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American Experience

The Columbian Exposition from Tesla

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At the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago, 160,000 light bulbs lit up the evening sky over Chicago. Westinghouse had outfoxed Edison, winning the contract to wire the Exposition with alternating current.

Aired: 10/18/16 | Rating: NR

Corporate sponsorship for American Experience is provided by Liberty Mutual Insurance. Major funding by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

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The Chinese Six Companies

On May 28, 1900, San Francisco policemen formed a perimeter around Chinatown as officials diagnosed bubonic plague in the neighborhood and wanted to quarantine the nearly 20,000 residents. As tensions flared, an influential group of merchants known as the Chinese Six Companies sprang into action.

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