Season 6, Episode 3

SOME UNTOLD STORIES FROM AMERICA'S PAST.

Tukufu: THIS WEEK, IS THIS SCRAP OF FABRIC

EVIDENCE OF A SECRET WARTIME ATTACK ON THE U.S. MAINLAND?

Gwendolyn: WHY ARE SOME OF NEW YORK'S WEALTHIEST FAMILIES

PLANNING A HIGH-SOCIETY CIRCUS

AT THE VERY DEPTHS OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION?

Wes: AND COULD A BATTERED BOX FOUND IN A DUMPSTER

HOLD INFORMATION ABOUT THE FOUNDING

OF A TOP SECRET PRESIDENTIAL RETREAT?

Elvis Costello: ♫WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES♫

♫I GET SO ANGRY WHEN THE TEARDROPS START♫

♫BUT HE CAN'T BE WOUNDED 'CAUSE HE'S GOT NO HEART♫

♫WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES♫

♫IT'S JUST LIKE WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES♫

Gwendolyn: THIS PROGRAM WAS MADE POSSIBLE Tukufu: OUR FIRST STORY INVESTIGATES

A BIZARRE WARTIME ATTACK ON THE UNITED STATES

KEPT SECRET FROM THE AMERICAN PUBLIC.

[ yelling in Japanese ]

APRIL 1942:

JUST FIVE MONTHS AFTER THE BOMBING OF PEARL HARBOR,

THE U.S. IS REELING FROM A STRING OF JAPANESE VICTORIES

ACROSS THE PACIFIC.

[ cheering ]

THE U.S. RETALIATES BY LAUNCHING BOMBERS

FROM AN AIRCRAFT CARRIER TO STRIKE TOKYO.

THE SO-CALLED DOOLITTLE RAID DOES MINIMAL DAMAGE,

BUT THE ATTACK ON THEIR HOMELAND

DEEPLY HUMILIATES THE JAPANESE MILITARY.

THEY VOW REVENGE AND SPEND THE NEXT TWO YEARS

PUSHING THEIR SCIENTISTS TO DEVELOP A WAY

TO STRIKE BACK AT THE AMERICAN CONTINENT.

MEET CORRIE MacLAGGAN FROM AUSTIN, TEXAS,

WHO WANTS TO KNOW IF ONE OF HER GRANDFATHER'S

WORLD WAR II MEMENTOS MIGHT BE A PIECE

OF ONE OF THESE SECRET JAPANESE WEAPONS.

HE'S BEEN SHOWING ME A LOT OF HIS ARTIFACTS FROM WORLD WAR II

AND TELLING ME STORIES,

AND THERE'S THIS ONE THING THAT'S JUST SORT OF A MYSTERY.

I'M TUKUFU ZUBERI,

AND I'M INTRIGUED BY WHAT CORRIE MIGHT HAVE.

HI, I'M CORRIE.

TUKUFU.

NICE TO MEET YOU, COME ON IN.

THANK YOU.

OKAY, SO WHAT DO YOU HAVE FOR ME?

WELL, THIS IS A BOX OF MY GRANDFATHER'S

FROM WORLD WAR II,

AND I HAVE A PIECE OF A JAPANESE BALLOON.

HE SAYS HE WAS INVOLVED IN SOME KIND OF A SECRET MISSION

AT THE END OF THE WAR

THAT INVOLVED SHOOTING DOWN THESE BALLOONS.

WHAT WAS SPECIAL ABOUT THESE BALLOONS?

I'M NOT REALLY SURE.

ALL I KNOW IS IT WAS TOP SECRET,

HE WASN'T ALLOWED TO TELL ANYONE,

NOT EVEN HIS FRIENDS OR FAMILY.

CORRIE AND HER GRANDFATHER HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT

HIS WAR YEARS RECENTLY,

BUT HE CAN'T TELL HER FOR SURE EXACTLY WHAT THE PIECE IS.

WELL, I WANT TO KNOW, IS THIS REALLY A JAPANESE BALLOON,

AND WHAT WAS THE SECRET MISSION EXACTLY?

OKAY, WELL, LET ME GO TRY TO FIND SOME ANSWERS FOR YOU.

OKAY, THANK YOU.

TOP SECRET MISSION, JAPANESE BALLOONS:

I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THIS IS ABOUT.

LET'S TAKE IT OUT OF HERE.

FEELS LIKE PAPER, LOOKS LIKE PAPER.

IS IT PART OF A BALLOON?

I DON'T KNOW.

I DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY MADE BALLOONS OUT OF.

IF I'M GOING TO AUTHENTICATE THIS FRAGMENT,

THE FIRST THING I WANT TO DO IS TALK TO CORRIE'S GRANDFATHER,

87-YEAR-OLD SANDY BAUMAN.

I WAS THINKING THAT MAYBE YOU CAN GIVE ME

A LITTLE MORE INFORMATION TO GO ON.

WELL, I'D BE GLAD TO IF I CAN.

SANDY TELLS ME HE WAS AN AIR FORCE PILOT

ASSIGNED TO NIGHT PATROLS IN A P-61 FIGHTER

ALONG THE WEST COAST

WHEN HE GOT CALLED TO A TOP SECRET MISSION

IN EARLY 1945.

HE WAS TOLD THAT A NEW AND DEADLY THREAT

WAS BEING LAUNCHED AT THE UNITED STATES FROM JAPAN:

A FLEET OF BOMB-CARRYING BALLOONS.

SANDY'S JOB WAS TO FIND THESE BALLOONS AND SHOOT THEM DOWN

BEFORE THEY DROPPED THEIR DEADLY PAYLOAD.

FROM THE BEGINNING, IT WAS A MISSION SHROUDED IN SECRECY.

WE WERE JUST ORDERED TO FLY TO PAINE FIELD IN WASHINGTON,

DIDN'T KNOW WHY WE WERE EVEN GOING THERE.

WE FOUND OUT WHEN WE GOT THERE THAT IT WAS BECAUSE

THERE WERE JAPANESE BALLOONS THAT WERE FLOATING IN.

AND WE WERE ALLOWED TO TELL NOBODY.

IS THIS PART OF A BALLOON THAT YOU SHOT DOWN?

I DIDN'T SHOOT DOWN ANY BALLOONS.

HOW DID YOU GET THIS?

I'M NOT SURE HOW I GOT IT.

SOMEBODY WHEN WE LEFT THE AREA,

ONE OF THE HIGH-RANKING OFFICERS,

WHOSE NAME I DON'T HAVE, SAID,

"WELL, YOU'VE BEEN UP HERE AND DONE YOUR BEST,

"AND HERE'S A LITTLE SOUVENIR FOR YOU.

THIS IS A PIECE THAT WE CUT OFF OF ONE THAT ACTUALLY LANDED."

IT'S KIND OF MYSTERIOUS, ISN'T IT?

IT IS MYSTERIOUS, IT IS MYSTERIOUS.

WELL, LET ME GO SEE WHAT I CAN FIND OUT, ALL RIGHT?

FINE.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

YOU BET.

THE OFFICIAL HISTORY OF SANDY'S AIR FORCE UNIT

CONTAINS NO MENTION

OF THE SECRET COUNTER MISSION HE DESCRIBED,

BUT I FIND A LOT OF MATERIAL ONLINE.

FROM LATE 1944 TO EARLY IN 1945,

THE JAPANESE LAUNCHED THOUSANDS OF THESE BOMB-CARRYING BALLOONS

INTO THE JET STREAM TOWARDS NORTH AMERICA.

THE JAPANESE MILITARY GAVE THEM A SECRET CODE NAME,

PROJECT 32, ALSO ABBREVIATED AS FUGO.

THEY WERE DESIGNED TO RELEASE SOME KINDS OF BOMBS

OVER THE WESTERN UNITED STATES,

CREATING DEVASTATING FIRES THROUGHOUT THE REGION.

IS SANDY'S MEMENTO REALLY FROM A ONCE-SECRET FUGO BALLOON

THAT QUIETLY CARRIED BOMBS ACROSS AMERICAN SKIES?

I COME TO THE SMITHSONIAN'S NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM

UDVAR-HAZY CENTER IN NORTHERN VIRGINIA.

I'M MEETING TOM CROUCH, SENIOR CURATOR OF AERONAUTICS

AND AN AUTHORITY ON LIGHTER-THAN-AIR WEAPONS

LIKE THE BALLOON BOMB.

TOM HAS SOMETHING HE WANTS TO SHOW ME.

NOW, WHAT IS THIS?

THIS IS THE WORKING PART OF A FUGO BALLOON BOMB.

THIS WOODEN BOX UP HERE

HOLDS THE BATTERIES AND ANEROID BAROMETERS.

THESE ARE THE BALLAST BAGS.

TOM EXPLAINS THE INGENIOUS MECHANISM MEASURED AIR PRESSURE

AND ALTERNATELY RELEASED GAS AND BALLAST BAGS,

ALLOWING THE BALLOON TO RIDE THE AIRSTREAM

WELL OVER THE U.S. MAINLAND.

THE JAPANESE THOUGHT THEIR BEST BET FOR DOING DAMAGE

IN THE WESTERN U.S. WAS TO START FOREST FIRES.

THE WHITE AND BLACK THINGS

THAT YOU SEE STICKING OUT THE SIDE ARE INCENDIARY BOMBS.

AND THIS THING HANGING DOWN IN THE CENTER

IS A HIGH-EXPLOSIVE BOMB.

TALK TO ME ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON IN JAPAN AT THIS TIME.

WHY SEND THESE BALLOONS?

JAPAN AT THE TIME WAS LITERALLY GOING UP IN FLAMES.

THE AMERICAN B-29 WERE BURNING JAPANESE CITIES TO THE GROUND.

JAPAN'S MILITARY LEADERSHIP WAS HOPING THEIR BALLOON BOMBS

WOULD MAKE AMERICANS FEEL AS VULNERABLE TO MAINLAND ATTACK

AS THEY DID.

SO THIS IS REALLY A DESPERATION WEAPON.

THE JAPANESE HAD COME UP WITH THIS AS A TERROR WEAPON

THAT THEY COULD USE TO STRIKE BACK AT THE UNITED STATES.

TOM TELLS ME THAT TODAY MANY AMERICANS ARE UNAWARE

OF THE BALLOON BOMB OFFENSIVE.

THAT'S PARTLY BECAUSE IN JANUARY OF 1945,

THE U.S. GOVERNMENT INSTITUTED A CENSORSHIP PROGRAM

DESIGNED TO KEEP INFORMATION ABOUT THE BALLOON BOMBS

OUT OF THE PRESS.

NOW, WHY ALL THE SECRECY IF THESE DEVICES

WERE ACTUALLY DANGEROUS TO THE U.S. POPULATION?

THE REAL CONCERN WAS THAT IF THE JAPANESE REALIZED

THAT THE PROJECT WAS WORKING, THAT SOME BALLOONS WERE ACTUALLY

MAKING IT ALL THE WAY ACROSS THE OCEAN,

THEY MIGHT BEGIN SENDING BALLOON BOMBS

WITH CHEMICAL OR BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS ON BOARD,

AND OF COURSE THAT COULD HAVE DONE HORRIFIC DAMAGE.

SO HOW SUCCESSFUL WAS THIS CENSORSHIP PROGRAM?

IT WAS SUCCESSFUL; IT WORKED.

BY MAY OF 1945, WHEN THE JAPANESE WEREN'T GETTING

ANY INDICATION OF THE BALLOONS GETTING THROUGH,

THEY PUT THEIR RESOURCES INTO OTHER EFFORTS.

THE NEWS BLACKOUT WASN'T THE ONLY WEAPON USED

AGAINST THE BALLOONS.

TOM CONFIRMS HOW SECRET AIR PATROLS LIKE SANDY'S

PATROLLED THE PACIFIC COAST

LOOKING TO STRIKE THE BALLOONS DOWN

BEFORE THEY REACHED THE MAINLAND.

THE INTERCEPT MISSION WAS CALLED "SUNSET PROJECT."

SO THIS IS THE KIND OF PLANE

THAT SANDY BAUMAN WOULD HAVE FLOWN DURING WORLD WAR II?

IT IS EXACTLY THE TYPE.

IT'S A P-61.

THEY'RE REALLY RARE TODAY.

THERE ARE ONLY FOUR OF THESE LEFT IN THE WORLD.

THESE AIRPLANES WERE BUILT AS NIGHT FIGHTERS,

WHICH MEANS THAT IT'S DESIGNED TO HUNT

AND SHOOT DOWN ENEMY AIRCRAFT AT NIGHT.

SO THEY'RE RADAR-EQUIPPED.

THEY CAN SEE FIVE OR SIX MILES OUT AT POTENTIAL TARGETS.

HAVE YOU EVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS BEFORE?

YEAH.

IT KIND OF LOOKS LIKE PART OF A FUGO BALLOON ENVELOPE.

AND WE HAVE BALLOON ENVELOPES, BUT THEY AREN'T HERE.

REALLY, WHERE ARE THEY?

WELL, THEY'RE AT OUR PAUL GARBER FACILITY IN SUITLAND, MARYLAND.

I'VE COME TO THE SMITHSONIAN'S STORAGE FACILITY IN MARYLAND

TO MEET BOB MIKESH.

HOW ARE YOU DOING?

I'M TUKUFU ZUBERI.

HELLO THERE, AND I'M BOB MIKESH.

HE'S STUDIED BALLOON BOMBS FOR OVER 40 YEARS

AND IS AN EXPERT ON THEIR CONSTRUCTION.

PERHAPS AMONG ALL THESE BOXES AND CRATES

IS AN ANSWER TO OUR MYSTERY.

IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT YOU HAVE

ONE OF THESE JAPANESE BALLOON BOMBS HERE.

WE SURE DO.

AND HERE IT IS.

FANTASTIC.

WHAT KIND OF PAPER IS THIS MADE OF?

IT'S MADE FROM THE ROOT OF A MULBERRY TREE,

AND THAT'S WHERE THEY GOT THE FIBERS

FOR THIS MANUFACTURE OF PAPER.

NOW, WHO MADE THIS PAPER?

MOSTLY IT WAS DONE BY SCHOOLCHILDREN.

SCHOOLCHILDREN BUILT THESE BALLOONS?

A LOT OF THEM DID, YES.

THEY WOULD GO TO SCHOOL ABOUT HALF A DAY

AND THEN THEY WOULD DISAPPEAR ONTO THE MANUFACTURER GROUNDS

OF WHATEVER THEY WERE ASSIGNED TO DO,

IN THIS CASE TO MAKE PAPER BOMBING BALLOONS.

NOW, HOW MANY OF THEM DID THEY MAKE?

ROUGHLY AROUND 10,000 OF THEM,

OF WHICH THEY LAUNCHED SEEMINGLY AROUND 9,000.

AND HOW MANY OF THEM ARRIVED IN THE UNITED STATES?

WELL, THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION.

IT'S ESTIMATED MAYBE 1,000.

ALTHOUGH MORE THAN 300 FUGOS DID MAKE LANDFALL

AND START SMALL FIRES,

THEIR GREATEST NUISANCE WAS TO THE AMERICAN WAR EFFORT,

DIVERTING RESOURCES LIKE SANDY'S MISSION

AWAY FROM OVERSEAS TARGETS.

ONE FUGO EVEN DELAYED PLUTONIUM PRODUCTION

FOR AN ATOMIC BOMB DESTINED TO BE DROPPED ON JAPAN

WHEN IT HIT POWER LINES IN WASHINGTON STATE,

KNOCKING OUT POWER TO THE HANFORD NUCLEAR REACTORS.

BUT THE GOVERNMENT CENSORSHIP PROGRAM

HAD A TRAGIC SIDE EFFECT.

IN MAY OF 1945, A MINISTER AND HIS WIFE

HAD TAKEN SOME CHILDREN ON A CHURCH PICNIC

NEAR BLY, OREGON.

THE KIDS DISCOVERED AN UNEXPLODED BALLOON BOMB.

NOT KNOWING WHAT IT WAS, THEY TRIED TO MOVE IT.

IT DETONATED, KILLING THE MINISTER'S WIFE

AND THE FIVE CHILDREN.

WHAT I'M TRYING TO FIND OUT IS IF THIS PIECE OF PAPER

COMES FROM A BALLOON JUST LIKE THIS.

WELL, LET'S COMPARE IT MORE CLOSELY.

OUR FRAGMENT LOOKS LIKE THE MATERIAL FROM THE BALLOON,

BUT BOB SAYS TO MAKE A DEFINITIVE MATCH,

WE HAVE TO DO A MATERIALS ANALYSIS.

NOW, WE HAVE LABORATORY ANALYSIS OF THE PAPER HERE,

SO YOU CAN TAKE THAT,

HAVE A LABORATORY TEST RUN ON YOUR PIECE OF PAPER,

AND COMPARE THE TWO AND SEE HOW THEY COME OUT.

BEFORE I GO, BOB PRESENTS ME

WITH SOME INFORMATION FROM THE ARMY ARCHIVES,

A LIST OF SITES WHERE BOMB BALLOONS WERE RECOVERED.

YOU SAID THAT THE FRAGMENT THAT YOU HAVE CAME FROM AN INDIVIDUAL

THAT WAS STATIONED AT PAINE FIELD.

AND IF YOU'LL NOTICE, 115 --

"PAINE FIELD, EVERETT, WASHINGTON, 13 MARCH,

A BADLY DAMAGED BALLOON AND BALLAST-DROPPING APPARATUS."

OKAY, THIS IS GOOD NEWS.

THAT'S IT.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

YOU'RE WELCOME.

LYNN BROSTOFF FROM THE SMITHSONIAN'S

MUSEUM CONSERVATION INSTITUTE WILL COMPARE OUR SAMPLE

WITH AUTHENTICATED PIECES OF A FUGO FROM THEIR COLLECTION.

SO WHAT DO WE DO?

WELL, WE CAN ACTUALLY TAKE AN INFRARED BEAM,

PASS IT THROUGH THIS TINY DIAMOND CRYSTAL,

AND BOUNCE IT OFF THE SURFACE.

AND WHAT WILL THAT TELL US?

WE CAN GET VERY INTERESTING INFORMATION

ABOUT THE CHEMICAL NATURE OF THE COATING.

WE'RE READY TO RUN.

OKAY, AND THIS IS THE INFRARED SPECTRUM

OF MR. BAUMAN'S SAMPLE.

NOW, WE'VE ALREADY RUN AN INFRARED SPECTRUM

OF THE SMITHSONIAN SAMPLE, AND WE CAN COMPARE THEM.

THEY'RE VERY SIMILAR, BUT THEY'RE NOT QUITE IDENTICAL.

TO KNOW FOR SURE, MEL WACHOWIAK,

A SENIOR CONSERVATOR AT THE SMITHSONIAN,

COMPARES THE STRUCTURE OF THE SAMPLES

UNDER A HIGH-POWERED MICROSCOPE.

EXCELLENT.

LET'S DO IT.

FIRST, WE LOOK AT

THE SMITHSONIAN'S BALLOON BOMB PAPER.

CAN YOU GET A SENSE OF THE THREE LAYERS THERE?

YES, I CAN.

THAT IS FANTASTIC.

THE PAPER WAS SAID TO BE MINIMUM THREE LAYERS THICK

FOR THE BALLOONS.

NEXT, OUR FRAGMENT.

ALL RIGHT, HERE IT'S DELAMINATED,

AND I'M SEEING TWO.

THEY ARE SIMILAR, BUT THE NUMBER OF LAYERS IS NOT THE SAME.

SO WHAT DO WE DO NEXT?

WELL, THE ONLY WAY THAT WE'RE GOING TO REALLY BE ABLE

TO SEE STRUCTURE IN SOMETHING SO THIN

IS CROSS-SECTION MICROSCOPY.

LET'S DO IT.

OKAY.

SO, WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE?

I HAVE EMBEDDED BOTH SAMPLES OF PAPER,

EMBEDDED THEM IN EPOXY, AND POLISHED THEM

SO THAT I CAN SEE A CROSS-SECTION.

OKAY, AND WHAT DID YOU FIND?

WELL, THE SMITHSONIAN EXAMPLE

DEFINITELY HAS THREE LAYERS OF PAPER,

IT'S VERY DISTINCT.

AND THE EXAMPLE THAT YOU BROUGHT...

THIS LAST TEST GIVES ME THE INFORMATION I NEED

FOR CORRIE AND SANDY.

YOUR LITTLE BITTY PIECE OF PAPER TURNED OUT TO BE

QUITE AN ITEM FOR INVESTIGATION.

HERE'S THE BIG QUESTION:

IS YOUR PIECE OF PAPER

PART OF ONE OF THE JAPANESE BALLOON BOMBS?

TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION, I HAD TO GET SOME SPECIAL HELP.

THE EXAMPLE THAT YOU BROUGHT

ALSO HAS NOT TWO BUT THREE LAYERS,

AND IF I WAS PRESENTED WITH BOTH

AND ASKED WHETHER I COULD SAY

IF IT WAS FROM THE SAME ITEM OR NOT,

I WOULD BE HARD-PRESSED.

THEY ARE THAT CLOSE THAT THEY COULD BE FROM THE SAME OBJECT.

WHAT THE EXPERTS TOLD ME

IS THAT THEY COULD NOT TELL THE DIFFERENCE

BETWEEN THEIR PAPER AND YOUR PAPER.

YOUR PIECE OF PAPER IS DEFINITELY

FROM ONE OF THOSE JAPANESE BALLOON BOMBS.

VERY, VERY INTERESTING.

IT'S REAL!

THAT'S IT.

PROBABLY WHAT YOU HAVE HERE IS A PIECE OF A JAPANESE BALLOON BOMB

THAT LANDED AT PAINE FIELD.

WOW.

THERE WE GO.

WELL, THANKS A LOT.

WE REALLY APPRECIATED THIS INFORMATION.

IT'S ESTIMATED THAT AROUND 1,000 JAPANESE BALLOON BOMBS

REACHED NORTH AMERICA,

YET AS OF TODAY, ONLY 389 HAVE BEEN ACCOUNTED FOR.

THERE'S A VERY REAL POSSIBILITY

THAT MANY OF THESE DANGEROUS RELICS OF A LONG-ENDED WAR

REMAIN HIDDEN ALMOST ANYWHERE IN THE SELDOM-VISITED FOREST

AND WILDERNESS AREAS OF THE WEST.

IF YOU ARE EVER OUT HIKING

AND SEE ANYTHING THAT RESEMBLES THIS,

PLEASE DON'T TOUCH IT OR ATTEMPT TO MOVE IT.

NOTE ITS EXACT LOCATION

AND CONTACT LOCAL AUTHORITIES IMMEDIATELY.

FOR MORE OF MY INTERVIEW WITH TOM CROUCH,

GO TO HISTORY DETECTIVES ON THE WEB AT pbs.org.

WE'VE TURNED TO THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION

FOR ANSWERS ON SEVERAL OF OUR INVESTIGATIONS,

AND FOR GOOD REASON.

IT'S THE WORLD'S LARGEST MUSEUM COMPLEX

AND RESEARCH ORGANIZATION,

WITH OVER 19 MUSEUMS, 9 RESEARCH CENTERS,

OVER 100 AFFILIATES, AND THE NATIONAL ZOO.

COLLECTIVELY, THEY HOUSE OVER 136 MILLION OBJECTS,

ARTWORKS, AND SPECIMENS.

IN 1826, A BRITISH SCIENTIST NAMED JAMES SMITHSON

BEQUEATHED HIS FORTUNE, OVER $500,000,

TO THE U.S. TO CREATE AN ESTABLISHMENT IN HIS NAME

FOR THE INCREASE AND DIFFUSION OF KNOWLEDGE AMONG MEN.

TODAY, THE NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM

PRESERVES MILESTONES IN AVIATION

LIKE THE WRIGHT BROTHERS' PLANE

AND THE SOUND-BARRIER-BREAKING BELL X-1.

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AMERICAN HISTORY

COLLECTS AND CARES FOR IMPORTANT ARTIFACTS,

LIKE LEWIS AND CLARK'S COMPASS, ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S TOP HAT,

AND EDISON'S LIGHT BULB.

ALONG WITH OTHER MUSEUMS AND RESEARCH CENTERS,

THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION

CONTINUES TO SERVE THE AMERICAN PUBLIC,

AS IT HAS FOR OVER A CENTURY AND A HALF.

Gwendolyn: OUR NEXT STORY INVESTIGATES A SOUVENIR

FROM WHAT SEEMS TO BE AN EXTRAVAGANT PARTY

DURING THE GREAT DEPRESSION.

APRIL, 1933:

THE WORLD IS IN THE THROES

OF A DEVASTATING ECONOMIC DEPRESSION.

IN THE UNITED STATES, FROM WALL STREET TO MAIN STREET,

ALL SOCIAL CLASSES ARE REELING.

THE SPOTLIGHT IS ON PRESIDENT FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT,

WHO'S ONLY IN HIS SECOND MONTH OF OFFICE.

When there is no vision, the people perish!

WITH THE NATION LOOKING TO HIM

TO HELP PULL IT BACK FROM THE BRINK,

PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT DECIDES TO...

JOIN THE CIRCUS?

THIRTEEN-YEAR-OLD CLAIRE AUBIN FROM PORTLAND, OREGON,

HAS UNCOVERED AN UNUSUAL DOCUMENT.

IT'S AN ANNOUNCEMENT OF A CIRCUS BALL

WITH A CAST OF CELEBRITY AND SOCIETY ACTS

AND A MENTION OF FDR HIMSELF.

AND GLORIA VANDERBILT, THE GERSHWINS, CHRYSLER.

AND SOME OF THE THINGS I'M NOT QUITE SURE

IF THEY'RE REAL OR JUST MADE UP.

I'M GWENDOLYN WRIGHT, AND I'M MEETING WITH CLAIRE

TO TAKE A LOOK AT HER CIRCUS FLYER...

NICE TO MEET YOU.

WHICH SHE FOUND PRESSED BETWEEN TWO BOOKS

IN HER SCHOOL LIBRARY.

COME ON THIS WAY.

OKAY.

IT SAYS "SOCIETY CIRCUS" AT THE TOP,

AND I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THAT WAS.

"COBINA WRIGHT'S SOCIETY CIRCUS."

YOU DON'T THINK OF THOSE TWO WORDS BEING TOGETHER.

"WILD ANIMALS AND WILD WOMEN."

[ laughs ]

"BUFFOONS RECRUITED FROM THE BLUEST BLOODS."

SEMI-NUDE OYSTERS,

THINGS THAT ARE JUST COMPLETELY RIDICULOUS,

BUT THEY'RE PRETTY FUNNY, TOO.

THERE'S A REAL SENSE OF HUMOR,

A KIND OF IRONY ABOUT THE WHOLE THING.

YEAH.

THE PROGRAM SEEMS TO PROMOTE

SOME KIND OF HIGH-SOCIETY THEME PARTY,

A BENEFIT FOR THE BOY SCOUTS,

AT THE OPULENT WALDORF-ASTORIA HOTEL IN NEW YORK CITY.

IT'S A WHO'S WHO OF THE MOST WEALTHY

AND POWERFUL PEOPLE OF THE TIME:

SLOAN, HARRIMAN, HEARST, AND MANY OTHERS.

THE BALL WAS SCHEDULED FOR APRIL 25, 1933.

IT LOOKS MORE LIKE SOMETHING FROM THE '20s, THE JAZZ AGE,

NOT THE DEPTHS OF THE DEPRESSION.

"HONORABLE FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT, PRESIDENT."

IS HE THE ONE WITH POLIO, RIGHT?

SO TELL ME, CLAIRE,

EXACTLY WHAT YOU'D LIKE FOR ME TO FIND OUT.

THERE'S A LOT ON HERE.

I'D LIKE TO KNOW WHAT A SOCIETY CIRCUS IS.

IT TALKS ABOUT COBINA WRIGHT,

AND I'M NOT QUITE SURE WHO SHE IS.

AND I KIND OF WANT TO KNOW

WHAT PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT'S AFFILIATION WITH IT IS,

LIKE WHY HE WOULD BE GOING.

I CAN'T WAIT TO GET TO WORK ON THIS.

IT'S GOING TO BE A LOT OF FUN.

LET ME SEE IF I CAN FIND OUT WHY THESE V.I.P.s

WOULD BE INVOLVED IN THIS AFFAIR

AT A TIME WHEN SO MANY AMERICANS WERE SUFFERING,

BOTH RICH AND POOR ALIKE.

SO IT DOES SEEM CLEAR THAT ALMOST EVERYBODY

IS A MEMBER OF NEW YORK SOCIETY.

THEY'RE SHOW BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL BUSINESS

BROUGHT TOGETHER HERE AT THE WALDORF.

AND HERE'S A REFERENCE TO THE DEPRESSION:

"GIVE THESE BOYS A HANDOUT" -- INSTEAD OF "GIVE THEM A HAND."

IT'S ACKNOWLEDGING THAT ALMOST EVERYBODY

NEEDED SOME HELP AT THAT TIME.

GEORGE GERSHWIN IS LISTED AS A PEANUT VENDOR.

THEY SEEM TO BE PLAYING ON THE IDEA OF A CIRCUS.

NOEL COWARD IS "ALCOHOLIC STUMBLING HIGH ALOFT."

SO THEY'RE PLAYING ON THEMSELVES BEING DRINKERS,

BEING SOMEWHAT PROMISCUOUS.

WHO WAS THE WOMAN WHO PLANNED THIS EXTRAORDINARY EVENT?

AND OF ALL THE ORGANIZATIONS TO BE RAISING MONEY FOR,

WHY THE BOY SCOUTS?

COBINA WRIGHT.

SHE WAS BORN IN 1887 IN OREGON ON A SHEEP FARM

AND SHE DIES IN 1970, SO A GOOD LONG LIFE.

STARTED OFF IN NEW YORK SOCIETY AS A CONCERT SINGER

AND LATER BECAME A RENOWNED HOSTESS.

FROM FARM GIRL TO FABULOUS,

COBINA MARRIED INTO NEW YORK'S WEALTHIEST INNER CIRCLE.

"HER HUSBAND WAS MILLIONAIRE BILL WRIGHT

OF THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE."

SO SHE'S DIRECTLY CONNECTED TO WALL STREET.

AND SHE WROTE AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY.

I FOUND HER AUTOBIOGRAPHY.

IN THE ROARING 1920s,

COBINA WRIGHT LIVED A GILDED LIFE,

HOSTING GRAND PARTIES WITH THE BLUE BLOOD ROYALTY

OF NEW YORK'S FIFTH AVENUE.

OH, THIS WASN'T THE FIRST OF HER CIRCUS BALLS.

IN 1933, SHE'S DESCRIBING, "IN JANUARY '29,

WE GAVE OUR ANNUAL CIRCUS BALL."

SO THIS HAD BEEN A TRADITION

OF HER LIFE AS A SOCIETY HOSTESS.

BUT ON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 25, 1929,

COBINA RECEIVED A FATEFUL PHONE CALL.

A FALLING STOCK MARKET ON BLACK THURSDAY

HAD TRIGGERED A SELLING FRENZY.

BY FRIDAY, LOSSES TOTALED NEARLY $5 BILLION.

SO SHE AND HER HUSBAND WERE GIVING

A WHITE-TIE BALL THAT NIGHT,

AND HER HUSBAND CALLS ON THE TELEPHONE LATE IN THE MORNING

AND SAYS TO HER, "DARLING, WE HAVE LOST EVERYTHING --

EVERYTHING WE HAVE IN THE WORLD."

HOW DID SHE HAVE A BALL THAT MUST HAVE COST A FORTUNE

JUST A FEW YEARS LATER?

COBINA'S AUTOBIOGRAPHY EXPLAINS THAT AFTER LOSING HER FORTUNE,

THE WALDORF HIRED HER AS A PARTY PLANNER.

SO THIS IS AN EXTRAORDINARY CHANGE

IN HER LIFE AND HER HUSBAND'S LIFE.

I WANT TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THIS PARTY

HOSTED BY A WOMAN WHO SEEMS TO HAVE FALLEN

FROM THE VERY TOP OF THE SOCIAL LADDER.

MICHAEL BATTERBERRY, THE FOUNDER OF FOOD ARTS MAGAZINE,

IS AN EXPERT ON THE HISTORY OF NEW YORK'S HIGH SOCIETY.

VERY NICE TO MEET YOU.

THIS IS GOING TO BE AN INTERESTING TIME TRAVEL.

WELL, WE'LL GO BACK TO THE '30s.

SHALL WE BEGIN?

YES.

WELL, MICHAEL, HERE'S THIS SOCIETY CIRCUS PROGRAM

I TOLD YOU ABOUT, COBINA WRIGHT AT THE WALDORF.

TAKE A LOOK.

THIS IS REALLY EXTRAORDINARY.

SHE SEEMS TO HAVE GIVEN EARLIER CIRCUS BALLS DURING THE 1920s.

WHAT WAS THE BIG DIFFERENCE WITH THIS ONE AT THE WALDORF?

WELL, SIZE TO BEGIN WITH.

I MEAN, THE ORIGINAL ONE SURELY HAD

NO MORE THAN 400 PEOPLE IN ATTENDANCE,

WHEREAS THIS WAS LIKE A PRIVATE PARTY ON STEROIDS.

ONE REASON FOR THE SUCCESS OF THE BALL INVOLVES

THE EXTRAORDINARY MEASURES THE WALDORF HAD TAKEN.

MICHAEL EXPLAINS THAT COBINA WASN'T THE ONLY ONE

PUTTING ON APPEARANCES THAT NIGHT.

SHE WAS NOT ALONE IN BEING HIRED BY THE WALDORF.

ALL THE GUESTS AT THE PARTY WERE DRESSED IN FINERY,

BUT MANY WERE ACTORS BROUGHT IN

TO MAKE THE EVENT SEEM MORE CHEERY AND CAREFREE.

HENRY SELL HAD A CASTING AGENCY,

AND HE WOULD SEND 40 YOUNG PEOPLE,

AS LONG AS THEY OWNED GOOD EVENING CLOTHES, YOU KNOW,

AS LONG AS YOU HAD THAT AND YOU LOOKED ATTRACTIVE,

YOU WERE SENT OFF TO THE WALDORF AND YOU SORT OF POSED,

YOU SORT OF ARTIFICIALLY FURNISHED THE PLACE.

THEY WERE ACTORS; THEY WERE HIRED.

IT MAY HAVE BEEN THE GRIMMEST OF TIMES,

BUT MICHAEL SAYS THE WALDORF GATHERING THAT APRIL NIGHT

WAS A MOST EXTRAVAGANT AFFAIR.

YOU HAVE ROYALTY FROM THE THEATER:

NOEL COWARD, THE LUNTS, FANNY BRICE,

YOU HAVE THE GRAND DUCHESS MARIE AND THE PRINCE MATCHABELLI.

SO THEY HAD THIS RANGE OF PEOPLE,

MIXING ACTORS AND SOCIETY AND FINANCE.

DOES IT SURPRISE YOU TO SEE THIS IN THE '30s?

IT WAS KIND OF A BANDING TOGETHER

TO NOT ONLY KEEP UP APPEARANCES BUT TO CHEER EACH OTHER UP.

IT'S LIKE WARTIME.

YOU DON'T STAY INSIDE AND BE GLUM,

YOU TRY TO KEEP EVERYBODY'S MORALE UP.

HERE'S SOMETHING THAT'S FROM THE ARCHIVES OF THE NEW YORK TIMES.

ASTOUNDING:

"3,000 ATTEND BALL IN CIRCUS SETTING."

IT WAS A GREAT SUCCESS.

TOTAL SUCCESS.

THAT RAISES ANOTHER QUESTION.

DID SHE CHARGE PEOPLE MONEY?

IT'S NO DIFFERENT FROM A BENEFIT TODAY.

IT WAS FOR A CAUSE.

SHE CHARGED $500 FOR THE BOXES.

AT THAT PRICE, THE 20 BOX SEATS ALONE

BROUGHT IN WELL OVER $10,000.

THAT'S EQUIVALENT TO MORE THAN $150,000 TODAY.

BUT I'M STILL A LITTLE PUZZLED.

WHY WOULD THE BOY SCOUTS NEED SO MUCH MONEY

AND GARNER SUCH ENTHUSIASM

FROM THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES NO LESS?

I'M HEADING TO THE ALPINE SCOUT CAMP LEADERS LODGE

ABOUT 90 MILES FROM NEW YORK CITY

TO MEET CEDRIC BODLEY OF THE GREATER NEW YORK COUNCILS

BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA.

CEDRIC, I'M INVESTIGATING A SOCIETY BALL

THAT WAS GIVEN IN NEW YORK CITY AT THE WALDORF-ASTORIA IN 1933

AS A FUNDRAISER FOR THE BOY SCOUTS.

FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT WAS A VERY LARGE PART

OF BOY SCOUT HISTORY.

HE WAS A FIRM BELIEVER THAT BOYS SHOULD HAVE

THE SAME OPPORTUNITIES AND ADVENTURES

THAT HE HAD AS A YOUNG MAN

TO GET OUT AND BE INVOLVED IN THE OUTDOORS.

HE WAS VERY INFLUENTIAL

IN GETTING BUSINESSMEN AND CIVIC LEADERS INVOLVED.

BEGUN IN THE UNITED KINGDOM IN 1907

BY BRITISH ARMY OFFICER ROBERT BADEN-POWELL,

BY 1910, SCOUTING HAD SPREAD TO MANY COUNTRIES

OF THE FORMER BRITISH EMPIRE, INCLUDING THE UNITED STATES.

WELL, THAT ALSO REMINDS US, THOUGH, THAT THE BOY SCOUTS

WERE PART OF A MUCH LARGER INTERNATIONAL MOVEMENT

IN THE 1910s AND '20s.

THERE WAS A SENSE THAT BEING IN THE OUTDOORS,

LEARNING TO BE STRONG AND INDEPENDENT,

WAS A WAY TO BREED A STRONGER UPPER CLASS.

IT WAS DEFINITELY A MORE CLOSED CLUB WHEN IT FIRST STARTED.

MOST OF THE YOUNG MEN WHO WERE INVOLVED IN THE SCOUTS

WERE PROBABLY WHITE YOUNG MALES

WHO CAME FROM VERY ELITE FAMILIES,

WHICH KIND OF FITS IN, BECAUSE ROOSEVELT

WAS A VERY PROMINENT NEW YORKER

AND MOST OF HIS CONTACTS WERE WITH THE UPPER ELITE.

WHEN DID HIS INVOLVEMENT BEGIN?

1921.

SO IT WAS RIGHT WHEN HE HAD CONTRACTED POLIO,

AND HE MUST HAVE BECOME EVEN MORE INTERESTED

IN THE KINDS OF SPORTS AND OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES

THAT HE FELT HE WAS NOW NOT ABLE TO DO HIMSELF.

HE WAS VERY INVOLVED.

WE EVEN HAVE PICTURES OF HIM.

SO THAT'S HIM.

AND THAT'S WHEN HE'S STILL WELL; HE'S STANDING.

YES, THAT'S PROBABLY ONE OF THE LAST PICTURES THAT WAS TAKEN

BEFORE HE CONTRACTED POLIO,

ACTUALLY, TWO WEEKS AFTER THAT PICTURE WAS TAKEN.

CEDRIC EXPLAINS THAT WITH THE DEPRESSION

CAME A SERIOUS THREAT TO THE FUTURE OF SCOUTING.

THIS VERY CAMP WAS FEELING THE PINCH JUST LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE.

RIGHT HERE IT SAYS HERE THAT THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA,

THEY HAD MORTGAGES DUE IN 1932 AND THE FUNDS WERE UNAVAILABLE.

SO IN 1933, THIS VERY CAMPGROUND

THAT WAS VERY DEAR TO FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT

COULD HAVE BEEN FORECLOSED UPON.

THAT WOULD BE A POSSIBLE REASON

FOR HAVING A FUNDRAISER THAT VERY YEAR.

OH, MOST DEFINITELY.

CEDRIC TELLS ME THAT JUST PRIOR TO THE WALDORF BENEFIT,

FDR SIGNED LEGISLATION TO CREATE

THE CIVILIAN CONSERVATION CORPS.

MODELED IN PART AFTER THE SCOUTS,

THE CCC WOULD BECOME FDR'S MOST POPULAR NEW DEAL PROGRAM,

GIVING EMPLOYMENT TO HALF A MILLION MEN AND BOYS,

MOSTLY ON RURAL CONSERVATION PROJECTS.

CEDRIC BELIEVES THAT IN APRIL 1933,

THE NEW PRESIDENT FELT A SPECIAL URGENCY

ABOUT SAVING THE SCOUTS.

I TRULY BELIEVE THAT IT WAS VERY IMPORTANT

NOT ONLY TO THE BOY SCOUTS BUT ROOSEVELT.

THE PROPERTY WAS PART OF A TRAINING GROUND

FOR HIS EARLY NEW DEAL EFFORTS.

I SEE WHY FDR SUPPORTED THE SCOUTS,

BUT I STILL DON'T UNDERSTAND

WHY COBINA WRIGHT WAS ABLE TO DRAW

SUCH AN IMPRESSIVE CROWD OF CELEBRITIES THAT NIGHT.

WAS IT BECAUSE FDR WAS AT THE CIRCUS?

I'M MEETING BURTON PERETTI

AT THE NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY.

HE'S MADE A CLOSE STUDY

OF THE PRESIDENT'S FIRST 100 DAYS IN OFFICE.

SO I TOLD YOU I'M INVESTIGATING THIS SOCIETY CIRCUS

HERE IN NEW YORK IN 1933,

BUT IT ALSO STRUCK ME, LOOKING AT THIS,

THAT THERE'S A KIND OF HOLDOVER FROM THE 1920s GOOD LIFE.

YES, THERE IS THAT TONE OF '20s WHIMSY,

THERE ARE DAREDEVIL ACTS AND SO ON,

VERY MUCH REFLECTING THAT GOOD-NATURED TIME.

BUT THERE ARE REFERENCES TO PROHIBITION,

THERE ARE SORT OF SLY REFERENCES TO DRINKING AND BREW AND ALES

AND OTHER SORTS OF THINGS LIKE THAT.

WHICH, OF COURSE, WAS STILL ILLEGAL.

YES, RIGHT.

PROHIBITION IS NOT OVER YET IN APRIL 1933.

BURTON SUGGESTS THAT MANY AT THE CIRCUS THAT NIGHT

WERE PROBABLY LESS INTERESTED IN THE BOY SCOUTS

THAN IN WHAT THE NEW DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENT WAS GOING TO DO

TO PULL THE NATION OUT OF THE DEPRESSION.

THERE WERE MIXED FEELINGS ABOUT FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT

AMONG THE WEALTHY WHO ATTENDED THE CIRCUS BALL.

HE WAS ONE OF THEM;

HE WAS A PATRICIAN FROM A FARM ESTATE UPRIVER.

BUT HE WAS PUTTING IN PLACE A NEW POLICY

IN WHICH THE GOVERNMENT WOULD ASSIST WORKERS AND FARMERS

IN REGULATING THE ECONOMY AND MAKING DECISIONS

ABOUT HOW THE ECONOMY WORKED.

IN THE PRESIDENT'S FIRST DAYS IN OFFICE,

HE LAUNCHED A MULTITUDE OF NEW POLICIES,

INCLUDING FARM SUBSIDIES AND MAJOR BANKING REFORM.

MANY OF THOSE PROGRAMS WERE BROADLY SYMPATHETIC TO BUSINESS

AND SOUGHT TO PRESERVE THE FINANCIAL SYSTEM.

ALL THE SAME, INCREASED FEDERAL CONTROL

OVER THE ECONOMY UPSET MANY BUSINESS LEADERS.

MANY OF THESE WEALTHY NEW YORKERS

WERE USED TO THE POLICIES OF PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATORS,

REPUBLICANS LIKE CALVIN COOLIDGE,

WHO ADVOCATED ALLOWING CAPITALISTS

TO DO WHATEVER THEY WANTED IN TERMS OF HIRING,

LAYING OFF PEOPLE, OPENING OR CLOSING FACTORIES,

SO IT WAS A BIG CHANGE.

THE POWER BROKERS AT THE WALDORF THAT APRIL NIGHT

WERE NOT JUST CURRYING FAVOR WITH THE PRESIDENT'S PET CAUSE.

THEY GENUINELY HOPED THE PRESIDENT HAD SOLUTIONS

FOR DESPERATE TIMES.

AT FIRST, FDR BELIEVED HE COULD WIN

THEIR LONG-TERM SUPPORT.

IN APRIL 1933, HE WAS STILL VERY HOPEFUL ABOUT THAT,

BUT IN THE NEXT TWO YEARS,

THE HOSTILITY FROM MOST PEOPLE ON WALL STREET,

MOST CAPITALISTS, BECAME VERY EVIDENT.

THEY ACCUSED HIM OF BEING A COMMUNIST.

AND THERE WAS SOMETHING OF A DIVIDE THEN.

ROOSEVELT BECAME THE CHAMPION OF THE COMMON MAN.

BY 1935 AND 1936, AS THE DEPRESSION WORSENED,

ROOSEVELT'S INCREASED SOCIAL SPENDING

AND NEGOTIATIONS WITH LABOR GROUPS

DREW GROWING ENMITY FROM MANY ON WALL STREET.

NEVERTHELESS, SOME MINORITY

IN THE UPPER ECHELONS OF SOCIETY

REMAINED LOYAL TO FDR.

SOME OF THE INDIVIDUALS AT THE CIRCUS BALL

BECAME PART OF THE ROOSEVELT ADMINISTRATION.

AVERELL HARRIMAN BECAME AN ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE.

BOB SHERWOOD IS MENTIONED HERE; HE WAS A PLAYWRIGHT.

HE BECAME ONE OF ROOSEVELT'S SPEECHWRITERS.

SO CERTAINLY MANY PEOPLE OF MONEY BECAME CONVINCED

THAT THIS KIND OF REFORM WAS NECESSARY

SIMPLY TO KEEP THE SOCIAL FABRIC TOGETHER.

ON APRIL 25, 1933, ROOSEVELT AND THE SOCIETY CIRCUS

BROUGHT THE WEALTHY AND POWERFUL TOGETHER

TO SUPPORT AN UNLIKELY CAUSE.

BUT WAS THE PRESIDENT IN ATTENDANCE THAT NIGHT?

I'VE LOCATED AN ARTICLE FROM APRIL 26,

THE DAY AFTER THE CIRCUS BALL.

PERFECT.

IT'S TIME TO REPORT BACK TO CLAIRE.

WELL, CLAIRE, THIS PARTY HAPPENED,

THE SOCIETY CIRCUS.

IT WAS ONE OF THE MOST LAVISH PARTIES IN NEW YORK

AT THE WORST POINT OF THE DEPRESSION,

AND ALL OF THESE FAMOUS PEOPLE CAME TOGETHER

AND THEY DIDN'T JUST WATCH A CIRCUS,

THEY WERE THE CIRCUS.

THEY WERE THE AUDIENCE AND THE SHOW.

SO THEY DRESSED UP LIKE TIGHTROPE WALKERS

AND CLOWNS AND BALLERINAS.

HOW DOES THAT SOUND?

IF YOU HAD GONE, YOU COULD HAVE JUST --

LIKE, YOU'D SEE OTHER PEOPLE DO IT,

BUT THEN YOU WOULD BE ALSO IN THE SHOW,

WHICH WOULD HAVE BEEN COOL.

WELL, YOU ALSO HAD WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT.

ON THAT DAY, THE DAY OF THE BALL,

ROOSEVELT WAS CONCLUDING A CONFERENCE

WITH THE BRITISH PRIME MINISTER, RAMSAY MacDONALD,

A VERY IMPORTANT CONFERENCE ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC COOPERATION

TO DEAL WITH THE WORLDWIDE DEPRESSION.

THE EXTRAORDINARY CROWD

AT COBINA WRIGHT'S PARTY THAT NIGHT --

BANKERS, CELEBRITIES, AND SURREPTITIOUSLY HIRED ACTORS --

HAD A VARIETY OF MOTIVES FOR ATTENDING,

BUT THERE COULD BE NO DOUBT ABOUT THE PRIORITIES

OR THE WHEREABOUTS OF THE NEW PRESIDENT.

FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT WAS IN WASHINGTON

THE DAY OF THE CIRCUS BALL.

HE SAT UP TILL THE WEE HOURS PLANNING NEW DEAL COOPERATION

WITH THE BRITISH PRIME MINISTER.

SO FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT WASN'T AT THIS PARTY

EVEN THOUGH HIS NAME WAS ON HERE,

BECAUSE HE WAS STAYING IN WASHINGTON

WORKING TO TRY TO SAVE THE COUNTRY

FROM THE WORST ECONOMIC DEPRESSION WE HAD EVER FACED.

THAT'S COOL.

THANKS A LOT FOR LETTING ME LEARN WITH YOU.

I REALLY ENJOYED WORKING ON THIS.

TODAY'S CELEBRITIES ARE USED TO

BEING SHUTTLED IN AND OUT OF SECRET ENTRANCES

TO AVOID PRYING PAPARAZZI.

IT WAS NO DIFFERENT AT THE WALDORF-ASTORIA

DURING ITS HEYDAY.

FOR ITS MOST IMPORTANT VISITORS,

THE HOTEL OFFERED THE ULTIMATE SECRET ENTRANCE:

A PRIVATE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD.

HERE WE ARE IN WHAT IS PERHAPS THE MOST SECRET TRAIN STATION

IN ALL OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

ACCORDING TO DAN BRUCKER OF THE METRO-NORTH RAILROAD,

ITS CODE NAME IS TRACK 61.

DIGNITARIES, GENERALS,

EVEN PRESIDENT FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT

WERE CLANDESTINELY USHERED TO AND FROM THE WALDORF

USING THIS HIDDEN ENTRANCE.

THE WHOLE OPERATION REMAINS SHROUDED IN SECRECY.

YOU CAN'T SEE HOW WE GOT DOWN HERE

BECAUSE IT STILL SERVES SOME VERY CRITICAL FUNCTIONS

EVEN TO THIS DAY.

Wes: OUR LAST STORY TAKES US ON A HUNT

FOR THE ORIGINS OF A PRESIDENTIAL HIDEAWAY.

IT'S EARLY IN 1942.

THE UNITED STATES HAS BEEN PLUNGED INTO

THE SECOND WORLD WAR.

REELING FROM THE ATTACK ON PEARL HARBOR

AND WITH GERMAN U-BOATS LURKING IN THE OPEN WATERS,

PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT'S SECRET SERVICE

ORDERS HIM OFF HIS PRESIDENTIAL YACHT

FOR SAFER GROUND.

HIS CLOSEST ADVISERS

ARE TASKED WITH FINDING THE PERFECT LOCATION,

ONE SECRET ENOUGH FOR WARTIME BUSINESS

AND PLEASING ENOUGH FOR PRESIDENTIAL LEISURE.

AN ISOLATED LOCATION IN THE CATOCTIN MOUNTAINS OF MARYLAND

IS CHOSEN AND NAMED SHANGRI-LA.

TODAY, WE KNOW THE RUSTIC CLUSTER OF CABINS

AS CAMP DAVID, THE RETREAT OF AMERICAN PRESIDENTS

FOR NEARLY 70 YEARS

AND HOST TO SOME OF THE WORLD'S MOST POWERFUL LEADERS.

BUT IN ITS EARLIEST DAYS,

THE PLANNING OF CAMP DAVID WAS A TOP SECRET OPERATION.

MORE THAN HALF A CENTURY LATER,

MIKE McQUATE, A COLLECTOR FROM SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA,

HAS FOUND A BOX CONTAINING A LETTER

THAT MAY PROVIDE A RARE INSIGHT

INTO THE DEVELOPMENT OF FDR'S PRIVATE RETREAT.

I'VE FOUND A LOT OF STRANGE AND UNUSUAL STUFF

THROUGHOUT THE YEARS,

BUT RECENTLY I FOUND THIS LETTER SIGNED BY RONALD REAGAN,

AND I WANTED TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT IT.

MIKE?

I'M WES COWAN, AND I'VE COME TO GET A LOOK

AT THE CONTENTS OF MIKE'S BOX.

COME ON IN.

THANK YOU.

WOW, MIKE, I CAN SEE BY LOOKING AROUND THAT YOU LIKE STUFF.

YEAH, YEAH.

AND WHERE'D MOST OF IT COME FROM?

MOST OF IT'S FROM DUMPSTERS, ACTUALLY.

SO YOU'RE A DUMPSTER DIVER?

YEAH.

PEOPLE WOULDN'T BELIEVE THE AMOUNT OF GREAT STUFF

THAT'S COME OUT OF GARBAGE.

THIS IS WHAT YOU'VE GOT FOR ME?

WELL, IT'S A BOX FROM A DUMPSTER,

AND IT'S A LOT OF NAVY MEMORABILIA

GOING BACK TO BEFORE WORLD WAR I.

AND THE INTERESTING THING, I THOUGHT, WAS THIS LETTER

THAT LOOKS LIKE IT'S SIGNED BY RONALD REAGAN.

YOU'RE KIDDING ME.

LET ME TAKE A LOOK.

IT'S WHITE HOUSE STATIONERY, SEPTEMBER 9, 1981.

"DEAR MRS. KEVERS:

"IT HAS RECENTLY BEEN BROUGHT TO MY ATTENTION

"THAT YOUR LATE HUSBAND, CAPTAIN JOHN H. KEVERS,

"GAVE MANY YEARS OF SERVICE TO PRESIDENTS,

"STARTING WITH FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT.

"BECAUSE OF CAPTAIN KEVERS,

"WE HAVE THE ENJOYABLE FACILITY OF CAMP DAVID.

"IT'S AN IDEAL SPOT FOR A PRESIDENTIAL RETREAT

AND I'M THANKFUL THAT CAPTAIN KEVERS SELECTED IT."

AND THEN, YEP, THAT LOOKS LIKE IT'S SIGNED BY REAGAN.

SO, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS IT THAT YOU WANT ME TO FIND OUT?

WELL, I WAS CURIOUS HOW AND WHY DID THIS GUY

GET TO PICK THE SITE FOR CAMP DAVID?

DID HE JUST JUMP OFF THE BOAT AND GO TO THE TOP OF A MOUNTAIN

AND SAY, "HERE'S THE SPOT"?

AND ALSO, I WAS CURIOUS IF THERE'S ANY FAMILY MEMBERS

THAT WOULD WANT THIS STUFF.

WELL, I'M GOING TO HAVE TO TAKE THIS BOX.

I CAN SEE RIGHT NOW THAT THERE'S A LOT OF STUFF HERE

FOR ME TO GET MY TEETH INTO.

SO I'M READY TO GET STARTED.

IF THE CLAIM THAT'S MADE IN THIS LETTER IS TRUE,

THAT THIS GUY CAPTAIN JOHN H. KEVERS

WAS SOMEHOW RESPONSIBLE FOR LOCATING THE LAND

THAT WOULD ULTIMATELY BECOME CAMP DAVID,

THE PRESIDENTIAL RETREAT,

I MEAN, THAT'S A PRETTY COOL STORY.

BUT SOMETHING'S BEEN BUGGING ME

FROM THE MOMENT MIKE SHOWED ME HIS LETTER.

YOU KNOW, I HOLD IT UP TO THE LIGHT AND I CAN SEE THAT

IT'S JUST RELATIVELY CHEAP COPY PAPER.

AND THERE'S NO TEXTURE TO THE INK ON HERE,

IT'S ALL JUST CONTINUOUS,

PARTICULARLY IN THE SIGNATURE OF REAGAN.

YOU KNOW, ON A REAL SIGNATURE,

THE INK WOULD SORT OF FLOAT ON TOP OF THE PAPER

AND YOU COULD ACTUALLY FEEL IT WITH YOUR FINGER.

IT'S A XEROX COPY.

THE BOX ALSO CONTAINS SOME PERIOD PHOTOGRAPHS.

THESE LITTLE SNAPSHOTS ARE, JUDGING BY THE SIZE OF THEM

AND THE KIND OF PAPER THAT'S BEING USED,

I WOULD GUESS THEY'RE FROM THE 1930s.

AND RIGHT ON TOP THERE ARE A COUPLE PHOTOGRAPHS

OF SOME NAVY GUY.

HUH, WONDER IF THAT COULD BE KEVERS.

A NUMBER OF THESE PHOTOS ARE '40s-ERA BLACK-AND-WHITE IMAGES

OF NAVY OFFICERS.

THE PHOTOS ARE AUTOGRAPHED AND ADDRESSED

TO NONE OTHER THAN JOHN KEVERS.

"TO LIEUTENANT J.H.

KEVERS, U.S. NAVY,

"IN APPRECIATION OF THE ASSISTANCE HE HAS GIVEN ME

"IN THE DISCHARGE OF MY DUTIES AS NAVAL AIDE TO THE PRESIDENT,

JOHN L. McCREA, THE THIRD OF FEBRUARY, 1943."

THAT MAY BE A CLUE,

BUT THE PAPERS ARE AN ODD ASSORTMENT.

MOSTLY THEY SEEM TO BE THE LEGAL AND PERSONAL DOCUMENTS

OF PEOPLE OTHER THAN JOHN KEVERS.

BUT IF MIKE'S LETTER IS AUTHENTIC,

THERE'S SOME CONNECTION BETWEEN KEVERS AND CAMP DAVID.

THE FIRST THING I NEED TO DO IS SOME BASIC RESEARCH.

THE IDEA OF A PRESIDENTIAL RETREAT

GOES BACK TO THE 18th CENTURY.

BEFORE CAMP DAVID,

MOST PRESIDENTS ESCAPED TO THEIR ANCESTRAL HOMES.

THOMAS JEFFERSON ENJOYED THE GRANDEUR OF MONTICELLO.

FOR TEDDY ROOSEVELT,

IT WAS A CABIN IN THE WOODS NAMED PINE KNOT.

FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT PREFERRED A PRESIDENTIAL YACHT,

THE U.S.S.

POTOMAC.

BUT IN 1942, WITH GERMAN U-BOATS SINKING SHIPS

ALONG THE U.S. EAST COAST, THE "FLOATING WHITE HOUSE"

WAS NO LONGER AN OPTION FOR THE PRESIDENT.

FDR NEEDED A SECURE LAND-BASED RETREAT

THAT COULD ALSO SERVE AS A PLACE TO STRATEGIZE

ABOUT U.S. INVOLVEMENT IN THE WAR.

BUT EXACTLY HOW WAS THIS SPOT CHOSEN FOR CAMP DAVID?

ED WEHRLE RESEARCHED THE HISTORY OF CAMP DAVID

AND CATOCTIN MOUNTAIN PARK FOR THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE.

HOW DID THE PRESIDENTIAL RETREAT

END UP IN THE MOUNTAINS OF WESTERN MARYLAND?

ROOSEVELT IS LOOKING FOR SORT OF SOME PLACE,

FOR SECURITY REASONS AS WELL,

WHERE HE CAN GET AWAY FROM WASHINGTON

YET RETURN QUICKLY IF NEED BE.

THERE'S A LOT OF SECRECY SURROUNDING THE ISSUE,

THERE'S NOT A LOT OF PAPERWORK BEING KEPT.

FROM WHAT I'VE SEEN, THE WHITE HOUSE ASKED

THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE TO CHOOSE THE SITE.

THEY CAME UP WITH A COUPLE POTENTIAL LOCATIONS,

AND ULTIMATELY THE CATOCTIN MOUNTAINS WAS THE BEST LOCATION.

THE COOLER AIR OF THE CATOCTIN MOUNTAINS

WAS A HUGE HELP TO A PRESIDENT WITH GRAVE HEALTH CONCERNS.

HE HAS POLIO, BUT HE ALSO HAS SOME SERIOUS SINUS PROBLEMS,

AND AIR CONDITIONING WAS A PROBLEM FOR HIM,

THOSE MUGGY WASHINGTON SUMMERS WERE A PROBLEM FOR HIM.

THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE BROUGHT HIM UP THERE

APRIL 22, 1942,

AND AS HE EMERGED FROM HIS CAR, HE WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE SAID,

"THIS IS SHANGRI-LA."

WHY SHANGRI-LA?

WELL, THERE WAS THIS VERY POPULAR NOVEL IN THE 1930s

BY A GUY NAMED JAMES HILTON CALLED LOST HORIZON

ABOUT A LOST CIVILIZATION IN THE HIMALAYAS

WHERE NO ONE EVER GREW OLD.

IT WAS LATER RENAMED CAMP DAVID BY PRESIDENT EISENHOWER

IN HONOR OF HIS GRANDSON.

THE LAND HAD BEEN A CAMP FOR FEDERAL EMPLOYEES,

BUILT BY THE WORKS PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION IN 1939.

ED TELLS ME THAT ROOSEVELT PERSONALLY DREW UP PLANS

TO CONVERT THE CAMP INTO HIS SHANGRI-LA.

IT WAS A VERY SIMPLE PLACE,

AND ROOSEVELT ACTUALLY WANTED TO KEEP IT SIMPLE.

HE LIKED KIND OF A RUSTIC FEEL.

THEY HOOKED TOGETHER A COUPLE OF CABINS,

THEY PUT IN A SCREENED-IN PORCH,

BUT IT REMAINED VERY, VERY SIMPLE.

THE GUESTS ALL HAD TO SHARE A BATHROOM.

AT ONE POINT THE BATHROOM DOOR BROKE,

AND ROOSEVELT DIDN'T EVEN HAVE IT FIXED.

HE SORT OF LIKED THE IDEA OF HIS GUESTS ROUGHING IT.

WINSTON CHURCHILL, HIS MOST FAMOUS GUEST AT CATOCTIN,

DESCRIBED SHANGRI-LA AS, IN PRINCIPLE, A LOG CABIN.

ED SAYS FDR HAD GOOD REASONS FOR KEEPING SHANGRI-LA SIMPLE.

THE COUNTRY HAD LONG BEEN DIVIDED

OVER ENTRY INTO THE WAR IN EUROPE.

BEFORE PEARL HARBOR,

ISOLATIONISTS HAD ESPECIALLY ATTACKED ROOSEVELT

FOR AIDING BRITAIN WITH MUNITIONS AND MONEY.

HE DOESN'T WANT TO GIVE THEM ANY REASON TO CALL HIM LAVISH,

TO CALL HIM A SPENDER.

THE COUNTRY'S COMING OUT OF THE DEPRESSION,

BUT PEOPLE ARE MAKING A LOT OF SACRIFICES IN THE WAR,

SO THEY WANT TO KEEP EXPENDITURES DOWN.

AFTER HE DIED AFTER WORLD WAR II,

IT WAS MADE PUBLIC AND THE MEDIA WAS BROUGHT UP THERE,

AND SURE TO FORM, AS ROOSEVELT FEARED,

SOME NEWSPAPERS DEPICTED THIS AS A LAVISH RESORT.

IN FACT, THE CHICAGO TRIBUNE, A VERY ANTI-ROOSEVELT NEWSPAPER,

CLAIMED THAT THIS RESORT COST $100,000.

YOU KNOW, ED, MY INVESTIGATION IS ABOUT A NAVAL CAPTAIN

NAMED JOHN H. KEVERS, AND HE SUPPOSEDLY IS THE GUY

WHO PICKED THE SPOT FOR SHANGRI-LA.

HAVE YOU EVER HEARD THIS STORY?

THERE'S A LOT OF SECRECY SURROUNDING THE ISSUE,

THERE'S NOT A LOT OF PAPERWORK BEING KEPT.

WHETHER KEVERS HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH THE ACTUAL DECISION

TO PUT SHANGRI-LA IN THE CATOCTIN MOUNTAINS,

THAT'S KIND OF TRICKIER TO SAY.

ED CAN'T TELL ME ANYTHING ABOUT MIKE'S LETTER,

SO I'M HEADING TO THE RONALD REAGAN PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY

IN CALIFORNIA.

I'M HOPING HEAD ARCHIVIST MIKE DUGAN

CAN AUTHENTICATE OUR LETTER

AND TELL ME MORE ABOUT WHY IT WAS WRITTEN.

I KNOW THAT IT IS A XEROXED LETTER.

THIS IS SORT OF THE SIZE AND TYPE OF STATIONERY

THAT REAGAN WOULD HAVE USED?

YES, IT IS.

I HAVE AN EXAMPLE FOR YOU HERE.

MIKE CONFIRMS THAT OUR LETTER IS A PHOTOCOPY

OF WHAT APPEARS TO BE AN ORIGINAL WHITE HOUSE LETTER.

HE ALSO POINTS OUT THAT

THE SIGNATURE WAS NOT WRITTEN BY THE PRESIDENT HIMSELF

BUT WITH AN AUTOMATIC DEVICE USED BY THE WHITE HOUSE STAFF

CALLED AN AUTOPEN.

HE RECEIVED SOMETHING LIKE 500,000 PIECES OF CORRESPONDENCE

IN A MONTH, AND THERE WAS NO WAY

THAT HE COULD SIGN ALL OF THE OUTGOING LETTERS.

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT WHY OUR LETTER WAS WRITTEN

BY THE PRESIDENT'S STAFF,

MIKE WANTS TO CHECK THE ARCHIVES

OF PRESIDENT REAGAN'S CORRESPONDENCE.

THIS IS THE LOWER GROUND FLOOR TEXTUAL STORAGE AREA.

THIS AREA HOLDS ONE THIRD OF THE COLLECTION.

HOLY SMOKES.

MIKE TAKES ME TO THE ALPHABETICAL FILES,

A COLLECTION OF 8,000 TO 10,000 ROUTINE MESSAGES

WRITTEN BY THE WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENCE UNIT.

OH, THERE IT IS.

TERRIFIC.

OKAY, SO HERE'S K-E-V,

SO IT SHOULD BE IN THIS FILE.

WE'RE LOOKING FOR SEPTEMBER OF '81,

AND HERE WE ARE.

SO THIS IS OUR COPY OF THE LETTER THAT WAS SENT OUT.

THE WHITE HOUSE KEEPS A COPY OF ALL OUTGOING CORRESPONDENCE.

TURNING A PAGE IN THE FILE REVEALS A DOCUMENT

THAT PUTS THE ORIGINS OF MY LETTER INTO SHARP FOCUS.

AND IT'S FROM CARL A. CARLSON, CAPTAIN, U.S. NAVY, RETIRED.

CARLSON IS REQUESTING A BIRTHDAY GREETING FROM REAGAN

TO HIS MOTHER-IN-LAW.

"I'M POSITIVE MRS. KEVERS, MY MOTHER-IN-LAW,

"WOULD APPRECIATE A CONGRATULATORY MESSAGE

FROM HER PRESIDENT."

SO OUR LETTER WAS WRITTEN BY PRESIDENT REAGAN'S STAFF

IN RESPONSE TO CAPTAIN KEVER'S SON-IN-LAW.

"CAPTAIN KEVERS WAS DIRECTED

"BY PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT'S NAVAL AIDE

"TO PROCEED AND OBTAIN A RETREAT

WHERE THE PRESIDENT WOULD BE SECURE."

OH, SO THAT'S GOT TO BE TALKING ABOUT CAMP DAVID.

RIGHT.

IT'S CAPTAIN CARLSON WHO MAKES THE ORIGINAL CLAIM

THAT KEVERS WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR FINDING CAMP DAVID.

BUT IS IT TRUE?

THERE'S A NOTE HERE, "SPECIAL HANDLING."

IT COULD MEAN TO EXPEDITE THE REQUEST,

BECAUSE THEY DID TURN THIS AROUND FAIRLY QUICKLY.

IT'S FAIRLY CLEAR THAT THEY DIDN'T REFER THIS

TO ANOTHER OFFICE OF THE WHITE HOUSE

TO DO AN INVESTIGATION.

DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN ONE WAY OR THE OTHER

THAT KEVERS REALLY DID OR DID NOT

FIND THE GROUND FOR CAMP DAVID, IS THAT RIGHT?

I THINK THAT'S FAIR TO SAY.

SO ALL I REALLY HAVE IS THE WORD OF KEVERS' SON-IN-LAW.

IF KEVERS HAD BEEN INVOLVED,

IT WOULD HAVE BEEN WHEN FDR MOVED HIS RETREAT

FROM HIS PRESIDENTIAL YACHT TO SHANGRI-LA.

SO I'M MEETING KIM NIELSEN,

THE DIRECTOR OF THE U.S. NAVY MUSEUM,

ABOARD THE U.S.S.

POTOMAC,

NOW HARBORED IN OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA.

THIS IS THE YACHT'S FANTAIL.

THIS IS WHERE FDR WOULD COME AND RELAX,

HIS FAVORITE SPOT ON THE SHIP.

HOLY SMOKES.

WAS HE A FISHERMAN?

HE MUST HAVE BEEN, RIGHT?

HE WAS AN AVID FISHERMAN.

HE WOULD FISH -- WHENEVER HE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY,

HE'D DROP A LINE RIGHT OVER THE SIDE HERE OF THE YACHT

AND FISH FOR HOURS.

KIM TELLS ME THAT THROUGH A SERIES OF MODIFICATIONS,

ROOSEVELT WAS ABLE TO GET AROUND ON HIS OWN.

THE CREW OF THE POTOMAC WERE AMONG THE VERY FEW

WHO EVER GOT TO SEE A MORE VULNERABLE SIDE OF FDR.

ROOSEVELT CONSIDERED HIMSELF A NAVY MAN

BECAUSE HE HAD BEEN ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE NAVY

DURING WORLD WAR I UNDER WILSON,

SO THE NAVY PLAYED A LARGE ROLE IN HIS ADMINISTRATION.

MY INVESTIGATION INVOLVES A LETTER THAT I HAVE HERE

THAT IS ABOUT A GUY NAMED CAPTAIN JOHN H. KEVERS,

AND IN THIS LETTER IT MENTIONS

THAT KEVERS WAS THE CAPTAIN OF THE U.S.S POTOMAC.

HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF KEVERS?

YES, KEVERS WAS THE CAPTAIN OF THE POTOMAC IN 1944 INTO 1945.

BEFORE THAT, HE WAS ON THE STAFF OF THE POTOMAC.

HE WAS ACTUALLY ON THE PRESIDENT'S STAFF

FOR ALL OF THE YACHTS AND THE YACHT ESCORTS SINCE 1935.

SO KEVERS WAS A KEY MEMBER OF FDR'S NAVAL RETINUE,

BUT IS THERE A CONNECTION WITH CAMP DAVID?

WHAT WOULD A NAVY GUY HAVE TO DO WITH FINDING

THE PRESIDENTIAL RETREAT?

THE CREW OF THE PRESIDENTIAL YACHT WAS ALSO THE CREW

THAT SUPPORTED THE PRESIDENT AT CAMP SHANGRI-LA.

THERE WAS ONLY ONE GROUP OF PEOPLE.

PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT WAS LOOKING FOR

SOME OTHER PLACE TO HAVE WEEKEND GETAWAYS,

AND HE TASKED HIS NAVAL AIDE JOHN McCREA

TO FIND HIM A HIDEOUT SOMEWHERE INLAND.

WAIT A MINUTE, DID YOU SAY JOHN McCREA?

McCREA IS THE GUY

WHOSE AUTOGRAPHED PICTURE WAS IN THE BOX MIKE FOUND

WITH THE NOTE THANKING KEVERS FOR ALL HIS HELP.

THE NAVAL AIDE WAS THE PRESIDENT'S GO-TO GUY

WHEN HE WANTED TO GET SOMETHING DONE.

McCREA SERVED THROUGH THE YEAR

AND WAS ASSIGNED BY FDR TO FIND HIS HIDEOUT,

WHICH TURNED OUT TO BE ULTIMATELY CAMP SHANGRI-LA,

OR AS WE KNOW IT TODAY, CAMP DAVID.

BUT IF McCREA LED THE SEARCH FOR CAMP DAVID,

THEN WHAT ROLE DID JOHN KEVERS PLAY?

KIM TELLS ME THE ANSWER IS ONBOARD THE POTOMAC.

NOW, THIS IS WHAT I WANTED YOU TO SEE.

READ WHAT THAT PLAQUE SAYS.

"THIS IS ONE OF 36 BOTTLES..."

THE INSCRIPTION ON THE PLAQUE GIVES ME THE INFORMATION I NEED

TO COMPLETE MY INVESTIGATION.

YOU KNOW, THIS WAS A GREAT STORY.

I LEARNED A LOT ABOUT CAMP DAVID,

OR SHANGRI-LA, AND WORLD WAR II,

ROOSEVELT'S INTERESTS IN THE NAVY AND HIS YACHT.

I TELL MIKE THAT THE EFFORT TO FIND SHANGRI-LA

WAS OFFICIALLY LED BY FDR'S NAVAL AIDE, JOHN McCREA,

BUT WHAT KIM SHOWED ME ON THE POTOMAC

PROVED THAT JOHN KEVERS WAS UNDOUBTEDLY A TRUSTED MEMBER

OF FDR'S INNER CIRCLE.

"THIS IS ONE OF 36 BOTTLES

"PRIME MINISTER WINSTON CHURCHILL PRESENTED TO FDR

"WHEN HE VISITED CAMP SHANGRI-LA, MAY 23, 1943.

"THIS WAS GIVEN BY CAPTAIN JOHN H. KEVERS IN 1963.

KEVERS WAS SKIPPER OF THE PRESIDENT'S YACHT."

HOLY SMOKES.

DO YOU THINK IT'S POSSIBLE THAT KEVERS WOULD HAVE BEEN TASKED

BY McCREA TO ACTUALLY GO OUT AND LOOK AT THE PROPERTY

THAT BECAME SHANGRI-LA?

McCREA, AS THE NAVAL AIDE TO THE PRESIDENT,

HAD A TIGHT CIRCLE OF OFFICERS

THAT HE WOULD TRUST TO CARRY OUT HIS ORDERS.

KEVERS WAS ONE OF THESE OFFICERS.

ALTHOUGH KIM CAN'T GIVE ME HARD EVIDENCE

THAT KEVERS SINGLE-HANDEDLY LOCATED THE CAMP DAVID SITE,

HE SAYS THAT BY 1944,

KEVERS HAD CERTAINLY MADE HIS MARK WITH FDR.

AT THAT TIME, KEVERS WAS PROMOTED

TO CAPTAIN OF THIS VESSEL,

AND AS CAPTAIN OF THIS VESSEL,

HE WAS ALSO OFFICER IN CHARGE OF CAMP SHANGRI-LA.

YOU'RE KIDDING ME.

HE KNEW ABOUT SHANGRI-LA, HE CERTAINLY KNEW ROOSEVELT,

BUT WHETHER HE REALLY FOUND THE GROUND,

UNFORTUNATELY, THE ANSWER IS, I CAN'T TELL YOU.

IT SEEMS CERTAINLY POSSIBLE THAT KEVERS DID.

MIKE WANTED TO RETURN HIS BOX OF MEMORABILIA

TO ITS RIGHTFUL OWNER,

SO AFTER DISCOVERING CAPTAIN CARLSON'S LETTER

IN THE REAGAN LIBRARY,

I MADE SOME CALLS AND ARRANGED A LITTLE SURPRISE.

HEY, JOEL, COME ON IN.

HI.

HI, I'M MIKE McQUATE.

JOEL J. CARLSON, GREAT-GRANDSON TO MR. KEVERS.

JOEL TELLS US THAT AFTER HIS GRANDFATHER CARL CARLSON DIED,

OUR BOX WAS ACCIDENTALLY INCLUDED IN THE ESTATE AUCTION.

BUT HOW IT ENDED UP IN THE TRASH REMAINS A MYSTERY.

WHY SOMEONE WOULD THROW THIS IN THE TRASH IS BEYOND ME,

BECAUSE YOU CAN SEE FOR YOURSELF JUST BY LOOKING AT THE PICTURES,

YOU'D BE GOING, "HMM, THIS IS HISTORY,

WHAT AM I DOING?," YOU KNOW?

AND WHILE JOEL KNEW THAT HIS GREAT-GRANDFATHER

HAD BEEN CAPTAIN OF THE POTOMAC,

HE HAD NO IDEA ABOUT THE CONNECTION TO SHANGRI-LA.

Wes: ALL BECAUSE OF DIGGING AROUND IN THIS LITTLE BOX,

THIS LITTLE BOX.

THERE'S ALL KINDS OF STUFF IN HERE

THAT I THINK THAT YOU'RE GOING TO FIND VERY INTERESTING.

THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH, MAN, FROM ME, MY BROTHER,

AND MY ENTIRE FAMILY -- AND MY GRANDPARENTS.

I KNOW THEY WOULD BE JUST THRILLED TO DEATH.

THE U.S.S.

POTOMAC WAS DECOMMISSIONED

AFTER FDR'S DEATH, BUT FOR A TIME

IT SHARED THE WATERS WITH THE U.S.S.

SEQUOIA,

THE PRESIDENTIAL YACHT

THAT FAITHFULLY SERVED COMMANDERS-IN-CHIEF

FOR ALMOST 50 YEARS.

HERBERT HOOVER WAS THE FIRST PRESIDENT TO USE THE SEQUOIA

AFTER THE YACHT WAS SOLD TO THE U.S. GOVERNMENT IN 1931.

FOR MORE THAN FOUR DECADES, THE 104-F00T SEQUOIA

PLAYED HOST TO SOME OF THE BIGGEST MOMENTS

IN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORY.

IT WAS ABOARD THE YACHT

THAT HARRY TRUMAN MADE THE DECISION

TO DROP THE ATOMIC BOMB ON HIROSHIMA.

RICHARD NIXON SOUGHT REFUGE THERE ON THE DAY HE RESIGNED.

BUT THE SEQUOIA ALSO WITNESSED LIGHTER PRESIDENTIAL MOMENTS.

LYNDON JOHNSON, WHO STOOD 6'3" TALL,

COMPLAINED THAT THE SHOWER WAS TOO SMALL

AND HAD THE FLOOR LOWERED THREE INCHES.

AND JFK, A NAVY MAN HIMSELF, CELEBRATED HIS LAST BIRTHDAY

ONBOARD THE SEQUOIA WITH HIS FRIENDS AND FAMILY.

AFTER 46 YEARS OF PRESIDENTIAL SERVICE,

JIMMY CARTER FINALLY SOLD THE SEQUOIA INTO PRIVATE OWNERSHIP.

TODAY, THIS NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDMARK

CAN BE RENTED OUT FOR SPECIAL EVENTS

FOR THE PRESIDENTIAL PRICE OF $12,000 A NIGHT.

Elvis Costello: ♫WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES♫

♫IT'S JUST LIKE WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES♫

♫WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES♫

♫WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES♫