Lost Worlds: Al Capone's Secret City of Chicago (S2, E10) | Full Episode | History

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Narrator: FOR THE CITY OF CHICAGO, THE YEAR 1920 MARKED THE START OF A DECADE OF MASSIVE CHANGE-- IT SAW THE ARRIVAL OF THE PROHIBITION LAWS, A NEW PROSPERITY, AND A BUSINESSMAN NAMED AL CAPONE. HE WOULD BECOME THE MOST NOTORIOUS GANGSTER IN THE WORLD. AND HE WOULD TRANSFORM CHICAGO INTO HIS OWN PRIVATE KINGDOM. CAPONE AND HIS HENCHMEN ARE LONG GONE, BUT OUR INVESTIGATORS RETURN TO CHICAGO TO STRIP AWAY THE CITY OF TODAY AND REVEAL THE WORLD THE GANGSTERS INHABITED. CHICAGO HAD AN AMAZING BURST OF GROWTH IN THE 1920S. THEY'LL EXPLORE WHAT'S LEFT OF THE HUNDREDS OF ILLEGAL BARS, BROTHELS AND GAMBLING JOINTS, ALL RUN BY CAPONE, AND CONNECTED BY A NETWORK OF SECRET TUNNELS. THEY'LL RECREATE THE SCENE OF THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE. ONE OF THE MOST INFAMOUS CRIMES IN AMERICAN HISTORY OCCURRED ON THIS SITE. THEY'LL UNCOVER THE HUMBLE LIFE HIDDEN BEHIND CAPONE'S PUBLIC BRAVADO. THIS IS AL CAPONE'S BEDROOM. THEY'LL SEARCH FOR CLUES AND EXAMINE NEW EVIDENCE. USING COMPUTER ANIMATION, OUR INVESTIGATORS WILL REVEAL THE LOST WORLD OF AL CAPONE. OUR INVESTIGATORS ARE IN CHICAGO. HISTORY PROFESSOR VOULA SARIDAKIS WANTS TO KNOW WHAT THE CITY SHE LIVES IN WAS REALLY LIKE WHEN IT WAS RULED BY AL CAPONE. IT WAS LIKE HE WAS ANNOUNCING TO EVERYONE, "HERE I AM AND WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO ABOUT IT?" JOSH DORTZBACH IS A STRUCTURAL ENGINEER. I CAN SEE THE BONES OF THE BUILDING-- THE STEEL FRAME-- WHICH SUPPORTS THIS STRUCTURE. HE WANTS TO USE HIS KNOWLEDGE TO UNDERSTAND HOW CHICAGO WAS TRANSFORMED DURING CAPONE'S ERA. [1920s band music playing] IN 1920, PROHIBITION WAS ENACTED. AMERICA CHANGED. WHEN IT BECAME ILLEGAL TO BUY OR SELL ALCOHOL, ORDINARY PEOPLE BECAME CRIMINALS, GANGSTERS BECAME HEROES, AND MEN LIKE AL CAPONE WERE GIVEN A WAY TO GET RICH FAST. 1920 WAS THE YEAR WHEN CAPONE, A NEW YORKER, CAME TO CHICAGO. HE WAS A PROFESSIONAL CRIMINAL WITH A SIMPLE PLAN-- THE CITY'S ILLEGAL LIQUOR TRADE WAS RUN BY AMATEURS. HE'D TAKE CONTROL. OUR INVESTIGATORS WANT TO FIND OUT WHAT IT WAS ABOUT CHICAGO THAT MADE IT THE IDEAL LOCATION FOR CAPONE TO SET UP. HISTORIAN TIM SAMUELSON SUGGESTS THAT THE CITY WAS WIDE OPEN FOR EXPLOITATION. TIM, CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT IT WAS ABOUT CHICAGO'S GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION THAT HELPED IT GROW AS A VICE CAPITAL? WELL, CHICAGO WAS THE PERFECT PLACE FOR VICE TO FLOURISH AND KIND OF A CENTER OF COMMERCE IN A WAY FOR ILLICIT ACTIVITY FOR THE SAME REASON CHICAGO GREW TO BEGIN WITH-- IT WAS IN THE CENTER OF EVERYTHING-- YOU HAD PERFECT TRANSPORTATION, YOU HAD THE LAKE, YOU HAD THE RIVER, YOU HAD THE RAILROADS. FOR PEOPLE PASSING THROUGH, CHICAGO HAD SOMETHING TO OFFER FOR EVERYBODY-- PERHAPS IT MIGHT BE YOUR LAST TIME TO HAVE A REALLY GOOD TIME IN A LONG TIME. [piano music playing] THE CITY ALREADY HAD ITS VICE DISTRICT-- THE LEVEE. THIS WAS THE AREA THAT CAPONE TARGETED FIRST. IN THE EARLY DAYS OF CHICAGO, ALL OF THE ILLICIT ACTIVITY WAS LOCATED IN ONE PLACE. THEY CALLED IT THE LEVEE ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF CHICAGO. THE AUTHORITIES LOOKED THE OTHER WAY, BUT THEY KIND OF REALIZED THAT A GROWING CITY JUST KIND OF HAD TO HAVE THESE THINGS. MOST OF THE BUILDINGS OF THE LEVEE WERE BULLDOZED IN THE '70S. BUT VOULA SARIDAKIS IS SEARCHING FOR TRACES OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD THAT CAPONE KNEW. BY USING MAPS, PHOTOS AND DOCUMENTS FROM THE TIME, SHE WANTS TO PINPOINT KEY LOCATIONS. I'M LOOKING FOR COLOSIMO'S RESTAURANT, WHICH ACCORDING TO THIS MAP OF THE SOUTHSIDE LEVEE IS LOCATED ON THIS BLOCK. 2118, 2120-- AND THE ADDRESS IS 2122 AND SO IT WOULD HAVE BEEN-- AH, RIGHT HERE, WHERE THIS CAR PARK IS RIGHT NOW. NOW AN EMPTY LOT, COLOSIMO'S WAS WHERE CAPONE CUT HIS FIRST DEALS. HE STARTED BY SUPPLYING BOOTLEG LIQUOR AND RUNNING PROTECTION RACKETS. HE HAD CONTROL OF THE ALCOHOL AND THAT GAVE HIM CONTROL OF THE BARS. NEXT, HE MOVED INTO OTHER AREAS-- GAMBLING AND PROSTITUTION. THIS AUTO PARTS STORE USED TO BE A BROTHEL. IT'S ONE OF THE FEW REMAINING STRUCTURES FROM THE VICE DISTRICT OF THE 1920S. DOCUMENTS SHOW THAT, THEN, IT WAS THE CULLERTON HOTEL. A STONE'S THROW AWAY FROM COLOSIMO'S, THE CULLERTON HOUSED THE RUTHLESSLY EFFICIENT MONEY-MAKING OPERATION. VOULA GOES INSIDE. OF YOU LOOK DOWN HERE ON THE FLOOR, YOU SEE THESE BEAMS, THESE PARTITIONS, DOWN HERE AS WELL AS UP IN THE CEILING, AND SO THESE WOULD HAVE BEEN SEPARATE ROOMS IN THIS HOTEL. THE ROOMS ARE RATHER SMALL, AND THIS PROBABLY WOULD HAVE BEEN AN ESTABLISHMENT WHICH YOU PAID BY THE HOUR. CAPONE'S NAME MAY NOT HAVE BEEN ON THE CULLERTON'S DEEDS, BUT HE CERTAINLY CONTROLLED THE HOTEL'S PROSTITUTES. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN ABSOLUTELY SEEDY HOTEL BACK THEN, AND IT REALLY RUNS COUNTER TO THE STORIES THAT WE HEAR ABOUT THE GLAMOROUS LIFE WHICH THESE UNDERGROUND INDIVIDUALS USED TO LIVE IN. THERE WAS A CONTRAST BETWEEN THE GLAMORIZED IMAGE OF AL CAPONE'S CHICAGO AND ITS SORDID REALITY. THIS BECOMES CLEAR WHEN WE STUDY THE HOTEL'S FLOOR PLANS. NOT ONE OF THESE CHEAP, SEEDY ROOMS WAS BIGGER THAN A PRISON CELL. IT'S VERY EERIE TO IMAGINE ALL THE PEOPLE WHO WOULD'VE BEEN COMING THROUGH HERE. CAPONE KEPT HIMSELF AWAY FROM THIS SIDE OF HIS OPERATION. HE SPENT HIS TIME IN AN ESTABLISHMENT WITH A VERY DIFFERENT CLIENTELE. IN NORTHERN CHICAGO IS THE GREEN MILL BAR. THE SYNDICATE TOOK CONTROL OF THIS PLACE IN THE 1920S AND IT ONLY SERVED ALCOHOL TO PEOPLE WITH CLASS AND CASH. IT WAS A REAL FANCY JOINT BACK THEN. WOMEN HAD TO WEAR GLOVES AND A HAT, AND MEN HAD TO BE DRESSED WITH A SUIT ON JUST TO GET IN. THE BOOZE SOLD HERE WAS EITHER SMUGGLED BY CAPONE OR PRODUCED IN ONE OF HIS BREWERIES. AND IF HE DIDN'T SELL ENOUGH, THEY OWNER FACED A VISIT FROM CAPONE'S BOYS. CAPONE'S WAY OF DOING THINGS MADE HIM ENEMIES. WHEREVER HE WENT, HE HAD TO BE ON HIS GUARD. WHERE WAS AL CAPONE'S BOOTH? AH, THAT'S THE BOOTH RIGHT HERE. HE WOULD SIT IN THAT BOOTH BECAUSE HE COULD SEE BOTH DOORS, AND ANY GANGSTER KNOWS THAT YOU NEVER SIT WITH YOUR BACK TO THE DOOR BECAUSE YOU WANT TO SEE WHO'S COMING IN OR GOING OUT. THE BAR HAS CHANGED LITTLE SINCE CAPONE'S DAY. AND FOR A PARANOID GANGSTER, IT HAD AN EXTRA BENEFIT-- A HIDDEN ESCAPE ROUTE. THERE'S THESE ROOMS DOWN THERE, AND FOR WHAT I'M-- WHAT I'M TOLD BY THESE OLD GUYS, THERE USED TO BE THE PARTIES DOWN THERE AND IF YOU GOT RAIDED AND YOU WANT TO GET OUT OF HERE, THERE'S THE TUNNELS THAT YOU COULD GO THROUGH THAT WALK OUT ON THE STREET LIKE YOU WERE NEVER IN HERE ANYWAY. VOULA DECIDES TO SEE THE TUNNELS FOR HERSELF. SHE WANTS TO INVESTIGATE IF THESE OLD STORIES COULD BE TRUE. THIS SYSTEM OF FREIGHT AND DRAINAGE PASSAGEWAYS MADE CHICAGO UNIQUE-- IT LITERALLY HAD ITS OWN UNDERWORLD. BUT IF THERE WAS A RAID, HOW EFFECTIVE WOULD THE TUNNELS HAVE BEEN AS A MEANS OF ESCAPE? THE FIRST THING THAT I NOTICE IS JUST HOW EXTENSIVE THE TUNNELS ARE. THEY GO IN ALL DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS. AND THE ONE, FOR INSTANCE, BEHIND ME POSSIBLY LEADS UNDERNEATH THE STREET AND INTO OTHER ESTABLISHMENTS. VOULA THINKS THE STORIES CHECK OUT. CERTAINLY THERE'S EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT THE IDEA OF THE-- OF THE MYTHS SURROUNDING AL CAPONE AND THE USE OF THESE TUNNELS POTENTIALLY FOR SMUGGLING, FOR GETTING OUT ONTO THE STREET. UM, POSSIBLY FOR ESCAPING. THE TUNNEL COMPLEX IS EXTENSIVE AND ONCE CONNECTED CELLARS ALL OVER THE NEIGHBORHOOD. TODAY, THE TUNNELS ARE BRICKED OFF. IN CAPONE'S TIME, THIS WASN'T THE CASE. HE AND HIS MEN COULD HAVE EASILY USED THEM TO SMUGGLE LIQUOR BETWEEN CELLARS AND TO ESCAPE TO THE SAFETY OF THE OUTSIDE WORLD. WITH HIS NETWORK IN PLACE, IT TOOK CAPONE JUST A COUPLE OF YEARS TO TURN AN ACTIVITY RUN BY AMATEURS INTO BIG BUSINESS. AND MONEY BOUGHT HIM INFLUENCE. HE WAS ABLE TO PAY OFF CITY OFFICIALS. CHICAGO'S MAYOR, BILL THOMPSON, SEEMED MORE THAN WILLING TO TURN A BLIND EYE TO THE CITY'S SPEAKEASIES AND VICE DENS. THE SITUATION ONLY CHANGED IN 1923, WHEN THOMPSON WAS VOTED OUT OF OFFICE AND REPLACED BY WILLIAM DEVER-- A MAN ON A MISSION TO ENFORCE THE LAW. CAPONE AND HIS ASSOCIATES HAD TO GET THEIR MONEY AND THEIR BUSINESS OUT OF SIGHT-- FAST. BUT THEY WEREN'T ABOUT TO GIVE UP THEIR EMPIRE. OUR INVESTIGATORS ARE IN CHICAGO, TRYING TO BUILD UP A PICTURE OF THE CITY IN THE TIME OF AL CAPONE. THEY'VE DISCOVERED THAT IN 1923, AFTER 3 YEARS OF TURNING A BLIND EYE, CITY OFFICIALS STARTED TO CRACK DOWN ON THE ILLEGAL SALE OF LIQUOR. CAPONE KNEW THAT THE BATTLE WAS GOING TO GET UGLY, SO HE MOVED HIS FAMILY OUT OF THE GANGLANDS. DOCUMENTS SHOW THAT HE BOUGHT A MODEST HOME IN SOUTH CHICAGO FOR 5 AND A HALF THOUSAND DOLLARS. HE BOUGHT IT IN HIS WIFE'S NAME AND MOVED HIS ENTIRE FAMILY IN. VOULA HAS COME TO EXPLORE THIS HOUSE WITH CAPONE'S GREAT-NIECE, DEIRDRE. SHE HAS AGREED TO TALK FOR THE FIRST TIME ABOUT GROWING UP HERE WITH HER UNCLE AL. OH, DEAR. 4 GENERATIONS OF CAPONES LIVED IN THIS HOUSE FOR OVER 30 YEARS. DEIRDRE AND HER FAMILY OCCUPIED THE FIRST FLOOR. AL CAPONE AND HIS FAMILY WERE ON THE SECOND. THIS WAS VERY PRIVATE LIVING QUARTERS. UM, WE WOULD ONLY COME UP HERE TO GET THE THINGS THAT WE NEEDED. WHAT WAS IN THIS ROOM? THIS, UM, WAS WHERE AL WOULD HAVE HIS MEETINGS WITH THE BOYS. AND ANYTHING INTERESTING EVER GO ON IN THE ROOM? WELL, YEAH, YOU KNEW WHEN HE WAS IN HERE AND THE DOOR WAS CLOSED THAT THERE WERE THINGS THAT WERE GONNA BE HAPPENING SOON AFTER THAT. EVEN THE OLD STORE ROOM HELD ITS SECRETS. SO, TELL US ABOUT THIS ROOM. THIS ROOM WAS ALWAYS KEPT LOCKED AND WHEN MY GRANDMOTHER WOULD BRING ME UP HERE AND UNLOCK IT, THERE'D BE CHEESES AND SAUSAGES HANGING ALL OVER THE PLACE AND STACKS OF HUNDRED DOLLAR BILLS. AND WHERE WOULD THAT MONEY BE? ON A SHELF. JUST, OUT IN THE OPEN? JUST OUT IN THE OPEN, YES. CAPONE WAS A RICH MAN. BY RECREATING THE FLOOR PLANS OF THIS 5-ROOM APARTMENT, WE CAN SEE HOW SMALL AND MODEST HIS HOME LIFE WAS. MEETINGS WITH HIS HENCHMEN TOOK PLACE IN THE TINY BLUE ROOM. CAPONE'S BEDROOM WAS HARDLY MUCH BIGGER. THIS IS AL CAPONE'S BEDROOM-- SMALL ROOM, ISN'T IT? FOR A BIG MAN. SO WHAT ARE YOUR MEMORIES OF AL? OH, I'VE GOT LOTS OF MEMORIES. UM, HE TAUGHT ME TO SING. HE TAUGHT ME TO PLAY THE MANDOLIN. UM, BOUNCING ON HIS KNEE. HE WAS MY FAMILY. THIS WAS ALL MY FAMILY. I FELT SAFE HERE. UNCLE AL WAS A GOOD FAMILY MAN. TO DEIRDRE, HE WAS A MAN DEVOTED TO FAMILY, BUT THERE WAS A SEEDY SIDE TO AL CAPONE. VOULA'S FOUND THAT IN ADDITION TO THE HOUSE ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE CITY, CAPONE ALSO PURCHASED AN APARTMENT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF CHICAGO. IT WAS A PLACE TO PARTY WITH HIS MISTRESSES. A PLACE TO LET GO. IT'S THE ONLY BUILDING THAT STILL STANDS TODAY IN CICERO THAT'S ASSOCIATED WITH AL CAPONE, AND WE'RE GONNA GO INSIDE AND TAKE A LOOK. CAPONE WAS A WOMANIZER-- SYPHILIS WOULD EVENTUALLY KILL HIM. HIS PRIVATE PARTIES WERE FUELLED WITH ALCOHOL AND COCAINE, AND THEY TOOK PLACE IN THIS APARTMENT. WELL, THIS WAS THE BEDROOM THEN AS IT IS A BEDROOM NOW, AND I SEE MIRRORS IN THE CORNERS AND ON THE DOOR THERE-- RATHER SUGGESTIVE. THE FEATURES OF THIS ROOM ARE THE SAME AS THEY WERE WHEN AL CAPONE CAME HERE. WELL, WHEN I LOOK AROUND THIS APARTMENT, IT BECOMES VERY EVIDENT THAT THIS WAS HIS PERSONAL SANCTUARY IN CICERO WHERE HE WOULD HAVE PARTIES, DRUGS, HE WOULD BRING HIS MISTRESSES. BUT IN 1923, CAPONE'S WORLD WOULD BE TURNED UPSIDE DOWN. THE ELECTION OF WILLIAM DEVER AS MAYOR MEANT PROHIBITION WAS NOW BEING PROPERLY ENFORCED IN THE CITY OF CHICAGO, DRIVING CAPONE AND HIS BUSINESS INTO THE SUBURBS. CAPONE CHOSE TO GO TO THE PLACE WHERE HE KEPT HIS PRIVATE APARTMENT-- CICERO, 5 MILES FROM DOWNTOWN. VOULA IS FOLLOWING IN HIS FOOTSTEPS. NOW I'M IN CICERO. IT'S AN AMAZING DIFFERENCE WITH DOWNTOWN CHICAGO AND QUITE FAR REMOVED. AND IT MAKES ONE WONDER WHY AL CAPONE WOULD, IN FACT, COME HERE TO SET UP HIS BASE OF OPERATIONS. PERHAPS THE REASON FOR THIS IS BECAUSE HE COULD EASILY EXERT HIS INFLUENCE OVER AN AREA LIKE THIS. BEFORE CAPONE CAME HERE, CICERO WAS MUCH AS IT IS NOW-- AN ORDINARY, QUIET SUBURB. BUT IT WOULD SOON BE TRANSFORMED INTO THE BIGGEST GAMBLING HOTSPOT WEST OF ATLANTIC CITY. ACCORDING TO JOHN RUSSICK, CAPONE CHOSE CICERO BECAUSE HE KNEW THAT ITS OFFICIALS COULD BE BOUGHT. THE CAPONE ORGANIZATION IS ABLE TO MANIPULATE THIS TOWN INTO THE KIND OF OPERATION THAT IT'S LOOKING TO, UH, CREATE HERE, RELATIVELY QUICKLY, PARTLY BECAUSE THERE IS A WEAK POLITICAL ORGANIZATION AND IT IS, UH, LARGELY CORRUPT, AND IT'S OPEN TO THE OPPORTUNITIES THAT THIS NEW GANG PRESENCE OFFERS THEM. SO THERE'S A MARRIAGE OF CONVENIENCE, SO TO SPEAK. CAPONE WASN'T INTERESTED IN HIDING FROM THE LAW, HE WANTED TO BE ABOVE THE LAW. HE TURNED CICERO INTO A PLACE WHERE DISPUTES WERE SETTLED BY SHOOTING. WHEN TOWN ELECTIONS WERE HELD IN 1924, HIS MEN HAD THEIR OWN STYLE OF CAMPAIGNING. DURING THE COURSE OF THE ELECTION, UH, CAPONE'S ORGANIZATION IS OUT IN FORCE-- INTIMIDATING VOTERS, UH, WITH BEATINGS, WITH THREATS, UH, THERE ARE REPORTS OF, UH, PEOPLE WITHIN THE CAPONE ORGANIZATION BEING INSIDE THE POLLING BOOTHS WITH GUNS DRAWN, GUNS EXPOSED ON THE STREETS IN FRONT OF POLLING STATIONS. CAPONE'S METHODS WORKED. THE TOWN OF CICERO AND ITS PEOPLE WERE NOW HIS. WELL, CAPONE'S SUCCESS IN CICERO WAS MONUMENTAL. THEY WERE ABLE TO CONTROL THE POLITICS OF THE TOWN, THEY WERE ABLE TO RUN THEIR OPERATIONS IN CHICAGO AND THEY WERE ABLE TO EXPAND THEIR OPERATIONS GREATLY HERE IN CICERO AND THE SURROUNDING AREA. THIS RARE FOOTAGE SHOWS AL CAPONE ENJOYING HIMSELF IN TYPICAL STYLE, AT THE RACETRACK HE OPENED HERE-- DEFIANT, PROUD OF WHAT HE HAD BECOME, AND ABLE TO GO ABOUT HIS BUSINESS IN FULL PUBLIC VIEW. ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF THIS STREET, UH, WAS THE CENTERPIECE OF AL CAPONE'S OPERATIONS HERE IN CICERO. IT WAS A PLACE CALLED THE HAWTHORNE HOTEL. THE HAWTHORNE HOTEL WAS ON CICERO'S MAIN STREET, THE CENTER OF A NETWORK OF ILLEGAL BUSINESS THAT GREW AT AN INCREDIBLE RATE. WITH NO FEAR OF THE LAW, CAPONE'S ONLY WORRY WAS THAT RIVAL GANGS WOULD TRY TO MUSCLE IN ON HIS TERRITORY. AND EVEN HIS HEADQUARTERS AT THE HAWTHORNE, WHERE HE WAS CONSTANTLY SURROUNDED BY ARMED HOODS, WASN'T SAFE. IN 1926, HE NARROWLY SURVIVED AN ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT RIGHT OUTSIDE. THE BUILDING NO LONGER STANDS, BUT WE CAN REVEAL IT AS IT WAS IN ITS HEYDAY. DESPITE ITS ORDINARY EXTERIOR, IT CONCEALED A BAR, A BROTHEL, AND A GAMBLING JOINT. FROM HERE, CAPONE CONTROLLED 250 OTHER PREMISES. THE RACKETS HE RAN FROM THE HAWTHORNE MADE CAPONE A SMALL FORTUNE. BUT THE REST OF THE CITY WAS BOOMING TOO. IN DOWNTOWN CHICAGO, SKYSCRAPERS WERE SPRINGING UP THAT WOULD CREATE THE CITY'S MODERN SKYLINE. LEGITIMATE BUSINESS WAS MAKING EVEN MORE MONEY THAN CAPONE. HE WANTED A PIECE OF IT. CAPONE HAD HAD ENOUGH OF HIDING IN THE SUBURBS. HE WAS ON HIS WAY BACK. [police siren] OUR INVESTIGATORS ARE IN CHICAGO. THEY'VE DISCOVERED HOW AL CAPONE TRANSFORMED THE QUIET SUBURB OF CICERO INTO A PLACE WHERE VICE RULED. NOW THEY'RE HEADING DOWNTOWN TO FIND OUT WHAT CAPONE DID WITH THE MONEY HE MADE IN CICERO. HE WANTED TO MOVE BACK INTO THE HEART OF THE ACTION. CHICAGO IN THE 1920S WAS AWASH WITH MONEY. BIG BUSINESSES WERE KEEN TO BASE THEMSELVES IN THE CITY. SPACE WAS AT A PREMIUM. CHICAGO HAD A VERY SMALL DOWNTOWN AREA; IT WAS HEMMED IN BY THE LAKE, THE RIVER. SO THE ONLY PLACE TO GO WAS UP. AND SO THE REAL ESTATE PEOPLE GOT THE ARCHITECTS AND THE ENGINEERS TO KIND OF RAID THE TOOL BOX OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION AND HELP CREATE THE MODERN SKYSCRAPER. PROSPERITY PRODUCED THE OPPORTUNITY TO RADICALLY TRANSFORM THE SKYLINE. SKYSCRAPERS WOULD BE SYMBOLS OF SUCCESS. THE HIGHER THE CITY ROSE, THE MORE AL CAPONE WANTED TO TAKE HIS PLACE BACK IN DOWNTOWN CHICAGO. ENGINEER JOSH DORTZBACH HAS COME TO INVESTIGATE ONE OF THESE CAPONE-ERA SKYSCRAPERS. THE BLACKSTONE HOTEL IS CURRENTLY UNDERGOING RESTORATION. JOSH HAS THE CHANCE TO SEE THE ENGINEERING BEHIND THE 1920S BUILDING BOOM. HE SEES THE PROBLEMS THAT THE CITY'S BUILDERS FACED. FOR MANY, MANY YEARS, CHICAGO ENGINEERS HAVE HAD TO DEAL WITH THIS-- THIS MUCKY, MARSHY MATERIAL WHICH IS SO DIFFICULT TO BUILD ON. CHICAGO STANDS ON CLAY, SOFTENED BY WATER FROM LAKE MICHIGAN AND THE CHICAGO RIVER. A WAY HAD TO BE FOUND TO REACH FIRMER FOUNDATIONS BENEATH THE MARSHLAND. THE ENGINEERS EMPLOYED A METHOD CALLED CAISSONS. CAISSONS ARE BASICALLY LONG CYLINDERS WHICH EXTEND DOWN TO BEDROCK, CONSISTING OF STRAIGHT CONCRETE. THIS WAS A WAY TO TRANSFER THE WEIGHT OF THE BUILDING DOWN TO THE UNDERLYING, SUITABLE MATERIAL WHICH IS THE BEDROCK LIMESTONE. CAISSONS WERE CRUCIAL IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF THIS BUILDING, AND IN EVERY OTHER SKYSCRAPER TO BE BUILT IN THE CITY SINCE AL CAPONE'S TIME. TO BUILD ABOVE GROUND, THE ENGINEERS HAD TO DIG DOWN 100 FEET. SHAFTS WERE THEN FILLED WITH CONCRETE TO ENSURE THE FOUNDATIONS WERE FIRMLY SECURED TO THE BEDROCK. IN THIS BUILDING, 33 CAISSONS WERE CONSTRUCTED TO ENSURE MAXIMUM STABILITY. WITH THE FOUNDATIONS SECURED, JOSH DISCOVERS THAT ANOTHER PIONEERING TECHNIQUE ENABLED THE BUILDERS TO REACH NEW HEIGHTS. I'VE COME UP HERE TO THE 6TH FLOOR OF THIS BUILDING TO SEE HOW THIS BUILDING IS HELD UP, AND I CAN SEE THE BONES OF THE BUILDING, THE STEEL FRAME WHICH SUPPORTS THIS STRUCTURE AND THE TREMENDOUS WEIGHT WHICH MUST-- AND IS-- BE COMING DOWN THROUGH THIS. IT'S ACTUALLY QUITE MAGNIFICENT. IF YOU LOOK AT IT, YOU SEE THESE RIVETED CONNECTIONS WOULD HOLD IT ALL TOGETHER. USING A STEEL-FRAME STRUCTURE ALLOWED BUILDINGS OF THE 1920S TO GROW TALLER WITHOUT BECOMING EXCESSIVELY HEAVY. PRIOR TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SKYSCRAPER IN CHICAGO, MANY OF THE BUILDINGS WERE MASONRY OR BRICK AND MORTAR LOAD-BEARING WALLS, SO THEY BECAME VERY THICK AT THE BOTTOM. BUT AT THE TIME THEY DECIDED TO DEVELOP THE STEEL-FRAME, IT ALLOWED US TO REMOVE THE BRICK AND MORTAR AND HAVE JUST A SKELETON FRAME OF THE BUILDING EXPOSED. BUT THERE WAS A DOWNSIDE TO THESE LIGHTER, TALLER STRUCTURES-- THEY WERE VULNERABLE TO STRONG WINDS. WE HAD TO DEAL WITH THE PROBLEM THAT THERE IS MORE WIND FORCE ON THE BUILDING. SO THE WIND CONNECTION DEVELOPED, AND THE WIND CONNECTION WAS COMPRISED OF THE MAIN STEEL BEAM, WHICH ALSO SUPPORTS THE WALL ABOVE, AND THEN IT WAS STIFFENED IN A TRIANGULAR FASHION LIKE THIS BOTH ABOVE AND BELOW THE BEAM. THIS ALLOWED THE BUILDING AND ITS CONNECTION TO STABILIZE AGAINST WIND FORCE. DOWNTOWN, JOSH DORTZBACH CHECKS OUT THE MOST CELEBRATED BUILDING CONSTRUCTED USING THESE TECHNIQUES. IT IS THE CHICAGO BOARD OF TRADE. WHENEVER CAPONE CAME INTO THE CITY, THIS IS WHAT HE SAW-- A BUILDING ENVISAGED TO BE THE TALLEST WEST OF NEW YORK CITY. THE BOARD OF TRADE WAS THE SYMBOL OF CHICAGO'S NEW BUSINESS ELITE-- MEN WHO FLAUNTED THEIR WEALTH AND SUCCESS BY CONSTRUCTING MONUMENTAL BUILDINGS. IN CONTRAST, CAPONE AND HIS FELLOW GANGSTERS WERE FORCED BY THE VERY NATURE OF THEIR OPERATIONS TO BE DISCREET. JOSH WANTS TO KNOW MORE ABOUT THE BOARD OF TRADE'S CONSTRUCTION. BY USING WHAT HE'S LEARNED AT THE BLACKSTONE HOTEL AND ORIGINAL ENGINEERING DRAWINGS OF THE BOARD OF TRADE ITSELF, JOSH HAS BEEN ABLE TO FIGURE OUT HOW THE SKYSCRAPER WAS CONSTRUCTED OVER 75 YEARS AGO. WELL, I FOUND A COPY OF THE ORIGINAL STRUCTURAL AND ARCHITECTURAL DRAWINGS. AND YOU CAN SEE VERY CLEARLY HOW IT SETS BACK WITH EACH TIER OF THE BUILDING. FIRST, THE CAISSONS SECURED THE FOUNDATIONS TO THE BEDROCK. THEN THE STEEL FRAME WAS CONSTRUCTED. CLAD WITH LIMESTONE, THIS 43-STORY STRUCTURE ROSE TO A HEIGHT OF 609 FEET. THE HIGHEST POINT ON THE STRUCTURE IS OCCUPIED BY A STATUE OF THE ROMAN GODDESS CERES. THE WAY IT WAS FINISHED REFLECTS THE CONFIDENCE OF THE MEN WHO BUILT IT. THE STATUE AT THE TOP OF THE BOARD OF TRADE HAS NO FACE, AND IT'S SAID THAT THE REASON FOR THAT IS BECAUSE AT THE TIME IT WAS THE TALLEST BUILDING IN CHICAGO AND NOBODY WOULD EVER SEE THE FACE FROM THE GROUND. COMPLETED IN 1929, THE BOARD OF TRADE STILL STANDS IN THE HEART OF DOWNTOWN. IT WAS THE TALLEST BUILDING IN CHICAGO UNTIL 1965-- WHEN THE FACELESS GODDESS WAS FIRST LOOKED DOWN ON BY THE OCCUPANTS OF THE BUILDING'S NEW, TALLER NEIGHBORS. IT WAS AS THE BOARD OF TRADE WAS GOING UP THAT CAPONE PLANNED HIS RETURN TO THE CENTER OF CHICAGO. IN 1928, HE PAID $250,000 TO ENSURE A SYMPATHETIC MAYOR WAS ELECTED. HE WOULD MOVE BACK TO THE CITY FROM CICERO TO OPERATE IN PLAIN SIGHT-- AND IN STYLE. 20 BLOCKS SOUTH OF DOWNTOWN IS THE SITE OF THE METROPOLE HOTEL WHERE CAPONE SET UP HIS HEADQUARTERS IN 50 HOTEL SUITES. IF YOU LOOK AROUND, YOU CAN'T REALLY GET A SENSE OF WHAT THIS USED TO LOOK LIKE. AND PERHAPS WE'RE WALKING INTO WHAT ONCE USED TO BE THE LOBBY OF THIS HOTEL. BUT IF YOU LOOK ACROSS THE STREET, YOU CAN SEE SOME OF THE BUILDINGS THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN HERE IN THE 1920S. THIS 6-STORY BUILDING REPRESENTED THE HEART OF CAPONE'S OPERATIONS. THE LOBBY WAS ALWAYS FULL OF PEOPLE WANTING TO DO BUSINESS. LIQUOR FLOWED, PROSTITUTES CAME AND WENT. THERE WAS GAMBLING AROUND THE CLOCK. THIS IS WHAT THE METROPOLE HOTEL LOOKED LIKE WHEN CAPONE CONTROLLED IT IN THE 1920S. BY 1928, CAPONE RENTED NEARLY EVERY ROOM. HE HELD COURT ON THE FOURTH FLOOR IN 2 ADJOINING SUITES. BY POSITIONING HIMSELF SO NEAR THE CENTER OF CHICAGO, CAPONE HAD MADE THE DECISION NOT TO HIDE ANYMORE. IT REALLY WAS A VERY HIGHLY VISIBLE LOCATION. EVERYONE KNEW HE WAS HERE, UH-- AND IT REALLY WAS A GUTSY MOVE ON HIS PART, BECAUSE IT WAS LIKE HE WAS ANNOUNCING TO EVERYONE, "HERE I AM AND WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO ABOUT IT?" THE CITY AUTHORITIES SEEMED TO TOLERATE CAPONE AS LONG AS HIS CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES WERE KEPT OUT OF SIGHT. BUT EVENTUALLY, GANG VIOLENCE SPREAD TO THE CENTER OF TOWN. THIS EMPTY LOT WAS THE LOCATION OF ONE OF THE MOST NOTORIOUS CRIMES EVER COMMITTED-- THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE. INVESTIGATOR VOULA SARIDAKIS IS IN CHICAGO TRYING TO RECONSTRUCT THE CRIME SCENE. SHE'S GUIDED BY LOCAL HISTORIAN RICHARD LINDBERG. ONE OF THE MOST INFAMOUS CRIMES IN AMERICAN HISTORY OCCURRED ON THIS SITE. AT THE SAME TIME, JOSH DORTZBACH IS GOING TO EXAMINE ONE OF THE KEY PIECES OF TECHNOLOGY THAT HELPED MAKE CHICAGO THE CITY IT WAS-- THE TOMMY GUN. BY EARLY 1929, AL CAPONE HAD RE-ESTABLISHED HIMSELF IN DOWNTOWN CHICAGO, SUPPLYING LIQUOR ILLEGALLY ACROSS THE CITY. BUT TENSION WAS MOUNTING AS HIS CONTROL OF THE TRADE WAS THREATENED BY A RIVAL GANG-- BUGS MORAN'S NORTHSIDERS. THEY WERE CHALLENGING CAPONE'S SYNDICATE WHICH HELD THE SOUTH SIDE. THIS RIVALRY GAVE RISE TO ONE OF THE BLOODIEST MOMENTS IN THE HISTORY OF ORGANIZED CRIME. IT'S THE STUFF OF LEGEND AND GLAMORIZED IN COUNTLESS MOVIES. RICHARD TAKES VOULA TO A KEY VANTAGE POINT. SO WHERE ARE WE? WE'RE STANDING INSIDE THE BAY WINDOW OF 2121 NORTH CLARK STREET, LOOKING OUT AT THE SITE OF THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE. OPPOSITE WAS A GARAGE-- A NORTHSIDE GANG HANGOUT. FROM THESE BUILDINGS, CAPONE'S HIT MEN KEPT WATCH. ROOMS WERE RENTED IN SEVERAL OF THESE BUILDINGS OFFERING PERFECT VIEWS. YOU CAN LOOK OUT THIS BAY WINDOW AND YOU CAN LOOK UPON WHERE THE GARAGE STOOD AND OBSERVE EVERY SINGLE PERSON THAT WAS GOING IN THERE. WHEN CAPONE'S MEN HAD COMPLETED THEIR SURVEILLANCE, THEY PLANNED A RUTHLESS AND BRUTAL STRIKE. ON A VERY COLD VALENTINE'S DAY MORNING IN 1929, UH, THIS GARAGE HERE, THIS LIQUOR DEPOT, UH, BELONGING TO THE, UH, BUGS MORAN GANG, 7 MEN WERE CHATTING, PLAYING CARDS. LET'S GO! UP AGAINST THE WALL! [men yelling] THE HIT TEAM WOULD COMPRISE 4 PEOPLE. 2 OF THEM WOULD GAIN ACCESS DISGUISED AS POLICE OFFICERS. THEY WOULD PRETEND TO BE MOUNTING A RAID. 2 MEN ENTERED THROUGH THE REAR AND THE OTHER 2 SHOOTERS CAME IN FROM THE FRONT DOOR ON CLARK STREET. THE SHOOTING WOULD ONLY START ONCE MORAN'S MEN HAD SURRENDERED THEIR WEAPONS TO THE BOGUS COPS. THE GARAGE HAS BEEN RAZED TO THE GROUND. THERE'S LITTLE EVIDENCE TODAY OF WHERE IT ONCE STOOD. SO, WHAT CLUES ARE THERE LEFT NOW TO TELL US THAT THERE WAS THIS STRUCTURE HERE? YOU CAN SEE THE FEINT TRACES, THE GHOSTLY KIND OF REMINDERS THAT THERE WAS ONCE A BUILDING HERE, BY LOOKING AT THE RESIDUE OF TAR UP ON THE BRICK FACADE FACING HERE. THIS WAS THE ROOF LINE OF THE BUILDING. AND IT EXTENDED ALL THE WAY OVER HERE. USING THE ORIGINAL GARAGE FLOOR PLANS, WE CAN RECREATE THE SCENE OF THE CRIME. IT WAS A MASSACRE THAT SHOOK CHICAGO TO ITS CORE. IT WOULD COME TO SYMBOLIZE THE LAWLESSNESS THAT ORGANIZED CRIME BROUGHT TO THE CITY. THE ATROCITY WAS COMMITTED WITH CAPONE'S SIGNATURE WEAPON-- THE THOMPSON SUBMACHINE GUN. FIRST PRODUCED IN 1920, IT BECAME SO COMMON A SIGHT, IT WAS NICKNAMED THE CHICAGO TYPEWRITER. THE STARTING POSITION IS... TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE TOMMY GUN, ENGINEER JOSH DORTZBACH HAS COME TO MEET LIEUTENANT KEITH HAFER. HE BELIEVES THAT HE IS IN POSSESSION OF THE ACTUAL WEAPONS USED IN THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE. WELL, THESE 2 WEAPONS WERE RECOVERED BY THE BERRIEN COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT FOLLOWING THE MURDER OF A POLICE OFFICER, AND AS PART OF THAT INVESTIGATION, THE SHERIFF AT THAT TIME CONDUCTED A RAID, AND THEY RECOVERED A STEAMER TRUNK FULL OF FIREARMS. THEY WERE SUBSEQUENTLY TESTED AND MATCHED TO PROJECTILES AND CARTRIDGE CASES USED AT THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE. THIS GUN BEARS ALL THE HALLMARKS OF CRIMINAL USE. BACK IN THE 1920S, THE SERIAL NUMBER WAS FILED OFF, MAKING THE WEAPON UNTRACEABLE. THIS GUN IS ONE OF THE PIECES OF ENGINEERING WHICH HELPED SHAPE CAPONE'S CHICAGO. IT'S A RECOIL-OPERATED, FULLY-AUTOMATIC WEAPON. WHEN I LOAD AND COCK THIS WEAPON, I WOULD BE PULLING THE BOLT TO THE REAR, COMPRESSING THIS RECOIL SPRING. WHEN I PULL THE TRIGGER TO FIRE THE WEAPON, THE BOLT IS ALLOWED TO FLY FORWARD OR SLIDE FORWARD. SO IF I GRAB A CARTRIDGE-- ONE OF THESE ROUNDS IS STRIPPED OUT OF THE MAGAZINE AND IS PLACED HERE AND THE BOLT COMES THROUGH, STRIKES THE ROUND. PUSHES IT INTO THE CHAMBER-- THE FIRING PIN WOULD STRIKE THE PRIMER FIRING THE CARTRIDGE, CORRECT. AND THEN THE BOLT WOULD MOVE TO THE REAR. MEANWHILE, THIS-- THIS RECOIL SPRING IS SET, RECEIVES THE BOLT AND CONTINUES TO MOVE BACK AND FORTH. THAT IS CORRECT. [gunshots] SO AS LONG AS MY HAND OR MY FINGER IS STILL ON THE TRIGGER AND THIS IS FLUSH, THE BOLT CONTINUES TO MOVE BACK AND FORTH. AND IT WOULD CONTINUE TO FIRE UNTIL YOU RUN OUT OF BULLETS OR RELEASE THE TRIGGER. FULLY LOADED, THE TOMMY GUN WEIGHS 20 POUNDS. IT'S CAPABLE OF FIRING AT A RATE OF 800 ROUNDS PER MINUTE. IT GAVE A GUNMAN ACCESS TO OVERWHELMING FIRE POWER. THIS WAS ONE OF THE EARLIEST SUBMACHINE GUNS. WHAT THIS COMBINED WAS A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF FIRE POWER, A LOT OF AMMUNITION AND A REASONABLY PORTABLE WEAPON. CAPONE'S WILLINGNESS TO USE THIS DEADLY PIECE OF TECHNOLOGY CREATED A WORLD WHERE DISPUTES WOULD BE RESOLVED WITH LETHAL EFFICIENCY. WE'RE STANDING, UH, RIGHT ALONG THE SITE OF THE NORTH WALL IN NEARLY THE PROXIMATE LOCATION-- OK. WHERE THE SHOOTING STARTED. THE MEN WERE ORDERED TO GET UP FROM THEIR CHAIRS, THEY WERE LINED UP, ORDERED TO PUT THEIR HANDS ON THE WALL, AND WERE ASSASSINATED EXECUTION-STYLE. ALL MAYHEM AND CHAOS BROKE LOOSE. LIEUTENANT HAFER WANTS TO RECREATE WHAT HAPPENED THAT DAY, WITH THE ACTUAL GUNS USED IN THE ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE. THE 2 POLICE OFFICERS HAVE FIRED 90 ROUNDS-- THE SAME NUMBER OF BULLETS BELIEVED TO HAVE BEEN FIRED DURING THE MASSACRE. IT'S EASY TO SEE WHAT HARM THOSE SHOTS WOULD'VE INFLICTED ON A HUMAN BODY. UNBELIEVABLE. THOSE GUNS CREATED SO MUCH DAMAGE. THINK OF THE 7 MEN STANDING IN FRONT OF THAT WALL... AT SUCH CLOSE RANGE, HOW TERRIBLE. CAPONE ESCAPED JUSTICE BECAUSE HIS PART IN THE CRIME WAS NEVER PROVEN. BUT WHAT HE HADN'T TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT WAS THAT THE BRUTALITY OF THE MURDERS WOULD HORRIFY CHICAGO AND THE REST OF THE NATION. THE AUTHORITIES HAD TO BE SEEN TO BE CRACKING DOWN ON THE GANGS. CAPONE MAY HAVE BEEN ENJOYING THE HIGH LIFE IN CHICAGO, BUT HIS FINAL DAYS IN THE CITY WOULD BE SPENT IN ANYTHING BUT LUXURY. THE MASSACRE IN THE GARAGE ON ST. VALENTINE'S DAY, 1929, SHOCKED THE CITY OF CHICAGO TO ITS CORE. ALLEGED TO HAVE MASTER-MINDED THE CRIME, AL CAPONE NOW BECAME PUBLIC ENEMY NUMBER ONE. THE FEDERAL AUTHORITIES KNEW THEY WOULDN'T SECURE A CONVICTION, SO THEY TRIED ANOTHER TRACK. CAPONE WAS PROSECUTED NOT FOR MURDER, BUT FOR TAX EVASION. IN OCTOBER 1931, HE WAS CONVICTED AND ORDERED TO SPEND 11 YEARS IN A FEDERAL PENITENTIARY. HE FILED AN APPEAL AND WAS TAKEN TO THE COOK COUNTY JAIL TO AWAIT HIS FATE. THIS JAIL REMAINS ONE OF THE LARGEST MAXIMUM-SECURITY FACILITIES IN THE UNITED STATES. IT'S WHERE AL CAPONE SPENT HIS LAST DAYS IN CHICAGO. OUR INVESTIGATORS HAVE ACCESS TO THE WING OF THE COOK COUNTY JAIL, WHICH 75 YEARS AGO WAS HOME TO AL CAPONE. IT CONTINUES TO HOUSE PRISONERS TODAY. SO HERE I AM AT THE COOK COUNTY CRIMINAL COURTHOUSE AND JAIL-- CONSTRUCTED IN 1929. AT THE TIME IT WAS THE LARGEST JAIL IN THE FREE WORLD. AND YET EVEN TODAY, STILL ONE OF THE LARGEST IN THE COUNTRY. I SEE THIS HEAVY STRUCTURE-- HEAVY LIMESTONE WALLS, THE OLD GUARD TOWER THAT'S BEEN BRICKED IN, YOU SEE THAT NARROW SLIT WINDOW. QUITE AMAZING. THE JAIL WAS ORIGINALLY CONSTRUCTED TO HOLD 3,200 INMATES. TODAY, IT HOLDS NEARLY 9,000. IT WAS BUILT TO BE THE MOST MODERN FACILITY OF ITS KIND. THE PRISON WARDEN HAS SPECIALLY ARRANGED FOR THIS WING TO BE VACATED SO THAT VOULA AND HISTORIAN JOHN RUSSICK CAN SEE EXACTLY WHERE CAPONE WAS INCARCERATED. THIS WING BECAME HIS WORLD. THE FIRST THING AS I LOOK AROUND THAT I NOTICE, IS JUST HOW CLOSED IT WAS AND-- AND NARROW AND HE WOULD HAVE LOST HIS FREEDOM AND HIS PRIVACY. CAPONE FOUND HIMSELF UNDER THE CONSTANT SURVEILLANCE OF GUARDS WHO PATROLLED THE CORRIDORS ON EITHER SIDE OF HIS TINY CELL. LITTLE HAS CHANGED SINCE HIS TIME HERE. THE MATERIALS THAT WERE USED-- WHICH WERE METAL WALLS AND STEEL BARS AND CONCRETE FLOORS AND ALL OF THAT-- NOT ONLY FULFILLED THE NEEDS OF THE JAIL, BUT HAS KEPT THIS BUILDING INTACT FOR ALL THESE YEARS. THIS IS AN INTERESTING PIECE, THIS, UH, METAL MIRROR THAT'S BEEN POLISHED SO THAT, THERE AREN'T THE POTENTIAL FOR ANY WEAPON MAKING GOING ON. EACH CELL MEASURES A MERE 5 FEET BY 8 FEET AND HAS 2 BEDS. REGULAR INMATES WERE TO BE DENIED ANY LUXURIES. BUT CAPONE WASN'T TREATED LIKE A REGULAR INMATE FOR LONG. HE WAS SOON ABLE TO USE HIS POWER AND INFLUENCE ON THE OUTSIDE TO WIN FAVORS ON THE INSIDE. HE IS ABLE TO CHANGE HIS LIVING CONDITIONS HERE, HE'S ABLE TO GET A BLOCK OF CELLS, HAVE MUCH MORE ROOM, SPECIAL GUESTS. AND HE'S LARGELY ABLE TO CONTINUE TO RUN HIS OPERATIONS OUT OF THE COOK COUNTY JAIL. CAPONE WAS CONVINCED THAT HIS TIME IN JAIL WOULD BE SHORT-LIVED. HE EXPECTED TO BE RELEASED. CAPONE SEEMED SOMEWHAT OBLIVIOUS TO THE IDEA THAT THIS WAS ACTUALLY THE END OF HIS CAREER IN THE RACKETS. AND I THINK THAT THERE WERE A FAIR NUMBER OF POLITICAL AND CIVIC LEADERS WHO FELT THE SAME WAY. PEOPLE FIGURED HE WAS GONNA GET OUT OF THIS JAM HE WAS IN, MAYBE HE WAS GONNA SPEND A FEW MONTHS IN PRISON, BUT HE WOULDN'T BE OFF THE SCENE FOR VERY LONG. AFTER HE SPENT 6 MONTHS AT COOK COUNTY, CAPONE SERVED 7 YEARS IN A SERIES OF DIFFERENT PENITENTIARIES. AS I WALK THROUGH THIS JAIL, PAST THESE SMALL CELLS, AND THROUGH THIS NARROW PASSAGEWAY, I'M STRUCK BY THE FACT THAT THIS WAS AL CAPONE'S LAST PLACE WHERE HE STAYED BEFORE LEAVING CHICAGO. AND BY THE TIME HE LEFT, HE WAS JUST ANOTHER INMATE, JUST ANOTHER NUMBER. CAPONE HAD ONCE RULED CHICAGO, AND THIS IS WHAT HIS EMPIRE HAD SHRUNK TO. EVEN THOUGH THIS IS A MAXIMUM-SECURITY FACILITY, WE'VE SECURED SPECIAL PERMISSION TO REVEAL THE BUILDING'S LAYOUT. EACH FLOOR ON EACH WING CONSISTS OF 39 CELLS WITH CORRIDORS RUNNING ALONG EITHER SIDE. THERE ARE 8 WINGS AND 5 FLOORS IN TOTAL. CAPONE LEFT THIS PLACE IN 1932 AND BOARDED A TRAIN OUT OF CHICAGO. HIS POWER OVER THE CITY HAD COME TO AN END. THE NEXT YEAR, PROHIBITION WAS REPEALED, DELIVERING A BODY-BLOW TO THE GANGS WHOSE BUSINESS WAS TRAFFICKING LIQUOR. THE NEXT TIME AL CAPONE RETURNED TO CHICAGO, IT WOULD BE IN A COFFIN. HE WAS RELEASED FROM ALCATRAZ IN 1939. HIS MENTAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH HAD DECLINED. HE DIED IN FLORIDA 8 YEARS LATER. THE CAUSE OF DEATH WAS A HEART ATTACK, PROBABLY BROUGHT ON BY SYPHILIS. HE WAS JUST 48. CAPONE ONLY LIVED IN CHICAGO FOR 12 YEARS, BUT IT WAS A TIME OF GREAT CHANGE. WHILE HE BROUGHT LIQUOR, VICE, AND VIOLENCE TO THE CITY, LEGITIMATE BUSINESSES BROUGHT A WIDER PROSPERITY AND CONSTRUCTION ON A MASSIVE SCALE, WHICH WOULD PRODUCE A CITY FULL OF SKYSCRAPERS. THIS IS THE SKYLINE OF CAPONE'S ERA. AND ALTHOUGH IT'S DWARFED BY THE SKYSCRAPERS THAT HAVE SINCE RISEN OVER DOWNTOWN CHICAGO, IT WAS THE INNOVATIVE BUILDING TECHNIQUES DEVELOPED IN THE 1920S THAT CREATED THE CITY OF TODAY-- A CITY WHERE WE CAN STILL FIND THE TRACES OF AL CAPONE'S LOST WORLD-- IN FORGOTTEN TUNNELS, EMPTY LOTS, SEEDY, CRAMPED HOTEL ROOMS, AND THE VAST PRISON WHERE HIS REIGN OF BLOOD AND BULLETS FINALLY CAME TO AN END. CAPTIONED BY FEATURE SUBTITLING & TRANSLATION www.featuresubtitling.com

Info

Channel: HISTORY

Views: 504,293

Rating: 4.7969737 out of 5

Keywords: history, history channel, history shows, history channel shows, lost worlds, history lost worlds, lost worlds show, lost worlds full episodes, lost worlds clips, lost world, lost worlds season 2 episode 10, lost worlds se2 e10, lost world s2 e10, lost worlds s02 e10, watch lost worlds, watch history shows, watch history full episodes, lost worlds season 2 clips, lost worlds full episode clips, watch lost world, watch lost world fullepisodes, Al Capone's Secret City

Id: w5mHmjb0M2U

Channel Id: undefined

Length: 44min 23sec (2663 seconds)

Published: Wed Jul 15 2020