The History Series

Season 1
The History Series takes us into the fascinating world of Death Valley, the site of the last great American Gold Rush. The series explores those who came to make their fortune; the rise of boom towns like Rhyolite; looks beneath Death Valley at what could be supernatural occurrences, and even details the importance of the mule in this harsh environment and the creation of the famed 20 mule team.
201116 episodesALL
Available to buy

Episodes

  1. S1 E1 - CHASING THE RAINBOW

    April 18, 2005
    51min
    ALL
    The last great gold rush played out in the deserts of Nevada and California. It began with those who roamed the barren hills seeking their fortune. Most traveled with their tools, some food, a blanket and a jackass. They were called “single-blanket-jackass prospectors”. This is the story of those who spent their lives “Chasing The Rainbow”.
    Available to buy
  2. S1 E2 - THE GREAT DESERT RAILROAD RACE

    April 18, 2010
    53min
    ALL
    In 1905 the world was coming to Beatty, Nevada. It was the site of a great gold rush. Two giants of the mining industry wanted to capitalize on the boom and get their railroads to the goldfields. In a drama with many twists and turns, only one railroad would be first to make it to the goldfields.
    Available to buy
  3. S1 E3 - DEATH VALLEY MEMORIES

    April 18, 2010
    56min
    ALL
    Death Valley’s fascinating history comes to life in the words of ‘old-timers’ who remember its Wild West days. Meet prospectors, promoters, millionaires and homesteaders through the eyes of those who knew them. These are true stories from those who made their home in America’s deepest, driest, hottest desert.
    Available to buy
  4. S1 E4 - DEATH IN THE DESERT

    April 18, 2010
    50min
    ALL
    Ever since America discovered the desert, images of death have been a part of the story. These are tales of death, near death and survival. Among the stories are the strange journey of Hootch’s skull; a man who died dancing in the desert and the delirious last moments of a man who believed the sand was water. These tales are fascinating, thought-provoking and inspiring.
    Available to buy
  5. S1 E5 - THE TWENTY MULE TEAM OF DEATH VALLEY

    April 18, 2014
    45min
    ALL
    There was a time when an image of wagons and mules was synonymous with Death Valley. It was the brand for a laundry additive called 20 Mule Team Borax, and it was as well-known and familiar as the golden arches are today. Pacific Coast Borax was company that owned the product. This is the story of how a once-common form of transportation rose to become a national icon.
    Available to buy
  6. S1 E6 - THE LAST GREAT AMERICAN GOLD RUSH

    April 18, 2014
    31min
    ALL
    There was a time when the towns of Tonopah, Goldfield, Beatty and Rhyolite were known around the nation for their great riches. One writer described this region near Death Valley as “The Treasure Basin of the World.” Tens of thousands of hopefuls came from around the world seeing their fortune. This was a real gold rush and this film tells the story.
    Available to buy
  7. S1 E7 - WEIRD TALES 1, DEATH VALLEY’S ANCIENT UNDERGROUND

    April 18, 2014
    49min
    ALL
    On August 5, 1947 Dr. F. Bruce Russell, a retired physician from Cincinnati, had found a cave with giant mummified remains and artifacts from a lost civilization. Fifteen years earlier a miner broke through a mine shaft and into a tunnel of caverns, which he also said, led to the remains of an ancient people. Are there really caverns with hidden gold and ancient mummies in Death Valley?
    Available to buy
  8. S1 E8 - WEIRD TALES 2, INTO DEATH VALLEY’S UNDERGROUND

    April 18, 2014
    48min
    ALL
    In 1907 Willis Emerson left his Death Valley mine to pen a classic book: The Smokey God, which claims that civilizations exist in subterranean caverns: The Hollow Earth Theory. Do the aliens called reptilians have a base under Death Valley? There’s only one way to find out! Join filmmaker Ted Faye as he takes us UNDER Death Valley to look for mummies and aliens!
    Available to buy
  9. S1 E9 - WEIRD TALES 3, THE PIONEER’S LOST TRUNK

    April 18, 2014
    1 h 6 min
    ALL
    In 1849 a group of pioneers set out from Salt Lake, Utah to head to California. Most were gold seekers; some were Mormon Missionaries and others simply looking for a better life. They took a shortcut that led them directly into the place they named “Death Valley.” In 1998 an expedition claimed to have found a trunk that belonged to those original pioneers. Was it real or was the trunk bunk?
    Available to buy
  10. S1 E10 - WEIRD TALES 4: THE GHOSTS OF DEATH VALLEY JUNCTION

    April 18, 2014
    1 h 9 min
    ALL
    Death Valley Junction sits at the eastern entrance to Death Valley National Park. It has gained national and international fame through artist Marta Becket and her Amargosa Opera House. If you ask any of the few current residents they’ll tell you there are other residents at the Junction…and they’re not among the living. Discover if there really are ghosts at this historic location.
    Available to buy
  11. S1 E11 - WEIRD TALES 5: THE STRANGE CASE OF RHYOLITE, NEVADA

    April 18, 2014
    1 h 6 min
    ALL
    Rhyolite was part of the last great American gold rush in Central Nevada from 1900 to 1910. There are many ghost towns in the West. Rhyolite, one of the most famous, located on the edge of Death Valley, harbors a secret from 1908. A strange grave on the edge of town remains to this day with the name Mona Bell. Who was she? Did her murder change the course of the town? Why did Rhyolite die?
    Available to buy
  12. S1 E12 - WEIRD TALES 6: THE DESERT’S LOST RIVER OF GOLD

    April 18, 2014
    59min
    ALL
    Deep beneath a mountain named Kokoweef in the Mojave Desert awaits the discovery of a lifetime. Or does it? With a mixture of deception, possible murder and other worldly visitors, the story of Kokoweef Mountain and the Lost River of Gold becomes the stuff of legend. Does the greatest treasure in human history lie beneath the California desert?
    Available to buy
  13. S1 E13 - MULE PEOPLE

    April 18, 2011
    52min
    ALL
    People who appreciate mules are a unique breed of folks. In this episode you’ll get to know some of them at Mule Days in Bishop, California. You’ll meet eleven year old Cameron Brooks along with trainers Cindy Powell and Jerry Villines and others whose mules, they all claim, can do anything a horse can do…only better. After watching this episode, you’ll be glad you met these…Mule People.
    Available to buy
  14. S1 E14 - MULE FOR SALE

    April 18, 2011
    29min
    ALL
    Join the fun and excitement of the world’s largest mule auction. Take a journey to Dickson, Tennessee where Dickie and Rufus Reese carry on a family tradition: The Reese Brothers Mule Auction. Discover the story of the mule and find out why people buy mules, what they’re used for and where the mules end up. An intriguing look at an event that few have experienced firsthand.
    Available to buy
  15. S1 E15 - HITCH UP YER MULES

    April 18, 2011
    26min
    ALL
    Bobby Tanner of Bishop, California shows how to hitch up a 20 mule team. Having learned from old photographs, film footage and an old-timer, Bobby has revived the art of driving a jerkline: A long line of animals with a single rope! Bobby drives the line and shows the mules jumping over the middle chain to make turns. A needed skill used in the 1880s when drivers hauled borax from Death Valley.
    Available to buy
  16. S1 E16 - THE HIDDEN TRAIL

    April 18, 2011
    30min
    ALL
    We join an expedition to the China Lakes Naval Air Weapons Station in the Mojave Desert to retrace the historic route of the 20 Mule Team from Death Valley. Ruts from the original 20 Mule Team Wagons can still be seen!
    Available to buy

Details

More info

Subtitles

None available

Producers

Ted Faye

Studio

C3 EntertainmentInc.
By clicking play, you agree to our Terms of Use.