America's Hidden Stories

Witness the events--both political and romantic--that turned George Washington from British loyalist to American icon.

New evidence supports a Civil War legend that a freed female slave and a society lady in Virginia acted as spies for the Union.

See how a silent, invisible, and very real threat turned 19th century New England farmers into vampire hunters.

Did Edith Wilson become a surrogate president after her husband's stroke in 1919? See what recently found evidence says.

Most people think of Jamestown as the story of John Smith and Pocahontas, but new scientific research has revealed another prominent figure from America's first English colony. Discover the story of Sir George Yeardley, a commoner who became governor and went on to preside over the birth of the nation's democracy. Follow a team of archaeologists as they excavate the 1617 church where, according to English tradition, the leaders of the colony were buried, including our country's least known and first founding father.

Benedict Arnold was a hero of the revolution. He was one of Washington's best generals. He had a new bride said to be the most beautiful woman in the colonies. And yet, just one month after marrying 18-year-old Peggy Shippen, Arnold reached out to the British and began to plot treason. What drove the celebrated general to betray his country? Investigators are now exposing a vast conspiracy to crush America's hopes for independence with Benedict Arnold's young wife at the center.

Casimir Pulaski was an American Revolutionary War hero who helped save George Washington's life in the Battle of Brandywine. He was known as the "Father of the American Cavalry," but new evidence suggests that the general may not have been male. Follow a team of anthropologists as they examine the bones found at Pulaski's monument in Savannah and run state-of-the-art DNA tests in order to determine if the officer was female or if someone else was buried in the tomb.

It's a Cold War story involving a turncoat KGB agent, doctored computer chips, and a fiery blast in the Siberian wilderness big enough to see from space. Modern historians investigate the claim of a June 1982 explosion of a Russian gas pipeline to see if it was the result of the world's first-ever cyber attack, a retaliatory measure secretly ordered by Ronald Reagan to bring the Soviet Union to its knees.

Historians chronicle the untold stories of Black settlers who journeyed to the Wild West in search of freedom and opportunity, examining their roles as marshals, cowboys, soldiers and more.

The CIA Museum opens its doors and vaults to reveal the top secret stories behind agency documents, "Argo" artifacts, a Soviet helicopter used in the hunt for Osama bin Laden and more.