Season 7, Episode 9

Elyse: WE'RE THE HISTORY DETECTIVES, AND WE'RE GOING TO INVESTIGATE SOME UNTOLD STORIES FROM AMERICA'S PAST.

THIS WEEK, HOW WAS THIS AFRICAN-AMERICAN ARTIST CONNECTED TO SOME OF THE MOST CELEBRATED MURALS OF THE 20th CENTURY?

MY MOM TOLD US WE HAD THIS FAMOUS AUNT WHO WAS A FAMOUS ARTIST.

Wes: HOW DID THIS RECENTLY DISCOVERED PORTRAIT OF OUR FIRST PRESIDENT AID AN ABOLITIONIST'S CAUSE?

"ANXIOUS TO PROMOTE THE HAPPINESS OF THE POOR AFRICANS..." Tukufu: AN D, IN AN ENCORE PRESENTATION, IS THIS SCRAP OF FABRIC EVIDENCE OF A SECRET WARTIME ATTACK ON THE U.S. MAINLAND?

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: TH IS PROGRAM WAS MADE POSSIBLE BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU.

Elyse: OUR FIRST STORY SEARCHES FOR CONNECTIONS BETWEEN A COLLECTION OF UNUSUAL PAINTINGS AND THE LARGEST JOB-CREATION PROGRAM IN OUR NATION'S HISTORY.

AS FRANKLIN DELANO ROOSEVELT TAKES THE OATH OF OFFICE IN 1933, 15 MILLION AMERICANS ARE UNEMPLOYED, 25% OF THE WORKFORCE IDLED BY THE GREAT DEPRESSION.

WITHIN HIS FIRST 100 DAYS, ROOSEVELT LAUNCHES BOLD REFORMS.

I pledge myself to a New Deal for the American people!

FDR'S NEW DEAL WORK PROGRAMS WILL PUT MORE THAN 8 MILLION BACK TO WORK, AND NOT EVERYONE IS LAYING ROADS AND MIXING CEMENT.

THE PROGRAM ALSO EMPLOYS OVER 40,000 IN VARIOUS ARTS PROJECTS.

THIS UNPRECEDENTED HARNESSING OF ARTISTIC TALENT WILL CREATE THOUSANDS OF PAINTINGS, SCULPTURES, AND MURALS FOR PUBLIC BUILDINGS ACROSS THE COUNTRY.

BUT TODAY NEARLY A THIRD OF THIS ARTWORK IS MISSING.

WHAT HAPPENED TO THESE IMPORTANT PIECES OF OUR NATION'S HISTORY?

EVELYN COOK OF MOLALLA, OREGON, HAS INHERITED SOME PAINTINGS THAT MAY BE PART OF THIS LOST WORK.

I'VE SEEN MY AUNT'S ARTWORK ALL MY LIFE, AND NOW I WONDER IF THERE ARE OTHERS OUT THERE BEING INSPIRED BY HER WORK AS WELL.

HI, ELYSE, WELCOME.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU.

WOW, LOOK AT THESE.

HERE THEY ARE.

WOW, THEY'RE INCREDIBLE.

NOW, WHO'S THE ARTIST?

IT WAS MY AUNT, THELMA JOHNSON STREAT, AND WE THINK THEY WERE DONE IN THE EARLY 1940s.

AND CAN YOU TELL ME A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HER?

FROM THE TIME I WAS A LITTLE CHILD, MY MOM TOLD US WE HAD THIS FAMOUS AUNT WHO WAS A FAMOUS ARTIST, AND SO WHENEVER SHE'D COME TO TOWN, WE'D HAVE THESE BIG FAMILY GET-TOGETHERS, AND THAT'S ME AND THAT'S MY AUNT THELMA.

SHE WAS JUST BIGGER THAN LIFE, VERY FLAMBOYANT.

THIS SAYS "NEGROS WORKED IN PACKING HOUSES AS EARLY AS 1875."

"MEN WERE VICTIMS OF EXPLOITATION."

AND THEN OVER HERE, "FOR MANY YEARS THIS WAS THE NEGRO WOMAN."

IT SEEMS LIKE THESE ARE ABOUT THE ROLE OF THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN IN THE WORKPLACE.

WAS SHE ALWAYS POLITICAL?

NO, THESE ARE VERY DIFFERENT FROM HER OTHER PAINTINGS.

EVELYN SAYS THAT MOST OF HER AUNT'S WORK WAS MORE ABSTRACT.

WHAT ELSE CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT THESE PAINTINGS?

WELL, REALLY NOT A LOT.

WE THINK SHE MAY HAVE BEEN AN ARTIST IN THE WPA PROGRAM UNDER FDR.

THE WORKS PROJECT ADMINISTRATION WAS A FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT-ERA PR OGRAM TO HELP THE UNEMPLOYED, INCLUDING THOUSANDS OF ARTISTS.

EVELYN HAS LONG BEEN CURIOUS WHETHER HER AUNT'S PAINTINGS WERE THE STARTING POINT FOR SOMETHING BIGGER.

WE'D LIKE TO FIND OUT IF THEY WERE SKETCHES FOR A LARGER MURAL PROJECT AND IF THEY WERE EVER PAINTED, AND IF SO, WHERE ARE THEY?

FOR SOMEONE WHO'S BEEN DEALING WITH ART FOR MY ENTIRE PROFESSIONAL CAREER, THIS IS GOING TO BE ONE FASCINATING INVESTIGATION.

IN MY WORK AS AN APPRAISER AND AUCTIONEER, I'VE SEEN A LOT OF 19th- AND 20th-CENTURY AMERICAN ART, BUT I'VE NOT STUDIED WORK COMMISSIONED BY THE WPA.

THE SIZE OF THESE SAY THAT THEY COULD'VE BEEN STUDIES FOR MURALS.

I MEAN, THIS ONE ALONE LOOKS LIKE IT'S OVER SIX FEET LONG.

AND THE STYLES ARE DIFFERENT ON ALL OF THESE, SO MAYBE IT WAS A MULTI-YEAR PROJECT.

THE THEMES OF LABOR AND RACE OCCUR AGAIN AND AGAIN IN THE WORK.

THELMA'S MAKING A PRETTY BOLD STATEMENT.

IT'S QUITE POSSIBLE THESE WERE CREATED AS PART OF THE WORKS PROJECT ADMINISTRATION.

[ ♪♪♪ ] AS THE GREAT DEPRESSION WORSENED, FDR TOOK AN UNPRECEDENTED STEP.

IN 1935, AT THE SUGGESTION OF GEORGE BIDDLE, A FORMER PREP-SCHOOL FRIEND TURNED ARTIST, ROOSEVELT CREATED A SUBDIVISION OF THE WPA TO HELP ARTISTS.

THE GRANDLY NAMED FEDERAL PROJECT NUMBER ONE HAD SEVERAL SUBSECTIONS HELPING THOUSANDS OF ARTISTS ACROSS DIFFERENT FIELDS.

FOR THE FIRST TIME IN OUR HISTORY, ARTISTS, WRITERS, DANCERS, AND ACTORS WERE GIVEN A SMALL STIPEND, ENOUGH SO THAT THEY COULD DEVOTE FULL-TIME TO THEIR CREATIVITY.

THE FEDERAL MUSIC PROJECT STAGED PUBLIC CONCERTS.

GRAPHIC ARTISTS CREATED POSTERS WITH PUBLIC SERVICE MESSAGES.

WRITERS PUBLISHED TOUR BOOKS CELEBRATING EVERY STATE.

AND FEDERAL THEATER COMPANIES TOURED THE COUNTRY.

BUT THE MURALISTS WERE THE MOST VISIBLE PART OF THESE NEW DEAL ART PROGRAMS, OFTEN WORKING AS THE PUBLIC LOOKED ON.

WPA MURALS WENT UP IN ALL KINDS OF PUBLIC BUILDINGS, INCLUDING LIBRARIES, SCHOOLS, HOSPITALS, AND COURTHOUSES.

WAS THELMA JOHNSON STREAT PART OF THAT PROGRAM?

THERE'S NOT A LOT WRITTEN ABOUT HER, BUT I CAN PIECE TOGETHER SOME OF HER STORY FROM THESE ARTICLES.

THELMA WAS BORN IN 1911 IN YAKIMA, WASHINGTON.

AT AGE 18, HER PORTRAIT TITLED THE PRIEST WON AN AWARD IN A NEW YORK EXHIBITION OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN ARTISTS.

IN 1942, ALFRED BARR, THE FOUNDING DIRECTOR OF THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART IN NEW YORK, PERSONALLY SELECTED HER PAINTING THE RABBIT MAN FOR MOMA'S PERMANENT COLLECTION.

THELMA BECAME THE FIRST AFRICAN-AMERICAN WOMAN TO HAVE HER WORK ACQUIRED BY THE MUSEUM, BUT HER WORK WAS NOT ALWAYS WELL RECEIVED.

THIS IS FROM OKLAHOMA CITY'S BLACK DISPATCH, DECEMBER 4, 1943, AND LISTEN TO WHAT IT SAYS.

"THELMA JOHNSON STREAT'S DEATH OF A BLACK SAILOR IS ATTRACTING ATTENTION."

ACCORDING TO THE NEWS ACCOUNTS, SHE WAS TWICE THREATENED BY THE KU KLUX KLAN WHEN SHE SHOWED HER WORK AT AN EXHIBITION IN HOLLYWOOD.

BUT I CAN'T FIND ANYTHING ABOUT HER WORKING ON MURALS FOR THE WPA.

I'M IN CHICAGO TO MEET SOMEONE WHO KNOWS ALL ABOUT FINDING AND RESTORING LOST WPA-ERA ART.

HEATHER BECKER IS THE HEAD OF THE CHICAGO CONSERVATION CENTER, ONE OF THE LEADING ART CONSERVATION LABORATORIES IN THE COUNTRY.

I HAVE THESE PAINTINGS.

THEY'RE BY AN ARTIST NAMED THELMA JOHNSON STREAT.

TO ME THEY LOOK LIKE THEY COULD BE STUDIES FOR MURALS.

HAVE YOU EVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS BEFORE?

NO, I HAVEN'T, BUT THIS ACTUALLY LOOKS LIKE A MURAL SKETCH.

IF YOU LOOK AT THE SCALE, IT'S AS THOUGH IT READS AS A NARRATIVE, WHICH IS VERY COMMON WITH MURAL ART.

HEATHER SAYS MANY WPA ARTISTS CREATED WORK THAT PAID TRIBUTE TO THE GRANDEUR OF THE NATION AND CELEBRATED THE AMERICAN WORKER.

THEIR ARTWORK HELPED RAISE THE SPIRITS OF A COUNTRY SUFFERING THROUGH THE GREAT DEPRESSION.

THE REASON WHY MURAL ART WAS SO PROFOUNDLY EFFECTIVE DURING THE WPA WAS BECAUSE THE AUDIENCE WAS STARTING TO SEE THEMSELVES IN THE IMAGERY, AND IF THEY ARE ALLOWED TO BE PUT BACK TO WORK AND BE GOOD AT WHAT THEY DO, THIS COUNTRY WILL BECOME STRONG AGAIN.

HOW MIGHT AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN ARTIST WHO WAS A WOMAN WITH VERY STRONG POLITICAL VIEWS FIT INTO THIS PROGRAM?

HEATHER SAYS THERE WOULD CERTAINLY HAVE BEEN A PLACE FOR THELMA'S BOLD POLITICAL THEMES IN THE FEDERAL ARTS PROJECT.

SOME WORKS CREATED BY WPA ARTISTS WERE SO IDEALISTIC AND POLITICALLY CHARGED THAT MANY CONSERVATIVES OBJECTED.

THERE WAS A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO FOUGHT AGAINST THESE PROGRAMS AND THOUGHT THAT THERE SHOULDN'T BE GOVERNMENT FUNDING FOR THIS KIND OF THING.

THE MURALISTS AT SAN FRANCISCO'S COIT TOWER CAME UNDER FIRE IN 1934 FOR INCLUDING IMAGES OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY'S NEWSPAPER, THE DAILY WORKER AND KARL MARX'S DAS CAPITAL.

ONE MURAL FEATURED A POOR FAMILY PANNING FOR GOLD AS A RICH FAMILY LOOKS ON.

OUTRAGE OVER THE MURALS KEPT COIT TOWER CLOSED FOR WEEKS.

HEATHER SAYS THERE'S ANOTHER REASON THIS ART MIGHT HAVE BEEN CREATED AS PART OF THE WPA.

THIS IS ACTUALLY AN EXECUTIVE ORDER: "WORKERS WHO ARE QUALIFIED BY TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE "TO BE ASSIGNED TO WORK PROJECTS "SHALL NOT BE DISCRIMINATED AGAINST ON ANY GROUNDS WHATSOEVER."

SO ACTUALLY IT WAS A GREAT TIME FOR AFRICAN AMERICANS AND WOMEN TO BE EMPLOYED BY THE WPA.

IS THERE ANY WAY TO TELL IF THELMA'S PAINTINGS WERE EVER MADE INTO MURALS?

HEATHER EXPLAINS FINDING LOST MURALS CAN BE TOUGH.

OF THE 2,500 MURALS CREATED DURING THE WPA PERIOD, AT LEAST A QUARTER HAVE BEEN LOST.

MANY OF THE MURALS SHE LOCATED IN CHICAGO HAD SIMPLY BEEN PAINTED OVER.

BUT SHE HAS AN IDEA.

I WOULD TRY THE GSA, WHICH IS THE GENERAL SERVICE ADMINISTRATION, WHICH IS ACTUALLY THE OWNER OF ALL OF THESE WORKS OF ART.

HEATHER HAS FOUND THAT THE GSA'S RECORDS ON THE WPA ARE FAR FROM COMPLETE, BU T THEY MAY BE ABLE TO TELL ME IF THELMA WORKED IN THE FEDERAL PROGRAM.

I'M ON THE GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION WEB SITE, AND THIS IS INTERESTING.

EVELYN WAS RIGHT.

HER AUNT DID WORK FOR THE WPA.

THE GSA RECORD CONTAINS FI VE PIECES OF THELMA'S ARTWORK CREATED FOR THE FEDERAL ART PROJECT.

ONE WENT TO MINNESOTA, ONE TO PORTLAND, AND THREE ARE IN SAN FRANCISCO.

BUT THE TITLES DON'T MATCH ANY OF THE MURAL SKETCHES I'M INVESTIGATING, AND NEITHER DO THE MATERIALS OR DIMENSIONS.

JUDY BULLINGTON IS A PROFESSOR OF ART HISTORY AT BELMONT UNIVERSITY IN NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE.

SHE'S BEEN STUDYING THE WORK OF THELMA JOHNSON STREAT FOR THE PAST 10 YEARS.

JUDY SAYS THAT WHILE THELMA ISN'T WIDELY KNOWN TODAY, IN THE 1930s AND '40s, SHE ACHIEVED CRITICAL ACCLAIM.

SHE WAS COLLECTED BY ELEANOR ROOSEVELT, DIEGO RIVERA, BY ROLAND HAYES, BY PAULETTE GODDARD, BY CHARLIE CHAPLIN.

I HAVE THESE PAINTINGS, AND I THINK THEY'RE STUDIES FOR MURALS, AND I WAS WONDERING... JUDY'S NOT SURPRISED TO SEE THE THEMES OF LABOR AND RACE.

SHE SAYS THELMA'S WORK BECAME MORE POLITICAL IN THE LATE 1930s.

IT WAS DURING THIS TIME IN SAN FRANCISCO THAT THELMA MET DIEGO RIVERA, AND THIS WAS GOING TO HAVE AN INFLUENCE ON HER.

DIEGO RIVERA WAS ONE OF THE LEADERS OF THE MEXICAN MURAL MOVEMENT OF THE 1920s.

A MEMBER OF THE COMMUNIST PARTY, HE CREATED POPULAR POLITICAL MURALS THROUGHOUT MEXICO THAT OFTEN INCLUDED ATTACKS ON THE RULING CLASS, THE CHURCH, AND CAPITALISM.

DOZENS OF U.S. ARTISTS VISITED MEXICO IN THE '30s TO STUDY WITH RIVERA.

ONE OF RIVERA'S STUDENTS WAS GEORGE BIDDLE, THE CHILDHOOD FRIEND OF FDR WHO HAD PROPOSED THE NEW DEAL ART PROGRAMS.

NOW, ARE YOU AWARE OF ANY MURALS THAT MIGHT EXIST OF HERS?

I UNDERSTAND THAT A LOT OF MURALS WERE DESTROYED.

YES, THAT IS TRUE, BUT A LOT OF THE MURALS WERE NOT NECESSARILY DONE IN THE TRUE FRESCO STYLE.

WHAT WE ARE DISCOVERING IS THAT THERE WERE A LOT OF WORKS THAT WERE PAINTED ON CANVAS.

JUDY EXPLAINS THAT IN THE FRESCO STYLE, MURALS ARE PAINTED DIRECTLY ONTO WET PLASTER, WHILE CANVAS MURALS ARE PAINTED ONTO CANVAS ATTACHED TO THE WALL.

SO, YOU KNOW, THERE'S A POSSIBILITY THAT SOME OF THELMA JOHNSON STREAT'S MURALS MIGHT BE ROLLED UP IN A BASEMENT SOMEWHERE.

I'M AT CITY COLLEGE OF SAN FRANCISCO MEETING HISTORIAN WILL MAYNEZ.

THE SCHOOL IS HOME TO THE LARGEST CONTINUOUS RIVERA MURAL.

IT'S JUST INCREDIBLE; IT'S MASSIVE.

NOW, WHAT EXACTLY IS IT?

WELL, THIS IS A FRESCO MURAL PAINTED BY DIEGO RIVERA IN 1940.

WHAT'S THE NAME OF IT?

WE CALL IT PAN AMERICAN UNITY FOR SHORT, BUT HE CALLED IT THE ARTISTIC EXPRESSION OF THE NORTH AND OF THE SOUTH ON THIS CONTINENT.

WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

WELL, HE WAS PROMOTING A JOINING OF ALL THE COUNTRIES NORTH AND SOUTH ON THIS CONTINENT: CANADA, MEXICO, THE UNITED STATES.

HE'S GOT ALL THE CULTURAL ARTS OF THE AMERICAS: ASTRONOMY, SCULPTURE, ARCHITECTURE.

AND ON THIS SIDE OF THE MURAL HE'S TALKING ABOUT THE MECHANISTIC ARTS OF THE UNITED STATES, WHICH HE JUST LOVED OUR MACHINES.

AND HE JOINS THEM TOGETHER, AND THIS WILL BE THE EMBLEM OF THIS NEW FUSION THAT HE WANTS NORTH AND SOUTH.

WILL SAYS RIVERA CREATED THE MURAL AT THE 1940 GOLDEN GATE INTERNATIONAL EXPOSITION, A WORLD'S FAIR HELD ON TREASURE ISLAND IN THE SAN FRANCISCO BAY.

THE 23-TON MURAL TOOK RIVERA MO RE THAN SIX MONTHS TO CREATE, WORKING WITH DOZENS OF ASSISTANTS.

RIVERA'S MURAL WAS PART OF AN INTERACTIVE EXHIBIT CALLED "ART IN ACTION."

THE ENTIRE PROJECT WAS SPONSORED AND PAID FOR BY THE WPA.

THERE WAS THIS WHOLE AREA WHERE SCULPTORS WERE GOING, LITHOGRAPHERS, WEAVERS, AND PEOPLE WOULD COME IN AND WATCH ALL THE STUFF, BUT THE MAIN STAR WAS DIEGO RIVERA.

I WANT TO SHOW YOU THESE MURAL STUDIES.

THEY WERE DONE BY AN ARTIST NAMED THELMA JOHNSON STREAT.

I'VE NEVER SEEN THESE BEFORE, BUT I HAVE HEARD OF THE NAME THELMA JOHNSON STREAT.

I'M PRETTY SURE THAT MY RESEARCH PARTNER, JULIA BERGMAN, HAS A FILE ON HER OVER AT OUR COLLECTION.

HERE WE HAVE A LETTER WRITTEN BY DIEGO RIVERA TO GALKA SCHEYER IN LOS ANGELES.

SHE WAS A GERMAN ART DEALER AND COLLECTOR, AND I'LL READ.

IT SAYS, "THIS IS TO INTRODUCE MRS. THELMA JOHNSON STREAT.

"HER WORK, IN MY OPINION, "IS ONE OF THE MORE INTERESTING MANIFESTATIONS "IN THIS COUNTRY AT PRESENT.

"IT IS EXTREMELY EVOLVED AND SOPHISTICATED ENOUGH "TO RECONQUER THE GRACE AND PURITY OF AFRICAN AND AMERICAN-INDIAN ART."

SO DIEGO WAS REALLY IMPRESSED WITH HER.

ABSOLUTELY.

ACTUALLY THIS LETTER LED TO AN EXHIBITION OF THELMA'S WORK IN LOS ANGELES SHORTLY THEREAFTER.

IT'S VERY COOL.

HE DID NOT WRITE THESE VERY OFTEN.

JULIA SAYS SHE, TOO, HAD SEARCHED FOR THELMA'S MURALS.

AND IN HER SEARCHING, SHE DISCOVERED SOMETHING INTERESTING.

THIS IS HOME-MOVIE FOOTAGE THAT WE ACQUIRED A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO, AND IT SHOWS SCENES FROM "ART IN ACTION."

THIS IS LIVE ACTION OF RIVERA AT WORK, AND AS THE CAMERA MOVES ACROSS TO THE LEFT, WE SEE REVEALED THE IMAGE OF A YOUNG WOMAN.

WAIT, IS THAT THELMA?

WELL, WE THINK IT COULD BE.

UNFORTUNATELY, HER FACE IS IN PROFILE, SO WE CAN'T SEE FOR SURE.

SO DO YOU MEAN IT'S POSSIBLE THAT THELMA COULD'VE HELPED CREATE THIS MURAL?

WELL, THAT IS A VERY GOOD QUESTION, AND I HAVE ONE MORE THING I CAN SHOW YOU.

GREAT.

WHAT JULIA SHOWS ME NEXT WILL CERTAINLY BE OF INTEREST TO EVELYN.

FIRST OF ALL, I WANT TO THANK YOU.

IT WAS A GREAT INVESTIGATION, AND I CHECKED WITH A LOT OF EXPERTS, AND YOU WERE CORRECT.

SOME OF THE PAINTINGS THAT YOU DO HAVE MOST LIKELY WERE USED AS STUDIES FOR MURALS.

OH, OKAY.

I TELL EVELYN HOW THELMA DI D CREATE ARTWORK FOR THE WPA, BUT THAT I COULD FIND NO SURVIVING WORKS OF WPA ART SHE CREATED.

SO MAYBE SOMEDAY THELMA'S MURALS WILL SURFACE, BUT EVEN THOUGH I COULDN'T FIND HER MURALS, I DID FIND SOMETHING ELSE.

LET ME SHOW YOU THIS FILE.

THIS IS AN UNPUBLISHED MANUSCRIPT BY BEATRICE JUDD RYAN, WHO WAS ONE OF THE ORGANIZERS OF "ART IN ACTION."

AND ON PAGE 95, BEATRICE WROTE, "RIVERA STANDS HIGH UP ON THE SCAFFOLD, "HIS AWKWARD BULK EMPHASIZED BY THE COLORED GIRL, "THELMA STREAT, BESIDE HIM, TALL AND SLIM IN HER BLUE JEANS.

"'ART IN ACTION' BELOW HAS JUST COME ALIVE, AND THE ARTISTS, LIKE A HIVE OF BEES, ARE ALL AT WORK."

SO SHE WAS THERE, SHE WORKED ON THE MURAL.

SHE WAS THERE, ABSOLUTELY.

AND WE HAVE CONFIRMATION THAT SHE WAS ONE OF THE FEW ASSISTANTS WHO ACTUALLY WAS ALLOWED TO PUT PAINTBRUSH ON THE MURAL.

RIVERA HAD DOZENS OF ASSISTANTS, BUT THEY COULDN'T ALL PAINT.

THELMA WAS ONE OF THE FEW.

THAT SEEMS LIKE AN HONOR FOR AN ARTIST LIKE RIVERA.

THELMA JOHNSON STREAT WAS A VERY TALENTED ARTIST, AND RIVERA KNEW IT.

SO SHE ACTUALLY WORKED WITH HIM ON THE WPA MURALS.

THAT'S AWESOME.

AND I HAVE A PRESENT FOR YOU.

THIS IS A COPY OF A LETTER FROM DIEGO RIVERA TALKING ABOUT YOUR AUNT THELMA AND WHAT A GREAT ARTIST SHE IS.

OH, THIS IS REALLY SPECIAL.

AS A CHILD, WE ALWAYS FELT SHE WAS A BIG DEAL, YOU KNOW, BIGGER THAN LIFE.

AND NOW, AS AN ADULT, I CAN SEE THAT THAT WAS REALLY TRUE, THAT SHE REALLY WAS A BIG DEAL INTERNATIONALLY.

IT'S EXCITING.

IT MAKES US REALLY FEEL PROUD THAT SHE WAS PART OF OUR FAMILY HISTORY.

BY 1943, AS WARTIME EMPLOYMENT ROSE, THE WPA ARTS PROJECTS WERE FINALLY DISBANDED.

IN ITS EIGHT-YEAR HISTORY, THE PROJECT CREATED MORE THAN 2,500 MURALS, 17,000 SCULPTURES, 108,000 EASEL PAINTINGS, AND 240,000 ART PRINTS.

IT WASN'T UNTIL 1965, 22 YEARS LATER, THAT CONGRESS AGAIN SUPPORTED THE ARTS WITH A DEDICATED AGENCY.

THE NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS WAS SIGNED INTO LAW BY PRESIDENT LYNDON JOHNSON WITH A YEARLY BUDGET OF NEARLY $3 MILLION.

UNLIKE THE WPA ARTS PROJECTS, WHICH WERE CREATED PRIMARILY TO PROMOTE RELIEF FOR ARTISTS, THE NEA HAS AS ITS MISSION TO FOSTER THE EXCELLENCE, DIVERSITY, AND VITALITY OF THE ARTS IN THE UNITED STATES.

ICONIC ART AND SYMBOLS CAN FIRE THE POPULAR IMAGINATION AND SPREAD NEW POLITICAL IDEAS, BUT THOSE ICONS OFTEN HAVE ROOTS THAT REACH DEEP INTO HISTORY AND INSPIRE MOVEMENTS THAT ARE VERY DIFFERENT THAN WHAT THEIR CREATORS INTENDED.

THE PEACE SIGN WAS FIRST DISPLAYED IN 1958 IN A MAJOR ANTI-NUCLEAR DEMONSTRATION MARCH IN ENGLAND.

ITS DESIGN INCORPORATES THE NAVAL CODE LETTERS N AND D FOR NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT.

THE RAINBOW FLAG IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE GAY PRIDE MOVEMENT, BUT IT DATES BACK TO THE 16th CENTURY, WHEN THE RADICAL PROTESTANT THOMAS MUNTZER LED A PEASANT REVOLT CARRYING HIS BIBLICALLY INSPIRED RAINBOW FLAG DIRECTLY INTO THE FIRE OF GERMAN PRINCES AND THEIR ARMY.

AT THE 1968 OLYMPICS, JOHN CARLOS AND TOMMIE SMITH RAISED THEIR FISTS IN PROTEST TO RACIAL OPPRESSION, PERMANENTLY LINKING THIS ICON TO THE BLACK POWER MOVEMENT.

TODAY, THE FIST HAS RE-EMERGED, REPRESENTING GROUPS AS FAR APART AS THE NEO-NAZIS AND THE JEWISH DEFENSE LEAGUE.

WANT ANOTHER LOOK AT TONIGHT'S PROGRAM, MISSED AN EPISODE, OR WANT TO WATCH A FAVORITE AGAIN?

YOU CAN NOW VIEW FULL EPISODES OF HISTORY DETECTIVES ON OUR WEB SITE.

YOU'LL ALSO FIND EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS WITH HISTORY DETECTIVES HOSTS.

IT'S ALL AT HISTORY DETECTIVES ON THE WEB AT pbs.org.

Wes: OUR NEXT STORY TAKES US TO THE HEART OF MANHATTAN TO INVESTIGATE A TINY PORTRAIT WHICH MAY LIE AT THE CENTER OF SOME VERY BIG HISTORY.

IT'S SPRING 1789: 20,000 PHILADELPHIANS PACK THE STREETS TO CATCH A GLIMPSE OF THEIR NATION'S LEADER EN ROUTE TO NEW YORK.

FIRST IN WAR AND FIRST IN PEACE, GEORGE WASHINGTON HAS BEEN ELECTED PRESIDENT, AND AS HIS INAUGURAL PROCESSION FORGES NORTH, AMERICA CELEBRATES FREEDOM FROM BRITISH RULE.

BUT FOR THE THOUSANDS OF ENSLAVED AFRICAN AMERICANS WATCHING THE PARADE, LIBERTY IS NOWHERE IN SIGHT.

IF PRESIDENT WASHINGTON WON'T PAVE THEIR WAY TO CITIZENSHIP, WHO WILL?

TWO HUNDRED AND TWENTY YEARS LATER, DAVE COX OF GREENVILLE, OHIO, STUMBLED ONTO A TINY PAINTING WHICH MAY SHED LIGHT ON THE YOUNG NATION'S STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM.

I CAME LOOKING FOR A DRAWING BUT I FOUND SOMETHING THAT MAY BE A WHOLE LOT MORE EXCITING.

DAVE HAS ASKED ME TO MEET HIM AT THE NEARLY 250-YEAR-OLD FRAUNCES TAVERN IN LOWER MANHATTAN.

UPSTAIRS HOUSES A MUSEUM WHERE HE MADE HIS DISCOVERY.

HEY, DAVE.

HEY, WES.

DAVE AND TWO BUDDIES HAD TR AVELED FROM OHIO TO MANHATTAN TO FIND A HISTORIC MAP OF FORT GREENVILLE.

THEY WERE HOPING TO FIND IT IN THE ARCHIVES OF REVOLUTIONARY WAR LIEUTENANT HENRY BURBECK, KEPT HERE AT THE FRAUNCES TAVERN MUSEUM.

UNFORTUNATELY, WE DIDN'T FIND THAT, BUT WE CAME UP WITH SOMETHING ELSE.

WOW, THAT IS A FABULOUS PORTRAIT.

I CAN SEE IT SAYS "G. WASHINGTON" ACROSS THIS RIBBON AT THE BOTTOM.

AND I SAID, "HEY, GUYS, IT MIGHT BE SIGNIFICANT."

DAVE SAYS THAT THE MUSEUM STAFF HAD NO IDEA THE PORTRAIT WAS IN THEIR COLLECTION, BUT THEY GAVE HIM THE OKAY TO DO FURTHER RESEARCH.

HAVE YOU TAKEN IT OUT OF THE FRAME?

YES, THERE'S SOMETHING RIGHT BACK HERE.

"PROPERTY OF WHITE MATLACK, 1790, NEW YORK."

OKAY, SO WHO'S WHITE MATLACK?

WE DON'T KNOW WHO HE IS.

I KNOW THAT BURBECK AND WASHINGTON WERE TOGETHER AT VALLEY FORGE, SO THEY MAY HAVE KNOWN EACH OTHER QUITE WELL, BUT I DON'T KNOW WHO THIS GUY IS.

WHAT IS IT THAT YOU WANT ME TO FIND OUT?

WELL, WE'D LIKE TO KNOW IF THIS IS AN ORIGINAL PAINTING OF GEORGE WASHINGTON FROM THAT TIME PERIOD, AND WE'D ALSO LIKE TO KNOW WHO WHITE MATLACK IS.

WELL, DAVE, IF THIS IS A PREVIOUSLY UNKNOWN FROM-LIFE PORTRAIT OF GEORGE WASHINGTON, IT'S A NATIONAL TREASURE.

I'LL LET YOU KNOW WHAT I FIND OUT.

SUZANNE PRABUCKI IS THE CURATOR OF THE FRAUNCES TAVERN MUSEUM.

THIS IS THE LONG ROOM, AND IN 1783, WASHINGTON ACTUALLY INVITED HIS GENERALS TO THIS ROOM TO BID THEM FAREWELL AND THANK THEM FOR THEIR SERVICE IN THE CONTINENTAL ARMY.

AND RIGHT DOWN THE STREET AT FEDERAL HALL IS WHERE WASHINGTON WAS INAUGURATED.

WOW, SO WASHINGTON REALLY HAD A SPECIAL CONNECTION TO THIS PLACE.

YEAH, HE DID.

SUZANNE WAS JUST AS SURPRISED AS DAVE TO SEE THE PORTRAIT.

WE'RE RUN BY THE SONS OF THE REVOLUTION, AND SOMEWHERE ALONG THE LINE, THE HENRY BURBECK BOXES WERE PUT INTO THE SONS' ARCHIVES INSTEAD OF THE MUSEUM'S ARCHIVES, SO THEY WERE VERY RECENTLY REDISCOVERED, AND THE PAINTING WAS IN THOSE BOXES.

SUZANNE'S NOT FAMILIAR WITH WHITE MATLACK AND SAYS THERE'S NO MENTION OF HIM IN THE INVENTORY OF BURBECK'S PAPERS.

IT'S JUST THIS BEAUTIFUL GEM OF A MINIATURE PORTRAIT.

IT'S PAINTED ON PAPER, THOUGH, WHICH IS UNUSUAL BECAUSE MOST MINIATURES OF THIS PERIOD WERE PAINTED ON A THIN LITTLE SHEET OF IVORY.

I DON'T EVEN KNOW THAT IT'S AS OLD AS THE DATE THAT'S WRITTEN ON THE BACK OF IT.

IN 1790, WASHINGTON WOULD HAVE BEEN IN THE SECOND YEAR OF HIS PRESIDENCY, AND NEW YORK WAS THE U.S. CAPITAL.

THE BANNER READS "G. WASHINGTON" AND THE FACE CERTAINLY LOOKS LIKE HIM, BUT WHOEVER PAINTED THIS CHOSE AN UNUSUAL PERSPECTIVE FOR THE PORTRAIT.

THIS IS THE PORTRAIT THAT WE'RE MOST FAMILIAR WITH WHEN WE THINK OF THE FATHER OF OUR COUNTRY.

ALMOST ALL OF THESE FAMOUS PORTRAITS SHOW THE CLASSIC HEAD-ON OR THREE-QUARTER POSE.

THERE IS SOME FAINT WRITING ON THE BACK.

I CAN MAKE OUT MAYBE "A-L WASHINGTON."

AND THIS LOOKS LIKE "WHITE M-A-T" -- THAT MUST BE "WHITE MATLACK," BUT THERE'S SOMETHING ELSE ABOVE IT WHICH I CAN'T MAKE OUT.

AT THE THAW CONSERVATION CENTER AT THE MORGAN LIBRARY AND MUSEUM, DIRECTOR MARGARET HOLBEN ELLIS HAS OFFERED TO GIVE OUR OBJECT SOME CLOSE SCRUTINY.

LET'S HAVE A LOOK AND SEE WHAT WE SEE.

IT'S PAINTED IN A STYLE OF A MINIATURIST PAINTING.

SHE EXPLAINS HOW MINIATURES SUCH AS THIS BECAME POPULAR AS PORTABLE MEMENTOS IN THE 1700s, BUT OURS IS NOT AS FINELY PAINTED AS OTHER MINIATURES SHE'S EXAMINED.

I THINK WE MIGHT BE SEEING SOMETHING ELSE.

I JUST CAUGHT IT FROM THE LIGHT AT THIS ANGLE, THESE VERY DISTINCT EMBOSSED LINES.

IT LOOKS TO ME AS THOUGH IT'S A PLATE MARK.

A PLATE MARK IS AN INDENTATION MADE WHEN AN ENGRAVED METAL PLATE IS PRESSED AGAINST A SHEET OF PAPER.

IF THAT'S WHAT WE'RE SEEING, IT MEANS THAT THIS IS NOT AN ORIGINAL PAINTING BUT A BLACK-AND-WHITE PRINT THAT HAD BEEN PAINTED OVER.

MARGARET USES INFRARED LIGHT TO REVEAL WHAT'S BENEATH THE PAINT.

IT IS AS SHE SUSPECTED.

WE CAN NOW SEE THE PRINTED LINES BELOW THE PAINT LAYER.

MARGARET SAYS THIS PRINT IS CALLED A DRYPOINT ETCHING.

DRYPOINTS ARE MADE BY SCRATCHING A DESIGN ONTO A COPPER PLATE WITH A NEEDLE AND THEN SMEARING IT WITH INK.

THE PLATE IS SANDWICHED BETWEEN A DAMP SHEET OF PAPER AND A ROLLING MILL.

AND WHEN YOU PEEL THE PAPER OFF OF THAT PLATE, THE INK IS TRANSFERRED TO THE PAPER, AND THAT'S YOUR DESIGN.

AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE SEEING UNDERNEATH THIS NOW-TRANSPARENT WATERCOLOR.

IS THERE ANY WAY TO MAKE THE LETTERING ON THE BACK OF THE FRAME MORE READABLE?

WE'LL TRY TO ADJUST THE CONTRAST A LITTLE BIT.

I CAN MAKE OUT AN "A-L" AND THEN "WASHINGTON."

I GUESS THAT WOULD BE "GENERAL WASHINGTON."

I SEE "B-Y."

"BY J-O..." I CAN'T MAKE THAT OUT.

"I-G-H-T," THAT'S PROBABLY THE LAST NAME OF THE ARTIST.

SO WHITE MATLACK ISN'T THE ARTIST.

WHO IS I-G-H-T?

THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY HOLDS A LARGE COLLECTION OF ETCHINGS AND PRINTS FROM THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR PERIOD.

I E-MAILED A PHOTO OF OUR IMAGE TO ALVARO GONZALEZ-LAZO, PRINT SPECIALIST AT THE LIBRARY.

THIS MINIATURE BELONGED TO A GUY NAMED WHITE MATLACK, AND YOU CAN SEE IT SAYS "NEW YORK, 1790."

THIS LOOKS VERY FAMILIAR.

LOOK AT THIS.

AND WHEN WAS THIS PRINT MADE?

1790.

AND THIS IS BY WHO?

JOSEPH WRIGHT.

OKAY, SO THAT'S GOT TO BE THE I-G-H-T FROM THE BACK OF OUR PRINT.

ALVARO TELLS ME THAT JOSEPH WRIGHT, THE SON OF A NEW JERSEY SCULPTOR, LEARNED HIS PRINTMAKING IN EUROPE, WHERE HIS DRAWINGS CAUGHT THE EYE OF BENJAMIN FRANKLIN.

THROUGH THAT CONNECTION, WRIGHT SECURED AN APPOINTMENT TO PAINT GEORGE WASHINGTON.

THE FIRST ONE WAS DONE IN THE FALL OF 1783 IN NEW JERSEY.

THE NEXT ONE IS IN WINTER OF 1784.

OKAY, SO HE WOULD HAVE HAD A NUMBER OF PAINTINGS TO DRAW ON FOR THIS PRINT.

OH, DEFINITELY.

HE WAS ABLE TO DRAW WASHINGTON WHEN HE WAS SITTING FOR HIM.

HOW MANY COPIES OF WRIGHT'S ORIGINAL PRINT WERE MADE?

NO MORE THAN 30.

ALVARO SAYS THE GROOVES IN THE ETCHING PLATE WOULD WEAR OUT AFTER THAT MANY PRINTINGS.

HE BELIEVES THIS IS ONLY THE SEVENTH KNOWN ORIGINAL PRINT.

THE SIZE AND DETAILS ARE IDENTICAL.

MOST TELLING, HE SAYS, ARE THE PLATE MARKS, WHICH LINE UP EXACTLY.

ALVARO SHOWS ME SEVERAL IMITATIONS INSPIRED BY WRIGHT'S WORK.

ALL OF THESE PRINTS WERE MADE AFTER 1790.

ALVARO EXPLAINS THEIR SMALL SIZE MADE THEM PERFECT FOR MAILING.

FOR MANY AROUND THE GLOBE, THIS WAS THEIR FIRST LOOK AT THE NEW AMERICAN LEADER.

OUR PRINT IS THE ONLY COLORED WRIGHT ETCHING HE'S EVER SEEN.

BUT ONE THING I KNOW ABOUT IT IS THAT IT WAS DONE BY AN AMATEUR.

WHY BY AN AMATEUR?

BECAUSE IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE A REALLY FINE QUALITY.

WHO PAINTED OUR PRINT?

AND WHO IS THIS GUY, WHITE MATLACK, WHO OWNED ONE OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL IMAGES OF THE 18th CENTURY?

I'M SEARCHING A DATABASE OF HISTORIC NEW YORK PAPERS.

I'M GETTING A LOT OF HITS HERE, BUT THEY'RE ALMOST ALL ADS.

MATLACK IS ADVERTISING AS A WATCHMAKER DURING THE 1770s.

THEN HE RAN A BREWERY NOT FAR FROM THE FRAUNCES TAVERN.

BY THE 1780s, HE'S MOVING INTO STEEL MANUFACTURING.

HERE'S THE FIRST ENTRY THAT'S NOT AN AD, AND IT'S FROM 1786, AND IT LOOKS LIKE HE SIGNED A LETTER TO THE SENATE AND ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK.

THIS IS INTERESTING.

THE INDUSTRIALIST IS TAKING A POLITICAL POSITION AGAINST THE SHIPPING OF AFRICAN SLAVES THROUGH THE PORT OF NEW YORK.

"WE VIEW THE PAIN WHICH THESE UNHAPPY PEOPLE EXPERIENCE "FROM BEING SHIPPED LIKE CATTLE TO THE WEST INDIES AND THE SOUTHERN STATES."

MATLACK DEMANDS NEW YORK POLITICIANS TAKE ACTION.

"PASS AN ACT TO PREVENT THE FURTHER EXPORTATION OF NEGRO SLAVES FROM THIS STATE."

THREE YEARS LATER, HE'S A MEMBER OF AN ABOLITIONIST GROUP CALLED THE SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING THE MANUMISSION OF SLAVES.

AND HE WAS SHARING THIS SOCIETY WITH SOME PRETTY IMPRESSIVE COMPANY: JOHN JAY, JAMES DUANE, GEORGE BOND, JOHN BLEECKER.

ALMOST EVERY GUY ON THIS LIST HAS A NEW YORK CITY STREET NAMED AFTER HIM.

I THINK I'D LIKE TO TRY TO SEE IF I CAN FIND OUT A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT MATLACK.

I'M MEETING ANNA MAE DUANE AT THE NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY.

SHE'S A UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT PROFESSOR AND SHE'S STUDIED EARLY MANHATTAN ABOLITIONISTS.

RECOGNIZE THE SIGNATURE?

I'VE RESEARCHED WHITE MATLACK, AND I THINK IT'S FASCINATING THAT HE WOULD'VE OWNED THIS.

WASHINGTON REPRESENTED, AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE REVOLUTIONARY PROMISE, RIGHT, THAT WE ARE NOT WHO OUR FATHERS ARE, THAT WE'RE NOT DETERMINED BY BLOODLINE, AND THAT'S THE GREAT PROMISE OF EQUALITY IN AMERICA.

BUT FOR MATLACK, ALSO, THAT PROMISE CAUSED HIM PERSONAL TRAUMA.

ANNA MAE EXPLAINS THAT MATLACK WAS A QUAKER, BUT HE AND HIS BROTHERS BROKE WITH THE PACIFIST TENETS OF THE QUAKER FAITH TO SUPPORT THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION.

HIS BROTHER WAS AN ACTUAL COLONEL IN THE REVOLUTIONARY ARMY, AND WHITE MATLOCK WAS A BIG SUPPORTER OF THE REVOLUTION.

AND FOR THAT, THE QUAKERS DISOWNED BOTH BROTHERS, WHICH IS SOMETHING THEY FOUND EXTREMELY PAINFUL.

THIS IS ACTUALLY A PETITION THAT THEY SENT, TRYING TO GET SOME JUSTICE.

"WHAT PEOPLE OF ANY AGE OR COUNTRY HAVE EVER YET BEEN FOUND "WHO WOULD SUFFER THE HOUSES OF THEIR WORSHIP "AND THE BONES OF THEIR ANCESTORS TO BE VIOLATED "AND TORN FROM THEM WITHOUT THE MOST DESPERATE RESISTANCE?

WE KNOW OF NO ONE."

WOW, SO WHAT DO YOU THINK THIS WOULD'VE MEANT TO MATLACK, THIS DRAWING OF WASHINGTON?

I THINK IT WOULD'VE REPRESENTED BOTH THE PROMISE OF THE REVOLUTION, THE PROMISE OF EQUALITY, AND THE SACRIFICES HE HAD MADE FOR THAT EQUALITY.

AND I THINK THAT HE MAY HAVE SHARED THIS WITH THE STUDENTS AT SOME POINT.

WHAT STUDENTS ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?

THE STUDENTS OF THE NEW YORK AFRICAN FREE SCHOOL, WHICH IS -- NOW, I HAVEN'T HEARD OF THAT, THE AFRICAN FREE SCHOOL?

ANNA MAE SAYS IT'S A SCHOOL FOR EMANCIPATED SLAVES OPENED IN NEW YORK IN 1787.

THAT'S THREE YEARS BEFORE THE DATE ON OUR PORTRAIT.

A PROPOSAL FOR THE SCHOOL IS OUTLINED IN THE MANUMISSION SOCIETY'S RECORDS.

"ANXIOUS TO PROMOTE THE HAPPINESS OF THE POOR AFRICANS, "WE'RE OF OPINION THAT A COMMITTEE SHOULD BE APPOINTED "FOR ESTABLISHING A FREE SCHOOL IN THIS CITY FOR THE EDUCATION OF NEGRO CHILDREN."

WOW, SO THIS IS THE SEED OF THE FREE SCHOOL.

THAT MEANS THAT MATLACK WAS RIGHT THERE AT THE BEGINNING.

YES, IT WAS HIS BRAINCHILD.

DESPITE THE SUPPORT OF ELITE NEW YORKERS SUCH AS MATLACK, SHE EXPLAINS THAT THE SCHOOL FACED OPPOSITION FROM THOSE WHO BELIEVED THAT EDUCATED BLACKS WERE LIKELY TO INCITE SLAVE REVOLTS.

THIS WOULD BE PRETTY RISKY FOR HIM TO BECOME INVOLVED WITH.

I THINK IT WAS.

I THINK HE REALLY RISKED ALIENATING SOME OF HIS CLIENTS AND CONNECTIONS.

HOW MANY STUDENTS WERE TAUGHT THERE?

THERE WERE 40 IN THE BEGINNING.

BY 1835, THEY WERE TEACHING UP TO 400 OR 500 AT A TIME.

ANNA MAE HAS AN IDEA ABOUT A POSSIBLE CONNECTION BETWEEN THE FREE SCHOOL AND OUR ETCHING.

FROM THE BEGINNING, THEY WANTED THIS TO BE TRAINING IN CITIZENSHIP, SO THEY TAUGHT THESE STUDENTS WHAT WHITE STUDENTS WERE LEARNING: READING, WRITING, ARITHMETIC.

THERE WAS ALSO AN EMPHASIS ON PUBLIC SPEAKING AND ON ART.

ACTUALLY, LET ME SHOW YOU SOMETHING.

WHAT ANNA MAE SHOWS ME NEXT WILL CERTAINLY BE OF INTEREST TO DAVE.

YOU KNOW, DAVE, THIS LITTLE PORTRAIT TOOK ME DOWN AVENUES THAT I NEVER IMAGINED.

THIS WAS A PORTRAIT THAT REALLY INTRODUCED THE NATION AND THE WORLD TO WHAT GEORGE WASHINGTON LOOKED LIKE.

AND THE PRINT IS INCREDIBLY SPECIAL BECAUSE OF WHO OWNED IT.

WHITE MATLACK HAD BEEN A REVOLUTIONARY IN MANY DIFFERENT ARENAS: TURNING FROM HIS QUAKER FAITH TO FIGHT THE BRITISH, BUILDING NEW INDUSTRIES IN MANHATTAN, AND BATTLING SLAVERY FROM THE EARLIEST DAYS OF THE NEW NATION.

SOUNDS LIKE HE SACRIFICED QUITE A BIT TO BE A PATRIOT.

JUST AS IMPORTANTLY, HE WAS ONE OF THE FOUNDERS OF A SCHOOL FOR FREED SLAVES HERE IN NEW YORK CITY.

AND IT WAS AT THIS SCHOOL WHERE OUR IMAGE MAY HAVE TAKEN ON ADDED SIGNIFICANCE.

THIS IS ACTUALLY STUDENT WORK FROM THE NEW YORK AFRICAN FREE SCHOOL.

THIS PORTRAIT WAS ALMOST CERTAINLY COPIED FROM AN ARTIFACT OR A DOCUMENT BROUGHT IN BY ONE OF THE FOUNDERS.

THE FOUNDING FATHERS WERE ABSOLUTELY PART OF THE CURRICULUM AND SOMEONE THE STUDENTS WERE TAUGHT TO EMULATE AND LOOK UP TO.

THAT DRAWING OF BEN FRANKLIN IS A COPY OF ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS DRAWINGS OF FRANKLIN, RIGHT?

RIGHT.

WHO DID THIS?

WOULD YOU BELIEVE THIS IS A 13-YEAR-OLD BOY WHO DREW THIS PICTURE?

HE WAS JAMES McCUNE SMITH, THE SON OF A SLAVE MOTHER HERE IN NEW YORK.

THERE ARE NO RECORDS FROM THE SCHOOL BEFORE 1817, BUT ANNA MAE SAYS IT'S POSSIBLE STUDENTS COPIED THIS ETCHING AND MAY HAVE EVEN COLORED IT.

I CAN'T SAY FOR SURE, BUT KNOWING WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT WHITE MATLACK'S ROLE IN THAT SCHOOL AND WHAT THIS PORTRAIT LIKELY MEANT TO HIM, I THINK IT'S VERY LIKELY THAT IT WOULD'VE SHOWN UP AT SOME POINT IN THE AFRICAN FREE SCHOOL.

SO HOW DOES THIS MAKE YOU FEEL NOW?

IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN A POPULAR THING TO START A SCHOOL FOR BLACKS IN NEW YORK AT THAT TIME.

IT MEANS A LOT TO ME.

DAVE, THIS WAS A GREAT STORY.

THANKS FOR LETTING ME BE A PART OF IT.

IN 1827, SLAVERY WAS ABOLISHED IN NEW YORK, AND IN 1834, THE AFRICAN FREE SCHOOL WAS ABSORBED INTO THE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM BUT REMAINED SEGREGATED.

THE YOUNG STUDENT WHO DREW BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, JAMES McCUNE SMITH, BECAME AMERICA'S FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN TO OBTAIN A MEDICAL DEGREE.

OTHER ALUMNI INCLUDED PROMINENT BLACK ABOLITIONISTS ALEXANDER CRUMMELL AND HENRY HIGHLAND GARNET AND THE CELEBRATED BLACK ACTOR IRA ALDRIDGE.

THE PORTRAIT IS NOW BACK AT THE FRAUNCES TAVERN MUSEUM, CORRECTLY FILED IN THE ARCHIVES.

THE MOST UBIQUITOUS IMAGE OF GEORGE WASHINGTON IS A POCKET-SIZED CAMEO WE CARRY IN OUR WALLETS.

THE ENGRAVING IS FROM GILBERT STUART'S 1796 OIL PAINTING.

BACK THEN, STUART SOLD COPIES OF HIS CELEBRATED PAINTING FOR $100 APIECE.

TODAY, YOU CAN GET IT FOR JUST $1.

SINCE ITS FIRST PRINTING IN 1869, WASHINGTON'S IMAGE HAS REMAINED THE SAME, BUT THE SINGLE NOTE HAS CHANGED IN SIZE AND DESIGN SEVERAL TIMES.

THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL OVERHAUL MAY HAVE COME IN 1935 WHEN PRESIDENT FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT ADDED THE GREAT SEAL.

COMPLETED IN 1782, THE GREAT SEAL SYMBOLIZES THE UNION OF 13 COLONIES INTO A NEW NATION.

THE PYRAMIDS, MOTTOS, AND EAGLE REPRESENT STRENGTH AND ENDURANCE, WAR AND PEACE.

THE EYE REPRESENTS A WATCHFUL GOD.

BUT FANCIFUL AND CONSPIRATORIAL INTERPRETATIONS SUGGEST THAT THE NATIONAL EMBLEM IS EMBEDDED WITH SECRET MASONIC MESSAGES AND CLUES TO FINDING THE HOLY GRAIL.

THE CLAIM IS THAT FOUNDING FATHER BENJAMIN FRANKLIN USED HIS MASONIC BELIEF TO INFLUENCE THE DESIGN.

THE WORDS "IN GOD WE TRUST" WERE ADDED IN 1957.

ALTHOUGH THE ADDITION SPARKED DEBATE, THE SUPREME COURT HAS RULED THAT THE WORDING IS PATRIOTIC AND NOT RELIGIOUS.

Tukufu: IN AN ENCORE PRESENTATION, OUR LAST STORY INVESTIGATES A BIZARRE WARTIME ATTACK 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 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 FR OM 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 ME CHANISM 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.

HISTORY DETECTIVES WILL RETURN IN A MOMENT, BUT FIRST... 10,000.

15?

15, YOU THINK?

20-, 21,000.

600.

20.

18,500.

24.

IT'S AT LEAST 40.

FORTY-FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND.

650.

20.

650.

This textile would be worth about a half a million dollars.

HALF A MILLION?

NO WAY!

I KNEW IT.

IT'S JUST A BLANKET.

Laying on the back of a chair.

Well, sir, you have a national treasure.

Wow.

A national treasure.

Congratulations.

I can't believe this.

ON THE NEXT HISTORY DETECTIVES, A PRISON CAMP DRAWING MORE VALUABLE THAN FOOD?

Man: HOW THEY MANAGED TO SURVIVE IS A MIRACLE.

SO YOU WERE INSIDE THAT PLANE?

YEAH.

DID FLOATING AIRPORTS DOT THE ATLANTIC BEFORE MODERN AIR TRAVEL?

FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT THOUGHT IT WAS A GOOD IDEA TO BE PURSUED.

AND DID TERRORISTS ATTACK NEW YORK IN 1914?

NO SECRET IS SAFE, NEXT TIME ON HISTORY DETECTIVES.

Tukufu: BE A HISTORY DETECTIVE YOURSELF.

GO TO pbs.org AND LEARN MORE ABOUT INVESTIGATIVE TECHNIQUES OR SUBMIT YOUR OWN MYSTERY TO THE TEAM.

YOU CAN ALSO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT TONIGHT'S INVESTIGATIONS ONLY AT pbs.org.

THIS EPISODE OF HISTORY DETECTIVES IS AVAILABLE ON DVD.

THE COMPANION BOOK TO THE PROGRAM IS ALSO AVAILABLE.

TO ORDER, CALL PBS HOME VIDEO AT... OR VISIT US ONLINE AT... Captions by LNS Captioning Portland, Oregon www.LNScaptioning.com Elvis Costello: ♪ WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES ♪ ♪ IT'S JUST LIKE WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES ♪ ♪ WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES ♪ ♪ WATCHIN' THE DETECTIVES ♪ Gwendolyn: THIS PROGRAM WAS MADE POSSIBLE BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU.

WE ARE PBS.

[ New Radicals' "You Get What You Give" plays ]