host - Ryan Socash.

Some media elements in this video are used under the fair use provisions of U.S. copyright law for purposes of commentary, criticism, and education.
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