America, the story of us. Boom / produced by Nutopia for History.

In 1910 in California, a column of oil nearly 200 feet high explodes out of a derrick and sets off a chain of events that will turn America into a superpower. Oil production doubles overnight and prices plummet from $2 to 3 cents a barrel. Quick to capitalize on this abundant cheap fuel is Henry Ford, a maverick entrepreneur who vows to bring the motor car to the masses. In 1900, there are 8,000 cars in the country. By 1930, there are over 20 million. As the population becomes more mobile, the entire shape of America changes. Cities grow as centers of industry, creating new opportunities and new challenges. In one of the greatest engineering projects of the century, thousands of workers divert enough water hundreds of miles across a desert to quench sprawling Los Angeles' thirst. Mass production and job opportunities prompted by the First World War draw African Americans to northern cities like Chicago, but racial conflict follows. Many Americans see the burgeoning cities as havens of vice, and chief among them is drink. A popular campaign to ban alcohol succeeds, yet when it comes, Prohibition triggers a wave of organized crime. One man set to benefit is Al Capone. He makes the equivalent of $1,500 a minute from bootleg alcohol. For a time he seems untouchable, but even he is not above the law.

E.

Narrator: Liev Schreiber.

Originally broadcast on television in 2010.