1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,000
A mythical signpost that marks a devilish deal.

2
00:00:04,000 --> 00:00:06,000
They say, Rob, what did you do?

3
00:00:06,000 --> 00:00:09,000
You must have sold your soul to the devil.

4
00:00:09,000 --> 00:00:13,000
A bayside wharf that harbors a scandalous secret.

5
00:00:13,000 --> 00:00:18,000
There's a shocking, desperate tale of deception.

6
00:00:18,000 --> 00:00:21,000
And a treacherous forest with a buried secret.

7
00:00:21,000 --> 00:00:25,000
This is a very dangerous area. People disappear.

8
00:00:25,000 --> 00:00:29,000
Sometimes the greatest secrets lie in plain sight.

9
00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:33,000
These are monumental mysteries.

10
00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:45,000
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the first capital of the United States,

11
00:00:45,000 --> 00:00:48,000
plays to a host of other historic firsts.

12
00:00:48,000 --> 00:00:54,000
From the country's first art school to its first natural history institution.

13
00:00:55,000 --> 00:00:59,000
But on the west side of town, in the city's Clark Park,

14
00:00:59,000 --> 00:01:04,000
is an effigy of an artist whose final work is cloaked in mystery.

15
00:01:04,000 --> 00:01:11,000
It's a statue of a man seated deep in thought on a five foot tall granite platform.

16
00:01:12,000 --> 00:01:17,000
This sculpture is a memorial to one of history's most celebrated authors,

17
00:01:17,000 --> 00:01:20,000
whose artistic achievements are legendary.

18
00:01:20,000 --> 00:01:23,000
But according to writer Rolf Parker Houghton,

19
00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:27,000
his power may have extended far beyond this mortal coil.

20
00:01:29,000 --> 00:01:33,000
Some say his drive to write was so great

21
00:01:33,000 --> 00:01:38,000
that he wouldn't even let death prevent him from finishing his final masterpiece.

22
00:01:39,000 --> 00:01:45,000
So who was he? And how did his legacy reach out from beyond the grave?

23
00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:51,000
England, June 9th, 1870.

24
00:01:52,000 --> 00:01:58,000
The renowned author of Great Expectations and A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens,

25
00:01:58,000 --> 00:02:01,000
dies suddenly after suffering a stroke.

26
00:02:02,000 --> 00:02:06,000
His passing leaves legions of disappointed fans

27
00:02:06,000 --> 00:02:10,000
who are anxiously awaiting the final chapters of his latest novel,

28
00:02:10,000 --> 00:02:13,000
The Mystery of Edwin Druid.

29
00:02:13,000 --> 00:02:17,000
The book was scheduled to be serialized in 12 monthly installments,

30
00:02:17,000 --> 00:02:21,000
but only six had been published before Dickens passing.

31
00:02:22,000 --> 00:02:25,000
Dickens was in the middle of writing this novel and he died.

32
00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:28,000
People were just completely left hanging.

33
00:02:29,000 --> 00:02:34,000
It looks like Dickens readers will never know how the gripping novel was supposed to end.

34
00:02:36,000 --> 00:02:41,000
But two years later, and thousands of miles away, a new mystery starts to unfold.

35
00:02:42,000 --> 00:02:45,000
1872, Brattleboro, Vermont.

36
00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:52,000
As the story goes, a young printer named T.P. James is living in a boarding house

37
00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:56,000
when he is invited by his landlady to attend a seance.

38
00:02:58,000 --> 00:03:00,000
Spiritualism was wildly popular at the time.

39
00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:07,000
The Civil War was attended in the 1860s and there was a lot of desire to contact people who had passed on.

40
00:03:07,000 --> 00:03:12,000
James accepts the invitation, unaware that his life is about to change forever.

41
00:03:13,000 --> 00:03:19,000
He's given a pen and paper and is told to allow the spirits to use his hand to convey a message.

42
00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:24,000
James is dubious, but closes his eyes as instructed.

43
00:03:25,000 --> 00:03:29,000
He falls into a trance and he starts writing on pieces of paper.

44
00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:33,000
Opening his eyes minutes later,

45
00:03:33,000 --> 00:03:35,000
James is shocked by what he sees.

46
00:03:36,000 --> 00:03:43,000
A set of notes and instructions, followed by the signature of none other than the late Charles Dickens.

47
00:03:45,000 --> 00:03:51,000
It seems that the spirit of the literary giant has chosen the young printer for an extraordinary task.

48
00:03:52,000 --> 00:03:58,000
There's a message from Dickens telling him that he wants T.P. James to have a message.

49
00:03:58,000 --> 00:04:07,000
Telling him that he wants T.P. James to help complete Edward Druid so that the novel can be completed.

50
00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:15,000
Even though he has no formal education, James announces that he will do the dead author's bidding.

51
00:04:18,000 --> 00:04:24,000
So on December 24th, he retires to his room, locks the door behind him and sets to work.

52
00:04:25,000 --> 00:04:27,000
For months he toils.

53
00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:36,000
Then in October of 1873, James emerges with a finished manuscript.

54
00:04:37,000 --> 00:04:45,000
And it's called The Mystery of Edward Druid Complete, written by Charles Dickens and completed through the spirit pen of a medium.

55
00:04:47,000 --> 00:04:51,000
But when the book is published, the British literary critics breed it with contempt.

56
00:04:52,000 --> 00:05:00,000
They thought it was completely ludicrous. They pointed out that it read like it was written by an American trying to pretend to be Charles Dickens.

57
00:05:01,000 --> 00:05:10,000
Indeed, the idea seems so far-fetched that the press even speculates that James's writing is merely the delusional rantings of an alcoholic.

58
00:05:11,000 --> 00:05:17,000
There's a lot of derisive comments, more than being the only spirits involved in this endeavor were those that come out of a bottle.

59
00:05:18,000 --> 00:05:25,000
Others claim James's story is simply a hoax, devised to generate publicity and turn a profit.

60
00:05:26,000 --> 00:05:34,000
Did he actually pull off the largest con job so that he could publish and sell The Mystery of Edward Druid?

61
00:05:35,000 --> 00:05:41,000
But one man is about to come forward with a claim that will turn the entire story on its head.

62
00:05:42,000 --> 00:05:49,000
He is none other than the renowned creator of Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

63
00:05:50,000 --> 00:06:02,000
Doyle, who was actually very interested in spiritualism, made the pronouncement that he, after careful consideration, believed that T.P. James really had channeled Dickens and completed this novel.

64
00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:14,000
Conan Doyle declares that the writing style is so similar to that of Dickens, that it is inconceivable that it could have come from anyone but the great man himself.

65
00:06:16,000 --> 00:06:25,000
Despite the controversy, The Mystery of Edward Druid is a commercial hit, satiating a hungry audience's desire for a resolution to the thrilling narrative.

66
00:06:26,000 --> 00:06:38,000
After the publication of his spiritually guided work, James goes on to write more stories, but never matches his initial success and eventually fades into obscurity.

67
00:06:39,000 --> 00:06:47,000
Whether he actually channeled Dickens' spirit to finish his final masterpiece is a question that will likely remain unanswered forever.

68
00:06:49,000 --> 00:06:53,000
But one thing is certain, Dickens' legacy endures.

69
00:06:55,000 --> 00:07:00,000
And in 1901, this bronze statue is installed in Philadelphia's Clark Park.

70
00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:08,000
A tribute to a man whose talent, passion and spirit continues to inspire the masses.

71
00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:15,000
San Francisco, California.

72
00:07:16,000 --> 00:07:21,000
The city by the bay is known for its stunning maritime scenery and mouthwatering seafood.

73
00:07:22,000 --> 00:07:29,000
And no place exemplifies those qualities more than one celebrated attraction on the city's north shore.

74
00:07:30,000 --> 00:07:38,000
There are seals and sea lions. You can get fresh and dunchiness crab right there on the sidewalk. It's a bustle of activity.

75
00:07:39,000 --> 00:07:45,000
Reeling in an astounding 10 million visitors a year, this is Fisherman's Wharf.

76
00:07:46,000 --> 00:07:54,000
But this iconic site has another story to tell of a nefarious plan that brought the entire city to its knees.

77
00:07:55,000 --> 00:08:00,000
Fisherman's Wharf was the heart of one of the biggest scandals ever to hit San Francisco.

78
00:08:01,000 --> 00:08:05,000
There's a shocking and desperate tale of deception.

79
00:08:06,000 --> 00:08:10,000
What was this star-crossed scheme that rocked San Francisco?

80
00:08:11,000 --> 00:08:15,000
And what surprising twist is in store at the end of this extraordinary story?

81
00:08:18,000 --> 00:08:25,000
July 1849. Among the hordes of fortune hunters drawn to the city of San Francisco by the Gold Rush

82
00:08:26,000 --> 00:08:30,000
is a charismatic construction and real estate magnet from New York named Henry Miggs.

83
00:08:30,000 --> 00:08:37,000
Henry Miggs was ambitious, he was personable, he was a consummate businessman.

84
00:08:38,000 --> 00:08:47,000
As his wealth and standing grows, honest Harry, as he comes to be known, is elected as an alderman and an esteemed member of the city council.

85
00:08:48,000 --> 00:08:54,000
Henry Miggs was a very successful man. He got involved, he donated to charity.

86
00:08:55,000 --> 00:09:02,000
And just a few years after his arrival, he draws up plans for his biggest development project yet.

87
00:09:03,000 --> 00:09:05,000
A massive shipping wharf on the north shore of the city.

88
00:09:06,000 --> 00:09:13,000
2,000 feet long and 42 feet wide, the wharf would be unlike anything built in San Francisco before.

89
00:09:14,000 --> 00:09:20,000
Miggs is hoping that commercial ship captains will pay top dollar to unload their vessels at his new pier.

90
00:09:21,000 --> 00:09:31,000
And thanks to his reputation as an honest businessman, he is able to secure the substantial loans he needs from banks and investors to build the mess of birth.

91
00:09:32,000 --> 00:09:40,000
He did all of this based on the strength of his personality, the power of honest Henry Miggs.

92
00:09:41,000 --> 00:09:47,000
But in 1853, when Miggs finally completes the wharf, disaster strikes.

93
00:09:48,000 --> 00:09:51,000
The gold rush turns from boom to bust.

94
00:09:52,000 --> 00:09:59,000
Miggs, who has borrowed money from nearly every bank and business in the city, is drowning in a sea of debt.

95
00:10:00,000 --> 00:10:01,000
Henry Miggs was going bankrupt.

96
00:10:03,000 --> 00:10:09,000
So the once honest businessman hatches a desperate plot that will alter his reputation forever.

97
00:10:10,000 --> 00:10:21,000
In his capacity as an alderman, he steals a book of city promissory notes that have been presigned by the mayor and begins to issue them as collateral for his debt.

98
00:10:22,000 --> 00:10:31,000
The plan works perfectly as investors happily accept the notes believing that the city of San Francisco is guaranteeing their loans to Miggs.

99
00:10:32,000 --> 00:10:42,000
But Henry Miggs knows full well that his financial house of cards is destined to collapse the minute his creditors try to cash in the fraudulent papers.

100
00:10:43,000 --> 00:10:50,000
They weren't issued by the city. The city had no record. And more than that, the city had no money to pay them and wouldn't pay them.

101
00:10:51,000 --> 00:10:57,000
With the day of reckoning at hand, Miggs heads with his family to a familiar landing on the city's north shore.

102
00:10:58,000 --> 00:11:03,000
He went down probably to his own wharf and he sailed out of the bay.

103
00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:08,000
Never to be seen in California again.

104
00:11:09,000 --> 00:11:15,000
But his extraordinary tale has a twist so bizarre that no one will see coming.

105
00:11:16,000 --> 00:11:29,000
It's 1854 in San Francisco. In a desperate attempt to claw his way out of debt, businessman Henry Miggs has perpetrated a massive fraud.

106
00:11:30,000 --> 00:11:34,000
Cheating the people of the city out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

107
00:11:35,000 --> 00:11:38,000
Now he's run away, disappearing on a ship bound for parts unknown.

108
00:11:39,000 --> 00:11:43,000
But what incredible twist of fate awaits the citizens of San Francisco?

109
00:11:45,000 --> 00:11:53,000
As soon as San Francisco realized that Henry Miggs had flown the coup, they both started checking on their loans.

110
00:11:54,000 --> 00:11:59,000
He owed everybody he knew. He even owed his washerwoman.

111
00:12:00,000 --> 00:12:08,000
As his fleeced creditors attempt in vain to cash in their promissory notes, the word quickly spreads of Miggs deception.

112
00:12:09,000 --> 00:12:12,000
Sending shockwaves through San Francisco's financial sector.

113
00:12:12,000 --> 00:12:21,000
When Henry Miggs left, it took an already bad economic situation in San Francisco and made it much worse.

114
00:12:22,000 --> 00:12:28,000
All told, investors lose roughly a million dollars, around 25 million in today's currency.

115
00:12:29,000 --> 00:12:36,000
And as a result, Henry Miggs goes from being one of the most beloved figures in San Francisco to one of the most reviled.

116
00:12:37,000 --> 00:12:42,000
But the question remains, what has become of Henry Miggs?

117
00:12:44,000 --> 00:12:52,000
Henry Miggs headed to Chile. He says he was so poor that he had to pawn his watch.

118
00:12:53,000 --> 00:12:57,000
But soon, Miggs starts over from nothing and begins to rise again.

119
00:12:58,000 --> 00:13:04,000
With his personality, his people skills, and I guess you could even say his financial skills,

120
00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:14,000
Henry Miggs went on to be the biggest railroad builder in South America and he was a very rich man.

121
00:13:15,000 --> 00:13:20,000
With his wealth restored, Miggs turns his attention to his tarnished reputation.

122
00:13:21,000 --> 00:13:25,000
Henry Miggs really, truly regretted the pain he had caused people.

123
00:13:26,000 --> 00:13:32,000
Determined to make amends, he does something which few conmen have ever attempted to do before.

124
00:13:34,000 --> 00:13:36,000
He pays back the money he stole.

125
00:13:37,000 --> 00:13:39,000
He did pay back all of the debts he could.

126
00:13:40,000 --> 00:13:45,000
According to some historians, Miggs returns every penny with interest.

127
00:13:46,000 --> 00:13:52,000
And the California legislature absolved him of his crimes and offered to let him come back.

128
00:13:54,000 --> 00:13:55,000
But he never did.

129
00:13:56,000 --> 00:14:03,000
Today, the renovated piers of Fisherman's Wharf remain the place where one dream died and another began.

130
00:14:04,000 --> 00:14:09,000
For one of the most fascinating characters in the proud history of the city by the bay.

131
00:14:12,000 --> 00:14:17,000
Some 300 miles north of the mouth of the Mississippi River is Clarksdale, Mississippi.

132
00:14:18,000 --> 00:14:25,000
At the intersection of highways 61 and 49 stands one of the region's most defining landmarks.

133
00:14:26,000 --> 00:14:31,000
Three gigantic guitars each pointing in a different direction.

134
00:14:32,000 --> 00:14:36,000
It's one of the things that you notice when you first come to Clarksdale.

135
00:14:37,000 --> 00:14:46,000
This is the Crossroads Monument, a memorial to one of the Delta's finest sons, whose life changed music forever.

136
00:14:48,000 --> 00:14:52,000
And whose death casts a pall over all he achieved.

137
00:14:53,000 --> 00:14:57,000
This spot is the place where blues was born.

138
00:14:59,000 --> 00:15:03,000
So what is the strange story behind the Crossroads Monument?

139
00:15:04,000 --> 00:15:08,000
And what devilish act is said to have taken place on this very spot?

140
00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:16,000
1930, Robinsonville, Mississippi.

141
00:15:17,000 --> 00:15:23,000
19-year-old Robert Johnson is a struggling plantation worker, but he has two loves in his life.

142
00:15:24,000 --> 00:15:27,000
His wife Virginia, who is pregnant with their first child.

143
00:15:30,000 --> 00:15:33,000
And a new musical trend that is sweeping the south.

144
00:15:34,000 --> 00:15:35,000
The Blues.

145
00:15:38,000 --> 00:15:42,000
But while he's out one night at a local juke joint, tragedy strikes.

146
00:15:42,000 --> 00:15:47,000
His wife goes into labor, but both she and child die during the birth.

147
00:15:48,000 --> 00:15:53,000
Virginia's parents blamed Robert for her death because he wasn't there.

148
00:15:54,000 --> 00:15:56,000
And that really took a toll on him.

149
00:15:58,000 --> 00:16:00,000
Left with nothing but his love of music.

150
00:16:01,000 --> 00:16:05,000
The grieving Johnson vows to learn how to play the guitar.

151
00:16:06,000 --> 00:16:07,000
He felt like there was an outlet.

152
00:16:07,000 --> 00:16:12,000
There was this way of expressing what he was really feeling with him yet.

153
00:16:13,000 --> 00:16:16,000
But Johnson's attempts to play do not meet with success.

154
00:16:19,000 --> 00:16:21,000
My grandfather was awful with the guitar.

155
00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:25,000
He was sad that he could not hold a tune and a bucket.

156
00:16:26,000 --> 00:16:27,000
He was just that bad.

157
00:16:28,000 --> 00:16:29,000
People would run in my ways.

158
00:16:30,000 --> 00:16:32,000
Robert, get away from me. That sounds terrible.

159
00:16:33,000 --> 00:16:41,000
So in 1931, Robert Johnson leaves town and for months, no one in Robinsonville hears from the wannabe blues man.

160
00:16:43,000 --> 00:16:48,000
But then over a year later, Johnson returns, a changed man.

161
00:16:51,000 --> 00:17:01,000
He is now a highly accomplished blues guitar player with a unique finger picking style that is accompanied by soulful singing and aching lyrics.

162
00:17:02,000 --> 00:17:07,000
A sound that would earn him the moniker, the king of the Delta Blues.

163
00:17:08,000 --> 00:17:10,000
It was amazing to those that heard.

164
00:17:11,000 --> 00:17:15,000
He was playing so good. They thought it was two or three good guitars playing at the same time.

165
00:17:16,000 --> 00:17:19,000
And his voice had gotten so sharp and so crisp.

166
00:17:21,000 --> 00:17:23,000
No other musician can copy his style.

167
00:17:24,000 --> 00:17:32,000
And with song titles like Hell Hound on my Trail and Me and the Devil Blues,

168
00:17:34,000 --> 00:17:44,000
a sinister rumor is born that Johnson's newfound talent is so extraordinary that it must come from the devil himself.

169
00:17:45,000 --> 00:17:48,000
So did Robert Johnson make a pact with Satan?

170
00:17:49,000 --> 00:17:54,000
It's the 1930s in rural Mississippi.

171
00:17:55,000 --> 00:18:01,000
An aspiring blues musician named Robert Johnson has been dazzling audiences with his virtuoso guitar playing.

172
00:18:02,000 --> 00:18:06,000
But to those who know the man well, something strikes them as strange.

173
00:18:07,000 --> 00:18:11,000
Not so long before, Robert Johnson could barely play a note.

174
00:18:12,000 --> 00:18:19,000
And a strange rumor begins to circulate about how Robert Johnson acquired his newfound talent.

175
00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:28,000
It's said that one night Johnson ventured out to a place somewhere close to where roots US 61 and 49 now intersect.

176
00:18:30,000 --> 00:18:34,000
There he sat down and began to crudely play his guitar.

177
00:18:34,000 --> 00:18:44,000
While he was there playing his guitar, the devil came up and said, pass me that guitar.

178
00:18:48,000 --> 00:18:52,000
The devil tuned it up and gave it back to him.

179
00:18:53,000 --> 00:18:59,000
He said that the devil told him he would always be famous as long as you served me.

180
00:18:59,000 --> 00:19:06,000
Whether or not the tale is true, the transformation was certainly complete.

181
00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:17,000
In 1936, Johnson is signed to a major record label and becomes known as one of the finest blues musicians in the land.

182
00:19:18,000 --> 00:19:22,000
But no deal with the devil ever ends well.

183
00:19:23,000 --> 00:19:32,000
In August of 1938, the 27-year-old Johnson is playing a juke joint when he suddenly keels over.

184
00:19:33,000 --> 00:19:38,000
They begin to feel nauseated and in the double-o-wood and pain.

185
00:19:41,000 --> 00:19:43,000
He is carried from the club in agony.

186
00:19:44,000 --> 00:19:51,000
And days later, he dies, leaving many to conclude that the devil must have finally come to the end.

187
00:19:52,000 --> 00:19:55,000
He is called to claim the musician's soul.

188
00:19:56,000 --> 00:20:03,000
But Robert Johnson's grandson, Steven Johnson, has another explanation for his forefather's remarkable transformation.

189
00:20:04,000 --> 00:20:12,000
He claims that while Johnson was out of town, he was studying under the tutelage of a prolific blues guitarist named Ike Zimmerman.

190
00:20:13,000 --> 00:20:17,000
Ike Zimmerman became his mentor. Practice make perfect.

191
00:20:18,000 --> 00:20:24,000
As for Robert Johnson's death, Steven has a rational explanation for that as well.

192
00:20:25,000 --> 00:20:32,000
He was actually poisoned by the juke joint owner because he was having an affair with the owner's wife.

193
00:20:35,000 --> 00:20:44,000
In the end, Robert Johnson leaves behind an enduring legacy as one of the most influential blues artists of all time.

194
00:20:45,000 --> 00:20:52,000
My grandfather is known as King of the Delta Blues. There will never be another one like him.

195
00:20:54,000 --> 00:21:05,000
And today, the Crossroads Monument symbolizes a pivotal turning point in the life of a legendary musician and a fateful deal some say he struck with a devil himself.

196
00:21:06,000 --> 00:21:22,000
Alaska, one of the most beautiful parts of this icebound territory lies on its southern shores. A breathtaking expanse encompassing 5.4 million acres.

197
00:21:23,000 --> 00:21:33,000
It's 1,800 miles of streams, 20 major glaciers. The mountains go from 13,000 feet plunging into the sea. It is a wild place.

198
00:21:33,000 --> 00:21:47,000
This is the Chugach National Forest. Yet it's not the splendor of this pristine wilderness that draws author Nick Begich to this place, but the secrets that lie buried in its depths.

199
00:21:48,000 --> 00:21:55,000
Within this wilderness area, there was in fact one of the biggest mysteries, one of the biggest manhunts in U.S. history.

200
00:21:56,000 --> 00:22:02,000
So what is the truth behind one of the most baffling, unsolved disappearances in the history of Alaska?

201
00:22:04,000 --> 00:22:08,000
October 16, 1972. Anchorage, Alaska.

202
00:22:10,000 --> 00:22:21,000
Two high-profile politicians, U.S. House Majority Leader, Hale Boggs and Representative Nick Begich, are on their way to a campaign fundraiser in the state capital of Juneau.

203
00:22:22,000 --> 00:22:28,000
Hale Boggs, Nick Begich, were getting ready to fly to Juneau from Anchorage in a Cezna 310.

204
00:22:29,000 --> 00:22:40,000
Although the weather forecasters are predicting freezing temperatures, the plane's experienced bush pilot, a man named Don Johns, is confident that he can make the trip safely.

205
00:22:41,000 --> 00:22:46,000
That morning it was foggy, snowing in the upper mountains. Don Johns didn't consider that a big deal.

206
00:22:48,000 --> 00:22:57,000
At 9 a.m., the plane takes off on the three-and-a-half-hour journey that will take them directly over the Chugach National Forest.

207
00:22:58,000 --> 00:23:06,000
Twelve minutes into the flight, Johns makes a routine call to the control tower in Anchorage to report at all as well.

208
00:23:07,000 --> 00:23:10,000
9-12 was the last radio contact after that. Silence.

209
00:23:12,000 --> 00:23:19,000
And when the plane fails to arrive in Juneau, authorities spare no expense in mounting a search-and-rescue operation.

210
00:23:20,000 --> 00:23:28,000
You're dealing with the United States Congress, you're dealing with the House of Majority, you're one of the most powerful men. So it was at the time the biggest search in the history of the United States.

211
00:23:29,000 --> 00:23:33,000
But the challenge facing the rescue teams is monumental.

212
00:23:34,000 --> 00:23:41,000
Just to imagine the space of anyone who's flown over Alaska recognizes this is a very rough, densely-forced area.

213
00:23:42,000 --> 00:23:48,000
After 39 days, not a single trace of the plane has been found.

214
00:23:49,000 --> 00:23:50,000
They found absolutely nothing.

215
00:23:51,000 --> 00:23:55,000
The search is abandoned and the congressmen are presumed dead.

216
00:23:57,000 --> 00:24:09,000
The most likely explanation for the disappearance seems to be that bad weather brought down the plane and that the wreckage must lie somewhere in the vast expanse of the Chugach National Forest.

217
00:24:09,000 --> 00:24:12,000
There is always a risk to flying in Alaska, particularly this time of year.

218
00:24:13,000 --> 00:24:19,000
But some wonder why the massive search party was unable to find any trace of the plane.

219
00:24:20,000 --> 00:24:23,000
Nothing was found, with the best equipment the U.S. military had to offer.

220
00:24:25,000 --> 00:24:31,000
But over the next decades, several more mysterious disappearances occur in the same stretch of wilderness.

221
00:24:32,000 --> 00:24:38,000
In 1992, four fishermen flying to Anchorage seemed to vanish in mid-flight.

222
00:24:39,000 --> 00:24:45,000
Then, in 2010, a plane carrying a group of park service workers disappeared as well,

223
00:24:47,000 --> 00:24:53,000
leading some to dub the area between Anchorage, Juno and Barrow, the Alaska Triangle.

224
00:24:54,000 --> 00:24:56,000
This is a very dangerous area.

225
00:24:56,000 --> 00:25:02,000
People step into it, disappear, never heard from again, and nobody can explain why.

226
00:25:07,000 --> 00:25:09,000
It's October 1972.

227
00:25:10,000 --> 00:25:18,000
Congressman Hale Boggs and Nick Beggage, along with Bush pilot Don Johns, take off in a small plane from Anchorage, Alaska headed to Juno.

228
00:25:19,000 --> 00:25:20,000
They never arrive.

229
00:25:21,000 --> 00:25:28,000
And despite the biggest manhunt in state history, no trace of the aircraft or its passengers is ever found.

230
00:25:29,000 --> 00:25:34,000
So, were these men simply victims of mother nature, or were there more sinister forces at play?

231
00:25:37,000 --> 00:25:41,000
Some believe that the disappearance was due to more than just bad weather,

232
00:25:42,000 --> 00:25:46,000
and that the ill-fated travelers were victims of the so-called Alaska Triangle.

233
00:25:47,000 --> 00:25:53,000
Weather is on a plane, hiking, on a ship, people disappear, and they're never found. There's not a trace.

234
00:25:56,000 --> 00:26:05,000
Just like its namesake, the Bermuda Triangle, the region known as the Alaska Triangle, is reportedly plagued by strange atmospheric conditions.

235
00:26:06,000 --> 00:26:11,000
This is an area where there's electromagnetic anomalies, where aviation navigation equipment can be disrupted.

236
00:26:12,000 --> 00:26:18,000
Along with weather, terrain, all these things combined can lead to a lot of disorientation.

237
00:26:19,000 --> 00:26:22,000
But there is yet another, still more sinister explanation.

238
00:26:23,000 --> 00:26:28,000
That the Congressman's disappearance was the result of political foul play.

239
00:26:29,000 --> 00:26:39,000
In April of 1971, Boggs had delivered a blistering attack on the controversial surveillance tactics used by one of the most powerful men in America.

240
00:26:40,000 --> 00:26:42,000
FBI Director Jay Edgar Hoover.

241
00:26:43,000 --> 00:26:48,000
Boggs compared him to the Soviet Union in terms of the way he ran his agency, and they just flat did not like each other.

242
00:26:49,000 --> 00:27:01,000
And while there is no trustworthy evidence to support such a theory, one unusual piece of information has come to light that suggests that Hoover may, in fact, have played a role in Boggs' death.

243
00:27:02,000 --> 00:27:15,000
In 1991, newly released FBI records indicated that shortly after the disappearance, a downed plane and two survivors were indeed spotted in the area where Boggs' aircraft was thought to have crashed.

244
00:27:17,000 --> 00:27:26,000
And while it was likely just a false report, some believe it is proof of a top-down cover-up that ensured the men were never rescued.

245
00:27:26,000 --> 00:27:32,000
Some have suggested that Jay Edgar Hoover was responsible, in part for the non-recovery of the plane.

246
00:27:33,000 --> 00:27:41,000
But if Hoover was behind some kind of cover-up, his death in 1972 ensured that he took the secret to his grave.

247
00:27:44,000 --> 00:27:51,000
While the men were never found, the incident did bring about an important change in the way air travel is conducted in the U.S.

248
00:27:51,000 --> 00:28:00,000
The Congress passed a law requiring locator beacons on planes. This is a way to find people when they go down and saved hundreds of lives since the 1970s.

249
00:28:02,000 --> 00:28:08,000
The case of Hale Boggs, Nick Begich, and Don Johns is unsolved to this day.

250
00:28:09,000 --> 00:28:20,000
And until the remains of the men or their plane are found, it seems that the Chugash National Forest in Southern Alaska will hold on to this enduring enigma indefinitely.

251
00:28:22,000 --> 00:28:34,000
Less than 40 miles from the state capital in Madison, the town of Spring Green, Wisconsin, looks much as it did when it was settled in the mid-1800s.

252
00:28:37,000 --> 00:28:42,000
And just outside the village center is one of the country's most renowned architectural landmarks.

253
00:28:43,000 --> 00:28:50,000
It is a very tawny building. It's a very suave building, and it's all built from limestone and sandstone.

254
00:28:51,000 --> 00:28:59,000
Set on a 600-acre estate that features peaceful gardens and a man-made waterfall, it's a triumph of 20th century design.

255
00:29:01,000 --> 00:29:08,000
This is Talle-Essen, the one-time home and workspace of famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

256
00:29:09,000 --> 00:29:13,000
But this graceful mansion was once the scene of a horrific tragedy.

257
00:29:13,000 --> 00:29:22,000
A lot of people are familiar with the work of Frank Lloyd Wright, but a lot of people are not familiar with the fact that his home was once the scene of the crime of the century.

258
00:29:23,000 --> 00:29:31,000
What harrowing event scarred Talle-Essen's striking beauty? And how did it forever change the man who built it?

259
00:29:32,000 --> 00:29:35,000
1914, Spring Green, Wisconsin.

260
00:29:36,000 --> 00:29:45,000
47-year-old Frank Lloyd Wright is at the forefront of a new architectural movement that celebrates bold buildings set in harmony with their environment.

261
00:29:47,000 --> 00:29:52,000
But despite the acclaim for his designs, his personal life is fraught with controversy.

262
00:29:53,000 --> 00:30:05,000
Separated from his wife, but still legally married, Lloyd Wright has been conducting a passionate affair with divorcee Martha Borthwick Cheney, otherwise known as Mema.

263
00:30:07,000 --> 00:30:15,000
He was still not divorced, and his wife was not going to give him a divorce. This did not go over well with the public. They were living in sin.

264
00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:29,000
Their relationship is ripe fodder for a scandal-hungry press. Seeking more privacy, Frank and Mema retreat to a secluded villa of the architect's own design. Talle-Essen.

265
00:30:30,000 --> 00:30:38,000
It was a refuge where they could live together quietly and do their creative work and enjoy life away from the prying eyes of society.

266
00:30:39,000 --> 00:30:51,000
In the summer of 1914, Frank Lloyd Wright is in Chicago working on a project. But in his absence, the tranquility of Talle-Essen is about to be shattered forever.

267
00:30:52,000 --> 00:31:02,000
On August 15, a man named William Weston, a carpenter who works at the Lloyd Wright home, arrives breathless at a farm about a half-mile from Talle-Essen.

268
00:31:03,000 --> 00:31:14,000
And he has some shocking news. Talle-Essen is on fire. Rescuers rush to the scene, but it seems they're too late to save everyone.

269
00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:20,000
There were a total of seven people dead or dying, and two were injured as well.

270
00:31:21,000 --> 00:31:26,000
Among those who lost their lives is Frank Lloyd Wright's beloved mistress, Mema Cheney.

271
00:31:27,000 --> 00:31:38,000
But when police interviewed the survivors, they learned that it wasn't the fire that killed the victims. They had been hacked to death by a man with an axe.

272
00:31:39,000 --> 00:31:42,000
So who was responsible for this gruesome crime?

273
00:31:47,000 --> 00:31:49,000
Spring Green, Wisconsin, 1914.

274
00:31:50,000 --> 00:31:56,000
A fire breaks out in Talle-Essen, the magnificent estate of famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

275
00:31:57,000 --> 00:32:05,000
When neighbors and police arrive, they find a shocking scene. The bodies of seven people, including Lloyd Wright's mistress, Mema Cheney.

276
00:32:06,000 --> 00:32:08,000
So can this deranged killer be caught?

277
00:32:09,000 --> 00:32:15,000
Hours later, as neighbors search Talle-Essen's charred living quarters, a chilling sound meets their ears.

278
00:32:17,000 --> 00:32:21,000
Someone hears a bone from the basement, and they come down and find Julian.

279
00:32:24,000 --> 00:32:31,000
Julian Carlton, Talle-Essen's butler, is found writhing in pain. The victim of an apparent suicide attempt.

280
00:32:31,000 --> 00:32:36,000
He had a small bottle of hydrochloric acid. He swallowed it and burned his esophagus.

281
00:32:39,000 --> 00:32:50,000
And when investigators interview those who managed to escape the fire, they soon learn that Julian Carlton is also the man responsible for this horrific crime.

282
00:32:51,000 --> 00:32:56,000
Survivors relate that at noon that day, Mema and her staff had been eating lunch.

283
00:32:56,000 --> 00:32:59,000
When the punch and stench of gasoline filled the air.

284
00:33:00,000 --> 00:33:06,000
One of the draftsmen noticed a stream of bubbly liquid coming under the door, and then suddenly it burst into flame.

285
00:33:09,000 --> 00:33:13,000
Mema and the others tried to flee, but their path was blocked.

286
00:33:15,000 --> 00:33:19,000
Julian Carlton, the butler, was waiting by the door with a hatchet.

287
00:33:20,000 --> 00:33:23,000
When they came rushing out, he was in the car.

288
00:33:23,000 --> 00:33:24,000
With a hatchet.

289
00:33:25,000 --> 00:33:27,000
When they came rushing out, he just unleashed his fury.

290
00:33:29,000 --> 00:33:38,000
Some seven weeks after committing this brutal crime, Julian Carlton dies in jail, taking the reason for his murderous rampage to his grave.

291
00:33:40,000 --> 00:33:42,000
So why did he do it?

292
00:33:44,000 --> 00:33:50,000
One theory is that a fervently religious Carlton was offended by Lloyd Wright's affair with Mema Cheney.

293
00:33:51,000 --> 00:33:56,000
Some thought that Carlton was driven to his crimes by the immorality around him.

294
00:33:57,000 --> 00:34:01,000
That he couldn't stand to live amid all this sin and had to smite the wicked.

295
00:34:03,000 --> 00:34:08,000
But a more compelling idea develops as investigators interview those who knew Julian Carlton.

296
00:34:09,000 --> 00:34:11,000
He had simply gone insane.

297
00:34:12,000 --> 00:34:19,000
There were reports that came in. He was becoming increasingly paranoid, so he just snapped and disappeared.

298
00:34:20,000 --> 00:34:22,000
He just destroyed the whole place.

299
00:34:24,000 --> 00:34:28,000
But Carlton died before he could be fully evaluated by a psychiatrist.

300
00:34:29,000 --> 00:34:33,000
So no one is ever able to discern what prompted his heinous killing spree.

301
00:34:34,000 --> 00:34:38,000
It will always be a mystery what really propelled this crime.

302
00:34:40,000 --> 00:34:49,000
Following the devastating loss of his beloved Mema, Frank Lloyd Wright undertakes the sole wrenching task of rebuilding Talleusen.

303
00:34:50,000 --> 00:34:56,000
Wright's response to all of this shows his strength of character, his ability to move on.

304
00:34:59,000 --> 00:35:02,000
Wright returns Talleusen to its former glory.

305
00:35:03,000 --> 00:35:10,000
But some critics note that after the tragedy, the architect's designs appear to become more austere.

306
00:35:11,000 --> 00:35:19,000
In fact, some of his most iconic structures, such as New York's Guggenheim Museum and the Johnson-Wax building in Wisconsin,

307
00:35:19,000 --> 00:35:21,000
seem almost fortress-like.

308
00:35:25,000 --> 00:35:34,000
And today, Talleusen serves as a tribute to a tragic love story, and writes enduring legacy as one of the greatest architects of all time.

309
00:35:42,000 --> 00:35:48,000
In the fertile lowlands of western Mississippi is the small town of Rolling Fork.

310
00:35:49,000 --> 00:35:58,000
This county seat was originally established as a vast cotton plantation, and just south of town is an expanse of dense deciduous woods.

311
00:36:01,000 --> 00:36:05,000
There is a marvelous forest here about. It's a place of wonderment and beauty.

312
00:36:07,000 --> 00:36:15,000
This is the Delta National Forest, a pristine stretch of leafy swampland that is home to a wide assortment of flora and fauna.

313
00:36:16,000 --> 00:36:29,000
But according to historian and reenactor Case Hicks, this natural landmark was also the setting for a surprising political event that inspired an unlikely invention that is ubiquitous today.

314
00:36:30,000 --> 00:36:38,000
It's a wonderful story about a president, a dilemma that he faced, and something extraordinary. It took place in this marvelous hinterland.

315
00:36:39,000 --> 00:36:45,000
What pivotal role did the Delta National Forest play in the career of a political giant?

316
00:36:46,000 --> 00:36:51,000
And how did this seminal event inspire an emblem of American childhood?

317
00:36:56,000 --> 00:36:59,000
September 1901, Buffalo, New York.

318
00:37:00,000 --> 00:37:11,000
Eight days after President William McKinley was struck by an assassin's bullet, his vice president, the former governor of New York, is preparing to take the oath of office.

319
00:37:12,000 --> 00:37:17,000
Theodore Roosevelt, a young man at the age of 42, steps into the presidency.

320
00:37:18,000 --> 00:37:26,000
As the youngest man to ever become president, the nation holds its breath, uncertain as to how this new, untested commander-in-chief will govern.

321
00:37:27,000 --> 00:37:33,000
One of the first problems to land on his desk is a bitter land dispute between Mississippi and Louisiana.

322
00:37:34,000 --> 00:37:38,000
Before long, the new president is drawn into the debate.

323
00:37:39,000 --> 00:37:42,000
The president was asked to come survey things and pass judge.

324
00:37:43,000 --> 00:37:46,000
The negotiations proved to be arduous.

325
00:37:47,000 --> 00:37:51,000
So the nascent president decides to indulge in one of his favorite pastimes.

326
00:37:52,000 --> 00:37:57,000
He arranges a hunting expedition with the region's premier black bear hunter, Holt Collier.

327
00:38:00,000 --> 00:38:06,000
And so the president and his guide head off into the arboreal wilderness that is now the Delta National Forest.

328
00:38:07,000 --> 00:38:13,000
But the trip fails to live up to expectations, and Roosevelt fails to find a bear.

329
00:38:14,000 --> 00:38:19,000
It hasn't gone well, and at times he gets frustrated and grits his teeth. This is not bully!

330
00:38:21,000 --> 00:38:32,000
With Roosevelt's much lauded hunting skills letting him down, it seems the press may well have a field day if he walks out of the woods without bagging a black bear.

331
00:38:33,000 --> 00:38:36,000
To fail at a bear hunt, my goodness, what's he going to fail at politically?

332
00:38:37,000 --> 00:38:48,000
But just when it looks like all hope is lost, his guide, Holt Collier, picks up the trail of a bear and finally gets close enough to throw a rope around the exhausted creature.

333
00:38:49,000 --> 00:38:55,000
So here's Holt Collier, he's dragging it up on the bank and he's presenting it to the president. Mr. President, you're a bear!

334
00:38:56,000 --> 00:39:00,000
But what happens next will change the course of Roosevelt's presidency.

335
00:39:01,000 --> 00:39:05,000
Not to mention the bedtime rituals of children everywhere.

336
00:39:09,000 --> 00:39:11,000
It's November 1902.

337
00:39:11,000 --> 00:39:18,000
Newly inaugurated president Theodore Roosevelt is on a Mississippi hunting trip near the area now known as Delta National Forest.

338
00:39:19,000 --> 00:39:21,000
But he has a problem. He can't find a bear.

339
00:39:22,000 --> 00:39:34,000
To spare the president the embarrassment of going home empty-handed, his guide, Holt Collier, tracks and captures a bear himself, tethers it, then offers the exhaust beast up to the president for an easy kill.

340
00:39:35,000 --> 00:39:40,000
What happens next cements Roosevelt's legacy and inspires a surprising creation.

341
00:39:42,000 --> 00:39:50,000
With Holt Collier expecting Roosevelt to pull the trigger and claim his trophy, the president hesitates.

342
00:39:51,000 --> 00:40:00,000
The president now has a dilemma. Theodore Roosevelt steps back, takes his hat off. Holt, I can't shoot this bear.

343
00:40:00,000 --> 00:40:10,000
In Roosevelt's mind, to kill this trapped and exhausted creature could hardly be considered fair sport.

344
00:40:11,000 --> 00:40:20,000
After the president returns from the hunt, the press catches wind of Roosevelt's act of mercy and the story appears in several newspapers.

345
00:40:21,000 --> 00:40:27,000
And on November 16th, The Washington Post runs a now famous editorial cartoon by Clifford Berryman.

346
00:40:27,000 --> 00:40:31,000
It depicts the president refusing to kill the bear.

347
00:40:32,000 --> 00:40:41,000
And for those who may have questioned how the youngest president would fare in office, the event seems to confirm him as an honorable and decisive leader.

348
00:40:42,000 --> 00:40:47,000
What we find out is that we have a president with a very strong character and a very strong moral compass.

349
00:40:48,000 --> 00:40:54,000
The image becomes an instant sensation, causing Berryman to reprise the bear in future works.

350
00:40:54,000 --> 00:41:02,000
Whenever the cartoon was about Theodore Roosevelt, no matter what it was, included as one of Clifford Berryman's little bears.

351
00:41:05,000 --> 00:41:08,000
Soon, the little bear takes on a life of its own.

352
00:41:09,000 --> 00:41:18,000
And before long, in Brooklyn, New York, a Russian shop owner named Morris Miktham, along with his wife Rose, taking inspiration from Berryman's cartoons,

353
00:41:18,000 --> 00:41:25,000
conceive of a new kind of children's toy, one that riffs on Roosevelt's familiar nickname.

354
00:41:26,000 --> 00:41:27,000
It's called the teddy bear.

355
00:41:28,000 --> 00:41:37,000
They start making small stuffed animals in the image of the Clifford Berryman cartoon, and they prove to be wildly successful.

356
00:41:38,000 --> 00:41:41,000
Theodore starts handing them out in his reelection bid in 1904.

357
00:41:41,000 --> 00:41:47,000
And by 1909, when he comes out of the presidency, it is the most popular toy in the entire world.

358
00:41:49,000 --> 00:41:57,000
Few realize that these cuddly little toys, a universal symbol of childhood, began in the deep woods of Mississippi.

359
00:41:58,000 --> 00:42:07,000
And with black bears now a protected species in the Delta National Forest, their presence here stands as an enduring reminder of the benefits of mercy.

360
00:42:08,000 --> 00:42:12,000
And of President Theodore Roosevelt's great love of the outdoors.

361
00:42:14,000 --> 00:42:23,000
From a devilish pact to a presidential mascot, a remorseful swindler to an axe-murdering maniac.

362
00:42:24,000 --> 00:42:27,000
I'm Don Wildman, and these are Monumental Mysteries.