Breaking an Elephant's Spirit

In 1788, a British mariner passed by the majestic, snow-covered mountains of northwest Washington - the peaks seemed the perfect dwelling place for Greek gods, so he named them the Olympic Mountains.

How the Olympic Mountains Got Their Name (1:42)

On September 8th, 1974, famous daredevil Evel Knievel climbed into a steam-powered rocket and attempted to blast across Idaho's Snake River Canyon.

Evel Knievel's Famous Snake River Canyon Jump (2:35)

In 1861, Mexico refused to pay back the sizable debt it owed to countries like France. It was a decision that would prompt France, under Napoleon III, to launch a full-scale invasion.

This Is Why France Invaded Mexico (4:02)

A Japanese torpedo attack against the USS Indianapolis leaves the men with no time to launch lifeboats. For four grueling days, the survivors float helplessly in the Pacific Ocean.

USS Indianapolis Crew Battled Sharks and Hallucinations (4:04)

During the Civil War, the North imposed a suffocating blockade of a number of key Confederate ports. The South, hoping to break this blockade, turned to an imperfect new invention: the submarine.

Civil War Submarine Battles Were Often Suicide Missions (3:14)

On March 27, 1977, at Los Rodeos airport in Tenerife, Pan Am Flight 1736 was sitting on the taxiway waiting to take off. A thick fog obscured the approach of KLM 4805, as it bore directly towards them.

This 1977 Plane Crash Occurred Right on the Runway (3:14)

In 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. and Ralph Abernathy led a march through the streets of Birmingham, Alabama. Both were arrested and placed in solitary confinement. There, MLK penned his famously stirring letter defending African-American resistance.

The March That Led to MLK's Arrest and Famous Letter (1:54)

By 1965, the U.S. initiated a military deployment, Operation Rolling Thunder, to help South Vietnam defend its independence. But a bombing campaign that was supposed to last just a few weeks would stretch into years.

This Major Military Operation Ignited the Vietnam War (2:29)

On May 4, 1961, a bus carrying black and white anti-segregation activists called the Freedom Riders rolled into Alabama and was immediately attacked by members of the KKK. This event was captured in a series of jarring images by photographer Joe Postiglione.

The Heinous 1961 KKK Attack on the Freedom Riders (3:26)